FAFSA delays leave students in financial aid limbo. If you're one of them, here's what to do

High school seniors across the country and their parents are frustrated with the delays of the new FAFSA application.

With the enrollment deadline approaching, some students do not know what school to choose since they still don’t know how much they’ll end up paying. 

In that situation is Leslie Miranda, a Keany High School senior. When NBC 7 Responds talked with her she told us she constantly looks at her phone, not just to stay in touch with friends but to stay on top of how much she and her family will pay for college. 

“I’m trying to stay positive and just look forward and think about the future,” she said. 

Miranda said she plans to major in business marketing at San Diego State but that plan is on hold until her FAFSA application goes through and she and her parents can come up with a budget. 

“It would be very helpful to know how much it would be because it’s coming up this year already,” she told us.

Jim Lundgren has guided students like Miranda through the college admissions process for more than 20 years. He said the FAFSA delays have flipped the process on its head for families mindful of college tuition.

“It’s the last thing they’ll hear -- what it’s going to cost them. They hear all the advertising: 'Look at our great school,' they get a package saying you’re admitted. The last thing they finally talk about is how much it’s going to cost and it should be number one,” Lundgren said. 

He added that after some delays and a couple of weeks of testing it out, the new application process finally seems ready to go out to the schools. 

“We had a beta phase during the whole month of January. All of those FAFSA are in the waiting line. They're going to finally start processing after they've done these two weeks of testing with the colleges.”

Here’s what to do, according to the U.S. Department of Education, if you’re in this situation:

1. First, check the status of your application regularly by logging into the “MyFafsa” portal on the studentaid.gov website. If you haven’t applied, you’ll have until June 30th to do so. Remember, it’s a much quicker process than before as the IRS now shares household income data with FAFSA.

Miranda recalled the process being easy for her. “Everything went directly to my parents, and they filled it out through their email form.”

2. You’ll eventually receive a confirmation email letting you know that it’s been successfully processed. With that, you’ll get a good idea of how much financial assistance you may receive.
3. If you’re attending a school in California, keep in mind that the deadline for state assistance like Cal-Grants has been pushed back to April 2nd.
4. Once your FAFSA application has been processed, it wouldn’t hurt to contact the schools you want to attend just to make sure they have it on their end. This process may again test your patience says Lundgren. 

“You need to give the schools a couple of weeks themselves. They're only going to get 1,500 a day dripped on them. They have millions,” Lundgren said.

Meanwhile, Miranda is still waiting to hear back on her application status. But she told us she’s determined to stay positive as she continues to look forward to her future. 

“I haven’t heard anything back from FAFSA. I haven’t received an email.”

Click this link to know what schools have pushed back their enrollment deadline.

NBC 7 also received reports that some immigrant parents are having issues with their FAFSA application, if that’s what’s happening with your family, check our Telemundo 20 report where we take a closer look at those setbacks.