<p>Heartily agree with Thumper and Sue. I am frustrated that we won't know how much my S will receive in FA for his sophomore year until 8/1. The bill comes on 8/15, is due on 9/15 and classes start Sept 21. We hope that he will receive at least as much as he did this year, but there are no guarantees and no way of figuring it out ahead of time. We'll submit the FAFSA, Profile etc. by 4/15 and then have to wait 3 1/2 months. Any summer vacation we take will be very cheap and involve camping/hiking.</p>
<p>I wish they'd make it easier for students with divorced parents.
I don't know how to contact the non-custodial parent, so now I have to go explain to the counselor my situation & hope she'll write a letter to the colleges.</p>
<p>That & the business and farm supplement is so confusing. I complete it if my dad is self employed right? He's a handyman o_o</p>
<p>Also regarding returning students...we use a monthly tuition payment plan. When DD was a soph and junior, we actually had to set up our payment plan BEFORE we had the financial aid package. It was a shot in the dark.</p>
<p>Not really frustration with the system, which I find interesting and doable, but a bit complex at first. My frustration is with the attitude of some:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>People who complain about the dearth of financial aid for the "middle class," and then mention in passing that they make 150K or 200K, apparently clueless that the average family income in the US is about 50K. Then when challenged, they without fail mention that they have very expensive lifestyles to maintain (in very expensive communities), and that after paying all the bills every month, there's very little money left over for college. Sheez.</p></li>
<li><p>Students breathlessly post about their "dream school" and how they simply won't settle for a "state school." As soon as I see a post from a student mentioning his "dream school" I know he's headed for trouble, and that his parent's haven't adequately discussed the realities of applying for college with him.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Ok so I contacted the schools I applied to and they totally dispelled my fears. Their systems won't even pull up last years FAFSA. Good news for me and anyone else who made this mistake.</p>