I have two last names and this has caused problems with Fafsa and SSA peopl because they are claiming that it doesn’t match. I come from a very low income family and my question is if my Fafsa doesn’t work out then would I have to pay for my college tuition!? I have applied to public and private colleges! Plz help I talked w my counselor and he finds it strange too. Thank you.
What schools have you applied to?
Did you try the schools’ Net Price Calculator?
What are your stats?
Have you called the FAFSA phone number?
I have applied to Ivy League and 4 UCs. My EFC is 0.0000 and I did call them but they hung up on me every time I called which was like 7 times 
You need to keep trying till you get through to fafsa. Sounds like maybe they were having technical difficulties. If you filed the fafsa under one name but receive ssa under a different name you will probably want to get that fixed but don’t do anything till you talk to fafsa.
You absolutely need to get the fafsa squared away. It is the foundation of all financial aid.
When my parents registered in SSA they made a mistake and they said the only way to fix it is through the court which is what I am working on yet it will be done in April! The Fafsa said they can’t do anything about it.
At SSA it is
First name Fred
Middle name Whiting Brown
Last name Fields
But it is supposed to be
First name Fred
Middle name Whiting
Last name Brown Fields
Name changed to protect identity
ED
For now on FAFSA can’t you just use what matches SSA?
I didn’t ask your EFC in my earliest post. I asked if you have used the Net Price Calculators. These are not the same thing.
I agree with @madison85 in post #6. Use what SSA has for now. Change it all after you’re in school. It will take time to change the Social Security Records.
I did go with what the SSA has yet it said I need to start a new FAFSA Bc its a different last name. This is a problem Bc it won’t match when it is sent to colleges plus I read that it’s bad to make two FAFSA applications.
This has happened to me. If the IRS and SSA records don’t match, there is no work around. What we did–go to your congressional representative’s office with all your documentation (social security cards, tax returns, and whatever error message you’re getting from FAFSA, etc.) There is someone called a tax advocate that the representative will put on your case to straighten things out.
Ours was not a FAFSA issue, but one of those years (early in the 2nd Bush admin, maybe) where there was a tax rebate or incentive or something. It was $600. We couldn’t get it because my two last names weren’t the same for the SSA as they were for the IRS. Took some time, but I got it fixed without going to court.
FWIW, told my girls, if they got married, keep their own name or change to their spouse’s. DO NOT hyphenate or try to use two. The federal agencies will screw it up every few years.
I have set a date to get it fixed with the court which is on March 4. This is problem Bc it’s after due date
If you have to change a major ID field, like the SSN or last name, you will most likely have to redo the FAFSA. I don’t know where you read that it’s “bad to make two FAFSA applications” but we made a mistake with a SSN, did a new FAFSA and it was fine. I spoke to FAFSA’s customer service and was told that I could “fix” the original one but that it would take much longer than just starting a new one. If the original FAFSA was rejected because the SSN/name didn’t match, it was never processed and sent to the schools, so there won’t be any confusion or duplicate FAFSA’s.
As for the “problem Bc it won’t match when it is sent to colleges”, most colleges match by SSN. They may look at the name but, if it doesn’t find a match, it will use the SSN. Send a statement to admissions and financial aid indicating that for SSN X, some documents may come in with the name “Y” and some with “Z”, and explain why.
Within your timeframe, you will have MUCH better luck getting the colleges to work with you than trying to fix your SSN/name issue with government entities. Complete the FAFSA in whatever way it will accept and then notify the colleges of the name discrepancies; as long as the SSN matches and the name difference is reasonable, they will work with you.
I think the OP was concerned that she filed the FAFSA early, and she’ll lose her place in line for aid that is based on first come, first served. I think all you can do is plead your case with the school.
It doesn’t do any good to have a place in line if you can’t get the FAFSA processed.