CollegeBoard has communicated that CSS Profile will be out Oct 1, as always. OP should communicate that date to their parents, so the tax return is filed by then.
If you have an older sibling in school, your parents must be familiar with the FAFSA and CSS. If so, they know what documentation they need like tax forms, business statements, bank account info.
As others said, get the Alabama schools apps done now. You 'll then know what offers are needed to beat those schools.
Not for Admission but to give you an idea of the vibe, to ask questions, to know who to reach out to on the faculty (with an intelligent question the answer to which is not on the website ) and perhaps to organize a visit.
In fact, will be right back, wondering if they have fly ins or similar.
Do you live in Tuscaloosa, one of the big cities, or in rural Alabama?
You said your HS regularly sends kids to highly selective colleges or am i misremembering?
(A public HS?)
Don’t answer if this is uncomfortable but Asia is VAST, czn you specify a bit (ie., China, Filipines, Thailand, Bangladesh…)
Given that your parents told you that they have no assets, I feel you are focusing on the wrong schools. You need full rides or close to full rides. I said this earlier, but please do not allow your parents to take out loans, even if they are “only” $25,000 a year (and you also have a sibling who will be in undergrad). They may not be able to pay these loans back. While I recognize that they are saying costs don’t matter, it seems that they do.
I understand how stressful it is to be valedictorian. In our school it meant speeches, interviews with the board of education, photos, etc (not sure if they still do all of this). As a 17-18 year old you want something to show for it other than “just” attending your state school. I get it. I really do. It stinks. A year from now it won’t matter.
Apply to your state schools. Apply to schools that may give you merit. Apply to schools that meet need. There is no more need for this constant rehashing and wondering what’s affordable given that nobody has any numbers for FA forms (it’s none of my business). Once all of the numbers come back and your parents see them, you can ask if they have the money. Not loans- they need to retire one day. Yes, you can help pay them back, but do you want to start out your career paying back $100,000 and likely more in loans? That will wreak havoc with lots of things, including the job you can accept and your choice of housing. Do you want to be 30 years old with 2 roommates who are 22?
If schools such as Penn and Cornell come in at a very reasonable cost (I honestly have no idea) then you can have that discussion if/when it happens. Right now they are telling you that they have no assets but are willing to pay any cost. That doesn’t make any sense and is a recipe for disaster. Please do not allow that to happen.
Sorry for the rant. Be happy that you are in a position to get a great education for a great price in your state.
This conversation seems to be going in circles because you don’t know what kind of aid your family qualifies for and what your parents really have, or do not have. The only way to handle this is to apply to your instate schools in addition to the others, and then see what happens.
Again, sorry for the rant and sorry you are dealing with this at the age of 17-18. It’s not your fault and I hope it all works out. I also apologize if I am wrong about all of this, as I have not kept up 100%.
I can’t remember if this has been addressed, where do your siblings go to college and what kind of need based financial aide are they getting? Even if your parents are putting off the conversation, your siblings should be able to give you clear answers about how much their schools cost and how they’re paying for it.
One sibling is finishing undergrad and applying to med school. They went to school locally on a full ride and lived at home. The other sibling is also applying for undergrad this year.
OP mentioned that there are seven in the household. I’m not sure if the other two are siblings or grandparents.
Oh, if the others are grandparents, then that helps the OP qualify for financial aid. He can appeal for more aid due to his parents supporting their own parents. (This may be true for any additional people his parents are supporting).
It’s not actually appealing for more aid, but rather for a consideration of the additional family members. It may or may not make a difference in aid. In 2024-25, the IRS will send number of dependents claimed on tax return, which will be used as number in household information. I read that there will be a follow up question within the FAFSA that asks if the deductions on the tax return are an accurate reflection of the current number of dependents (I can’t confirm, but it makes sense). I assume that the parents would claim the grandparents as tax deductions if they actually do support them, so that will already be factored into the SAI formula.
You can apply to the schools now and do your FAFSA later. Not sure if Alabama has a need based scholarship. The merit ones at UAH and Bama are automatic. At Auburn it’s likely.
They may offer need based grants but they may or may not be stackable vs your merit.
You can apply first. FAFSA later. The three in state publics and other publics that have been suggested to you that can make cost are FAFSA only. It’s the privates and a few very top publics that will be CSS and potentially IDOC.
Bama and UAH are simple apps. Not sure about Auburn.
) and perhaps to organize a visit.