Hey Scarlett! I'm a financial aid counselor and wanted to jump in with some quick actionable steps for your call tomorrow, since timing really is critical at this point in March. **Prepare these specific questions:** 1. "Do I have any remaining annual loan eligibility for summer 2025?" 2. "Am I eligible for Year-Round Pell, and if so, how much?" 3. "What summer-specific scholarships or institutional grants does the school offer?" 4. "Is there a summer aid waitlist I can join if initial funding is exhausted?" **Documents to have ready:** - Your Student Aid Report (SAR) from your current FAFSA - Degree audit showing required courses - Summer course schedule with credit hours **If they say no funding is available, ask:** - "Is there an appeals process for summer aid?" - "Do you have emergency funding for students needing summer classes to graduate on time?" - "Can I speak with a summer aid specialist or supervisor?" The key phrase to use: "I need these courses to maintain satisfactory academic progress and graduate on time." Schools often have discretionary funds for this specific situation. Even calling in late March, I've seen students get substantial aid through persistence and knowing what to ask for. Don't accept the first "no" - there are usually multiple funding buckets to check. You've got this! The fact that you're taking 12 credits (full-time) actually works in your favor for aid calculations.

This thread has been absolutely incredible - thank you all SO much for the detailed advice and encouragement! As someone who was completely panicking about summer funding just yesterday, I now feel like I actually have a solid game plan. I'm calling my financial aid office first thing this morning armed with all the specific questions you've shared, especially asking about Year-Round Pell, summer-specific institutional grants, and any appeals processes. I've prepared that one-page document with my degree audit and course requirements that several of you mentioned was helpful. The timing aspect definitely has me concerned since it's already late March, but reading about everyone's successful experiences - even with late applications - gives me real hope. I'm prepared to be persistent and ask to speak with supervisors if needed. I'll absolutely update this thread with how the call goes and what funding options I discover. Even if my specific situation doesn't work out perfectly, hopefully my experience can help future students who find themselves in similar situations. Seriously, this community is amazing. I went from feeling completely lost to having a clear action plan in less than 24 hours. Thank you all for taking the time to share your knowledge and experiences! 🙏 Wish me luck - calling in about an hour! 📞

As a newcomer to both this community and the Parent PLUS loan process, I want to thank everyone for sharing such detailed and practical advice! This thread has been incredibly educational for me as I'm facing a similar situation with my daughter starting college in the fall. Reading through all these experiences, I'm convinced that the specific amount approach is definitely the way to go. The stories about excess funds being spent on non-educational expenses really drive home why precision matters so much, especially with those high interest rates. I have a follow-up question: for those who successfully used the specific calculation method, how did you handle potential changes in costs between when you applied for the loan and when bills were actually due? I'm thinking about things like textbook costs that might be higher or lower than estimated, or unexpected fees that pop up during registration. Did you find that your buffer amount was sufficient, or did some of you need to make adjustments mid-year? Also, I'm wondering about the timing of when to submit the Parent PLUS application relative to when financial aid packages are finalized. Should I wait until I have the absolute final numbers from the school, or is it okay to apply based on preliminary estimates? Thank you all for creating such a supportive and informative discussion - it's exactly what nervous parents like me need when navigating this complex process!

As someone completely new to the Parent PLUS loan process, this entire discussion has been incredibly valuable! I'm facing a similar situation with my son starting college this fall, and reading through everyone's real-world experiences has convinced me that the specific amount approach is absolutely the right way to go. What really strikes me is how consistently those who borrowed precisely what they needed felt good about their decisions, while the stories about excess funds being misused serve as such important cautionary tales. The psychological aspect that Owen mentioned about having "extra" money leading to rationalized spending is something I hadn't considered but makes perfect sense. I'm planning to follow the advice here: calculate our exact gap ($38,750 - aid received), add a modest buffer for legitimate academic surprises (around $1,200-1,500), and request that specific amount. The tips about contacting the bursar's office early to ensure any refunds come to me rather than my son, and keeping detailed records of what the loan covers, are going straight onto my to-do list. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences - both the successes and the mistakes. This kind of peer-to-peer guidance is invaluable for families navigating this complex process for the first time. I feel much more confident about making an informed decision now!

I'm also new to this whole FAFSA process and got married just last month, so this thread has been both helpful and confusing! Reading through all the responses, I'm seeing a lot of conflicting information about whether to include both spouses when you get married after the tax year. @Heather Armstrong's point about the FSA handbook is really important - it does seem like the official guidance requires both married parents to contribute regardless of when they got married. But I'm also seeing people say they successfully completed their FAFSA with only one parent's information after mid-year marriages. As someone who's completely overwhelmed by this process, I think I'm going to err on the side of caution and follow the official FSA handbook requirements rather than rely on anecdotal experiences. Has anyone else found the actual FSA handbook section that addresses mid-year marriage timing specifically? I want to make sure I'm not missing any exceptions or special provisions before I submit. This whole process is so much more complicated than I expected! Thank you everyone for sharing your experiences and especially for bringing up the official guidelines.

As someone who just went through this exact situation a few months ago, I want to add some clarity to this discussion. I got married in October and completed my son's FAFSA in January. After reading through all the conflicting advice here, I ended up calling the Federal Student Aid Information Center directly (used Claimyr to avoid the hold time - thanks @Victoria Scott for that tip!). Here's what they told me: The key is the FAFSA question that asks if your marital status changed after December 31, 2023. If you answer YES to this question, you only need to provide YOUR 2023 tax information, not your spouse's, because you weren't married during that tax year. The FSA representative was very clear about this. @Heather Armstrong - while the handbook language you quoted is generally correct, there IS a specific provision for marriages that occur after the tax year ends. The FAFSA system accounts for this timing difference, which is why that marital status change question exists. My son's FAFSA processed smoothly with just my income information, and we received his aid package without any issues. The school did request our marriage certificate during routine verification, but that was it. I'd recommend calling FSA directly if you're still unsure - the representatives are trained on these specific timing scenarios and can give you the definitive answer for your situation.

As a newcomer to this community and the FAFSA process, I want to express my gratitude for this incredibly informative thread! I'm currently helping my son with his 2025-2026 FAFSA application, and like many others here, I was completely confused about how to properly report my pension income. After reading through all the detailed advice and real-world experiences shared here, I now have a clear understanding: the taxable portion of my pension distributions will be captured automatically through the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (as part of my AGI), while the untaxed portion needs to be manually entered in the "Additional Financial Information" section under "untaxed portions of IRA distributions and pensions." The warnings about double-counting income and the resulting delays in aid processing really emphasize how important it is to get this right the first time. I'm going to make sure I have my 1099-R form ready and follow the advice about being conservative with estimates rather than risking underreporting. Thank you to everyone who shared both their successes and costly mistakes - this community is truly helping families navigate one of the most stressful parts of college planning!

As a newcomer to this community and the FAFSA process, I'm incredibly grateful to have found this detailed discussion! My husband recently started receiving pension distributions and I was completely overwhelmed trying to figure out how to report them on our daughter's 2025-2026 FAFSA. Reading through everyone's experiences has been such a relief - it's clear I'm not alone in finding this confusing! Based on all the advice here, I now understand that the taxable portion of pension income gets captured through the IRS Data Retrieval Tool (included in AGI) while the untaxed portion needs to be manually entered in the "Additional Financial Information" section under "untaxed portions of IRA distributions and pensions." The cautionary stories about double-counting income and the resulting SAI calculation errors really opened my eyes to how critical accuracy is. I'm definitely going to have our 1099-R form ready and follow the advice about being conservative with estimates. Thank you to everyone who shared both successes and mistakes - this thread is going to help so many families avoid costly errors!

As a newcomer to this community, I just want to echo what everyone else has said - this thread has been incredibly reassuring! I submitted my FAFSA last week and had that exact same moment of panic when I couldn't find where to enter my savings account balance. I actually logged out and back in multiple times thinking the page wasn't loading correctly! It's amazing to see how many people had this identical experience with the new simplified system. The explanation about the FAFSA Simplification Act and the shift to direct IRS data integration makes so much sense - it really does seem like a much more efficient and accurate approach than having students manually enter all their asset information. Reading through everyone's stories has transformed my initial worry about an incomplete application into genuine appreciation for how much better this new system is designed. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and helped newcomers like me understand these significant changes!

As a newcomer to this community, I just want to say how incredibly helpful this entire discussion has been! I'm in the middle of my FAFSA application right now and was starting to panic because I couldn't find anywhere to enter my checking account information. Like so many others here, I kept going back through each section thinking I must have missed something important. Reading through everyone's shared experiences has been such a huge relief - it's amazing how the new simplified system has eliminated those manual asset entries by using IRS data directly instead. The fact that this is actually how the 2025-2026 FAFSA is designed to work, rather than being some kind of error or oversight, makes me feel so much more confident about my application. Thanks to everyone who took the time to explain the FAFSA Simplification Act changes - this thread has turned what felt like a major mistake into understanding of a genuinely improved system that's more accurate and less prone to errors. It's wonderful to see such a supportive community helping people navigate these significant changes!