Special & Unusual Circumstance Request
Sometimes the information you filed on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) does not reflect your current financial situation or does not take into account an unusual circumstance with you and/or your family. In these cases, you may submit a request for review of your financial aid status for special or unusual circumstances. In certain circumstances, the Financial Aid Office may make adjustments to the FAFSA information to more accurately reflect the current situation.
Which request reflects my situation?
A Special Circumstance Request is a process is used to account for changes in the family’s financial situation or ability to pay for college. This may be due to the FAFSA using two year prior tax information. An Unusual Circumstance Request is a process used in situations surrounding a student’s dependency status
Special Circumstance Requests
Special Circumstance Requests are available for the following situation:
- Marriage, Divorce, Change in number of dependents
- Change in Income ( job loss, loss of other income,, disability benefits, etc.)
- Excess Medical Expenses
- Parent retires Mid-Year
- Day Care expenses for Independent students
- Multiple students in college
Examples of situations that can not be considered Special Circumstance include:
- Removing funds early from a retirement account (401k, 403b, etc.) to pay debt
- Loss of other income that can not be documented or was not court ordered
- Loss of income due to commission-based employment
- Capital Gains
Unusual Circumstance Request
Students who are classified as dependent are required to report parental information on the FAFSA. Even though a student may be classified as dependent on the FAFSA, unusual circumstances may prevent the student from including parent information. Financial aid administrators may exercise professional judgment and classify dependent students as independent when certain conditions exist. An independent classification allows a student to be evaluated for financial aid based solely on student data elements provided on the FAFSA.
Unusual Circumstance requests are reviewed on an individual basis based on the students unique situation.
The Process
To process a request for review we must have the following:
- The current academic year FAFSA must be on file with the University of Mary Washington
- You must be accepted for Admission and/or continuing a degree seeking program
- You must be meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress Standards
- The Office of Financial Aid must have a completed Special Circumstance Request with all required documentation
- All forms must be SIGNED
Additional documents may be requested throughout the process.
The parent and/or student must submit the appropriate Special Circumstance Form and all required documentation prior to review. Responses are sent by mail or email within two weeks after a decision is made.
2025-26 Unusual Circumstance (Dependency Override)
2025-26 Special Circumstances Review Form
RESULTS:
Complete applications submitted to the Office of Financial Aid will result in one of the following outcomes:
- No change made
- Changes reduced EFC/SAI but did not change award
- Changes reduced EFC/SAI and adjustments made to the distribution of federal student loans
- Changes reduced EFC/SAI and adjustments made to financial aid award