<p>“Go for free” and “sizeable merit” are two different animals. If you got a large merit somewhere else, say, same number DU would give, would the parents pay the difference? Somehow, you have to figure out if they are sayng they truly won’t pay (in which case, anything less than full costs minus the 5500 Direct student loan and work study, won’t be doable.) Or, at this stage, are they being coy, maybe trying to push you to temper your dreams or maybe trying to delay having to discuss this, at all, until much later?</p>