That's a good plan. If you want to be proactive in the meantime, you could look into completing your entrance counseling and Master Promissory Note on studentaid.gov - that way you'll be ready when the loans do appear in your Tarleton portal. It might save you some time later!

I'm a new student going through this exact same thing right now! Reading through all these responses has been SO helpful. I was literally about to call the financial aid office tomorrow morning in a panic, but now I understand this is totally normal. It's reassuring to hear from so many people who went through the same process. I'm going to take the advice about doing the entrance counseling and MPN ahead of time so I'm ready when the loans show up. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this community is amazing for us newbies trying to figure all this out!

Hey Amara! I'm in a similar boat - mailed my verification docs to Kentucky about 10 days ago and the waiting is killing me too! Based on what everyone's saying here, it sounds like we're looking at 3-4 weeks minimum which is so stressful with deadlines coming up. I'm really glad to hear your school gave you that extension though - that takes some pressure off! One thing that might help while we wait: I've been screenshotting my studentaid.gov account daily so I have proof of when my status changes (or doesn't change lol). My financial aid counselor suggested doing this in case there are any disputes later about processing times. Also keeping my fingers crossed that maybe we'll get lucky and they'll process ours faster than expected! Keep us posted on when yours comes through - I'll do the same. We got this! 💪

I'm going through the exact same nightmare right now! Mailed my verification forms to Kentucky about a week ago and the anxiety is real. Reading through everyone's experiences here is both helpful and terrifying - 3-4 weeks seems to be the norm which is just insane in 2025! @Amara I'm so glad your school gave you that extension - that's exactly what I'm going to do tomorrow morning. It's ridiculous that we have to deal with this stress because their processing system is stuck in the stone age. No confirmation emails, no tracking, just sending important documents into the void and hoping for the best. Has anyone tried reaching out to their congressperson's office? I've heard sometimes they can help expedite federal processing issues, though I'm not sure if that applies to FAFSA stuff. At this point I'm willing to try anything to get some peace of mind! Thanks everyone for sharing your timelines - at least we know we're not alone in this mess. Will definitely update when mine finally goes through!

I'm so glad I found this thread! I'm dealing with the exact same situation with my twin daughters who are both starting college this fall. Our SAI came back higher than expected and both schools initially said they only qualified for partial loan amounts. I was completely panicked thinking we'd have to somehow come up with an extra $4,000 out of nowhere. After reading Diego's success story and all the great explanations here about subsidized vs unsubsidized loans, I called both financial aid offices today. Sure enough, both girls can get the full $5,500 freshman limit - it's just split differently between subsidized and unsubsidized than I originally understood. The first financial aid counselor I spoke to at each school made it sound like they were maxed out, but when I specifically asked about unsubsidized Direct Loans, suddenly there were more options available. This community is seriously a lifesaver for navigating all this confusing financial aid stuff!

Wow, reading through this entire thread has been such an eye-opener! I'm brand new to the FAFSA and financial aid world - my oldest just graduated high school and we're navigating all this for the first time. Our SAI came back at around $15K and I honestly had no idea what that meant or how it would impact loan eligibility. When our financial aid office told us our son only qualified for $3,200 in loans, I just accepted it without questioning because I figured they knew what they were talking about. But after seeing Diego's success story and everyone's explanations about subsidized vs unsubsidized loans, I realize I need to call back and ask specifically about getting the full $5,500 freshman limit. It's honestly shocking how much crucial information isn't clearly explained upfront - like why wouldn't they automatically tell you about all your loan options instead of making you figure out the right questions to ask? This community has been incredibly helpful for a confused parent trying to make sense of it all!

This is such an important discussion! I work at a college financial aid office and we see variations of this situation regularly. One thing I'd add that hasn't been mentioned yet is to make sure your son's Social Security records reflect the name change from adoption (if applicable). Sometimes there can be mismatches between the name on the FAFSA and SSA records that can cause processing delays. Also, when he gets to college, it's worth having a brief conversation with the financial aid office there about his background - not because anything is wrong with his application, but because staff who understand his situation can be helpful advocates if any unusual questions come up during his time there. These kinds of family transitions can sometimes create quirky situations down the road (like if he needs to verify family size for aid renewals), and having someone in the aid office who knows his story from day one can save headaches later.

I just wanted to thank everyone who contributed to this thread - what an incredibly helpful discussion! My son and I were really struggling with this dependency question, and all of your explanations have made it crystal clear. We're going to proceed with marking him as a dependent student and including his adoptive parents' (my parents') financial information. It's such a relief to understand that the adoption completely replaced the guardianship for FAFSA purposes. I also really appreciate all the practical tips about keeping adoption paperwork ready for verification, checking Social Security name records, and potentially connecting with the college financial aid office early on. This community is amazing - you've saved us from what could have been a costly mistake or major delays in his financial aid processing!

So glad to hear you got it sorted out! This thread is going to be really helpful for other families dealing with the same issue. The contributor invitation system really has been a nightmare for so many people this year. It's reassuring to know that creating your own FSA ID is a reliable workaround. Hopefully the Department of Education fixes these technical issues before next year's FAFSA cycle!

I'm so relieved to find this thread! I've been in the exact same situation with my daughter's FAFSA - no contributor email for over 3 weeks now. Reading through everyone's experiences here gives me confidence to just go ahead and create my own FSA ID. It's honestly ridiculous that the Department of Education created a system that causes so much unnecessary stress for families during an already overwhelming process. Thank you all for sharing your solutions - this community is invaluable when the official system fails us!