I am 21 and have lived on my own for about two years. I work full time and and want to go back to school. If i put my parents information on the FAFSA i will definitely get NO MONEY!! is there any way i can not put them?
I will be getting NOTHING from my parents to help pay for school!
i don't understand why I can't be independent on my FAFSA, i worked so hard to do everything on my own. Do i need to go out and have a baby? or get married?
how else can i pay for college with out financial aid? i can not afford to go to school, pay for books, and rent and bills!
PLEASE HELP! Ella:
This is a very common question, but the answer, though probably initially disappointing, is very straightforward.
The financial system is designed with the expectation that the student and the student's parents are primarily responsible for paying the cost of higher education. The issue then, is not whether your parents want to pay for your education - the issue is whether it is reasonable for the government to expect them to. The rules and regulations of the financial aid system say "yes".
Keep in mind what would happen if the rules were different. If the system was designed so that the government would pick up the slack for every parent who would rather not pay - I think you can see a pretty obvious built-in incentive for most parents to tell their kids "good bye and good luck with college, kids!"
The rules of the financial aid system are established by federal law, and the law is very specific. Regardless of whether your parents want to help you, you are considered a member of your parents' household until you are:
24 or older
Married
Providing more than 50% of the support for your own children
Providing more than 50% of the support for non-child dependents who live in your home
An orphan or a ward of the court
A member, past or present, of the US military
A graduate student
Someone who has been declared emancipated of their parents by a judge in an appropriate US court of law
Because you are still a member of your parents' household, your parents are expected to contribute to your college expenses - and the taxpayers (remember, we're the people who provide all that money for financial aid) are not going to step in and replace the contributions that your parents refuse to give you.
Remember - it's not how the situation actually is - it's how the situation is supposed to be. It doesn't matter if your parents will be giving you money, it doesn't matter if you live with them, it doesn't matter if you've even spoken to them in the last 10 years - what matters is that the government considers your parents responsible to help pay for your higher education expenses - and if they won't do it, then you have a very unfortunate problem that is shared with many, many, many other students. The cost of a college education is such that many parents are justifiably unwilling or unable to provide one for their children.
Now here's the good news. It doesn't matter how much your parents earn, or how much they have in the bank. Financial aid - of one form or another - is available to every single student. If Paris Hilton and Ivanka Trump wanted to apply for federal student aid, they would be eligible for exactly the same aid that you are.
There are two types of financial aid - general aid that is available to everyone, and "need-based" aid that is only available to the most needy students. That represents only about 1 of every 3 students who apply for aid. If your parents are reasonably comfortable, you will not qualify for need-based aid, but you will qualify for general financial aid, which is, far and away, the most common form of aid that college students receive.
When you complete the FAFSA (with your parents' info, because that IS required in your situation), you will be awarded access to the federal Stafford lending program. The Stafford loan is the best form of educational loan available (other than a loan from a wealthy relative, perhaps). The interest rate is far lower than you'll get anywhere else, and the interest rate is fixed for the life of the loan, and will never go up. You do not need an income or a credit history to be approved, and you'll never be asked for a cosigner. You'll have 10 years to pay the loan - and your payment obligation won't begin until 6 months after you have left school. If you borrow reasonably, your monthly payments will be exceptionally low.
As you correctly surmise, however, the amount of money available to you each year will be limited. For first year undergrads, the maximum amount you can borrow from the Stafford program is $5500. If this is the bulk of the money that you have available to you for school, you will have to choose a very affordable educational program - perhaps starting your education at a local community college. I'm sure you'd probably like to go somewhere a little more "exciting", but I'd sure like to drive a Ferrari. Unfortunately, I only have Honda money to spend, so I drive a Honda. If you can afford a Toyota college, you'll have to apply to those kinds of colleges, and not to the Lexus schools.
I hope this information helped. There are other sources of money available - depending on where you live, you may be eligible for state funds, as well as the federal aid. If you have exceptional grades or test scores, you may be able to qualify for scholarship funds, too.
Good luck to you! You should speak with a Financial Aid Counselor at a school that you are applying to. And depending on what area you live in, there is a thing called "FAFSA Day" where colleges will help you fill out your fafsa for free.
As far as other options are concerned:
1. www.fastweb.com is a search engine for scholarships
2. ROTC will pay for everything if joining the military doesn't bother you
3. Take out a student loan. (again, speak to a Financial Aid Counselor about this) The government considers you a dependent until you reach the age of 24, are married, are a parent, is in the military, or other situations like if your a dependent of the state (foster care and stuff). I know it sucks to be in your situation and your best hope is just to talk to your parents. Let them know hey I have to have your tax information to even apply for financial aid. And talk to them ask them if you do not get any type of help if they could pay for it themselves. If you have to show them the website that says you have to be 24 or those situations to not put your parents information down or have them talk to a financial aid representative at the school your thinking of going to. I have been told from school fin. aid reps. that their is no other way around it period and yes I know it sucks! |
