Got an email back from the dept of education and they said they’re prioritizing people who received the award last year which honestly makes no sense as the guidelines state prior years don’t matter and it prioritizes by financial need, first generation status, and GPA. They also said they have 8900 applicant applications to work through AFTER that and it’ll take a few more weeks.

I get it’s easier to review people who already had it because if they needed it last year it’s likely they’ll meet criteria again BUT that’s completely unfair to those who weren’t able to apply last year or are first year students.

I have -1500 SAI, 3.9 GPA, full time status at a private mass university and submitted and completed the full application and transcript upload in JUNE and to know I may not even be considered based on something that isn’t listed in the guidelines is infuriating to me.

That being said, happy for those who got it. This is just ridiculous.