I'm so glad to see there's finally some good news in this thread! As a parent who went through this nightmare last year with my oldest, I can't stress enough how important it is to document EVERYTHING. Take screenshots of error messages, save email confirmations, and keep notes of who you spoke with and when. One thing I learned the hard way - even after you successfully submit, keep checking your student aid report (SAR) regularly. The system glitches can sometimes cause processing delays or require additional verification steps that aren't clearly communicated. My daughter's aid package was delayed by 6 weeks because we didn't realize additional documents were needed due to a processing error. Also, for families with multiple kids applying - consider staggering your submissions by a few days if possible. The system seems to handle single applications better than when you're trying to manage multiple at once. Wishing everyone patience and success with this frustrating process!

As someone who just went through this process for the first time, I wanted to add a few things that helped me navigate these technical issues. First, I found that using a desktop computer worked much better than mobile - the mobile version seems even more glitchy. Second, I kept a separate document with all my financial information typed out so I could quickly copy/paste if the fields kept clearing. One thing that really saved me was calling my state's higher education agency directly rather than the federal FSA line. They had much shorter wait times (about 20 minutes) and were able to provide state-specific guidance about deadlines and workarounds. They also confirmed that many state aid programs have extended their priority deadlines this year due to the FAFSA issues. For anyone still struggling - don't give up! I know it's incredibly frustrating, but there are people and resources available to help. Your kids' education is worth pushing through this broken system.

One more important tip: Once you receive all the financial aid offers, you can actually negotiate with schools. If School A offers your child a better package than School B, but they prefer School B, you can contact School B's financial aid office and politely ask if they can match or improve their offer based on the competing offer. Many parents don't realize financial aid offers aren't always final. This strategy works especially well when the schools are of similar ranking/prestige. Have digital copies of the competing offers ready to share when you make this request.

I'm so sorry for your loss and admire your strength in navigating this process for three kids at once. As a parent who went through this recently, I want to add a few practical tips: 1. Create a spreadsheet to track all the financial aid packages when they arrive - with triplets, you'll have a lot of numbers to compare across multiple schools. 2. Don't forget about state-specific aid programs. Many states have grants for residents that aren't always well-publicized but can add thousands to your aid package. 3. Consider reaching out to your high school guidance counselor too - they often have relationships with college financial aid offices and can sometimes make calls on your behalf. 4. If any of your kids are considering community college for the first two years, this could be a strategic way to reduce costs while they're all in school simultaneously. You're doing an incredible job managing this complex situation. The financial aid offices really do want to help families like yours - the key is just getting through to speak with someone who can understand your unique circumstances.

Hi everyone! I'm new to this community but unfortunately dealing with the exact same frustrating issue. My FAFSA has been stuck at "In Progress" for 9 days now even though my dad and I completed everything and both signed electronically. The status tracker just won't move past step 1 no matter how many times I check. This thread has been a lifesaver - I had no idea about the "submission verification" glitch that Victoria mentioned! It makes so much sense now why everything can appear complete on our end but still not actually submit properly. The fact that the system doesn't give any indication that something failed behind the scenes is just terrible design. Victoria, thank you for sharing your resolution! I'm definitely going to try calling FSA tomorrow morning around 8 AM like Sofia suggested. I'll make sure to specifically mention the "submission verification" issue so hopefully they can identify and fix it quickly like they did for you. If calling doesn't work out, I might also look into that Claimyr service - it's frustrating to potentially pay extra for their system bug, but my scholarship deadlines are coming up fast and I need this resolved ASAP. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences and advice!

Hi everyone! I'm new to this community and unfortunately dealing with this exact same issue. My FAFSA has been stuck at "In Progress" for about 10 days now despite my mom and I completing all sections and signing electronically. The status tracker shows we're still on step 1 even though everything appears complete on our end. Reading through this thread has been incredibly helpful - I had no idea about the "submission verification" glitch that Victoria discovered! It's so frustrating that the system can fail silently like this while still showing signatures as complete. How are students supposed to know there's even a backend problem? Victoria, thank you so much for sharing your resolution story - it gives me hope that this can actually be fixed! I'm definitely going to try calling FSA tomorrow morning around 8 AM like Sofia suggested, and I'll make sure to specifically mention the "submission verification" issue. If I can't get through after a few tries, I might look into that Claimyr service too. With scholarship deadlines approaching, it seems worth the cost to avoid those endless hold times. Thank you all for sharing your experiences - it's such a relief to know this is a widespread system bug with a known solution!

As someone who went through this exact process two years ago with similar income ($89k), I can share what actually worked for us. The new FAFSA formula did help - our SAI was about $3,000 lower than what our old EFC would have been. Here's what I wish I'd known earlier: 1. Run the Net Price Calculator on every school's website BEFORE your son applies. This gives you a realistic estimate of what you'll actually pay, not just the sticker price. 2. Look into schools with generous merit aid for middle-stat students. Places like Denison, College of Wooster, and many regional universities often give significant merit scholarships to students with your son's profile. 3. Don't overlook honors colleges at state universities - they often come with automatic scholarships and smaller class sizes while keeping costs manageable. 4. Time your FAFSA filing strategically. We filed in early January using prior-prior year taxes, then made updates once current year taxes were done. The middle-class squeeze is real, but there ARE affordable options out there. My son ended up at a private college that cost us less than our state flagship because of their merit aid. Cast a wide net and don't assume anything based on sticker price alone!

I'm new to the FAFSA process too and this thread has been incredibly eye-opening! I had no idea about the changes to the new formula or that retirement contributions could help. One question I haven't seen addressed - for those of you who've been through this, how far in advance should we start preparing? Our daughter is currently a junior in high school, and I'm wondering if there are things we should be doing now to position ourselves better for next year's FAFSA filing. Also, I keep hearing conflicting advice about whether it's worth applying to expensive private schools at all with our income level (we're around $95k). Reading some of your success stories gives me hope that it might actually be worth casting that wider net rather than just assuming they're out of reach financially. Thanks to everyone sharing their real experiences - it's so much more helpful than the generic advice you find on most websites!

Just want to echo what others have said about contacting the financial aid office directly - that was a game changer for me too! I was in almost the exact same boat (household income around $95K) and had given up after three years of basically nothing. But when I called about my daughter's final year, they told me about an emergency fund for families affected by the pandemic that I never would have known about otherwise. Got $2,800 that literally saved us from taking out another loan. The new FAFSA really is easier too - I was shocked when I finished it in under 30 minutes this year compared to the multi-hour ordeal it used to be. And with those SAI changes everyone's mentioning, it seems like they're finally recognizing that middle-class families need help too. Definitely worth one more try, especially since you've already identified specific programs at your daughter's school!

I'm new to this community but reading through everyone's experiences has been so eye-opening! I'm in a very similar situation - household income around $102K and I've been putting off the FAFSA for my daughter's sophomore year because I assumed we'd get nothing again. But hearing about these SAI formula changes and the hidden scholarship opportunities that require FAFSA completion has completely changed my perspective. The fact that so many of you found success by directly calling financial aid offices is brilliant - I never thought to be proactive like that. I just assumed they'd contact us if there were opportunities. And Layla, I'm so glad you decided to give it another shot and found those major-specific scholarships! Question for everyone: when you called your financial aid offices, did you just ask generally about programs requiring FAFSA, or did you mention your specific income range? I want to make sure I'm asking the right questions when I call my daughter's school this week.