1). What is a work-study? people told me two types of things: that it is a type of financial aid- you work a certain amount of hours and it reduces your college price and others said that you already have financial aid, work study is a type of job for extra income? which one is true? When I apply, I will be applying with financial aid too, so what would work study do for me?
2). What are some jobs college students can get, that do pay well (I need to save up for medical school during college)?
3). When I am 18, will my income affect my family’s total income, or is it just my own?- and will I still be on my family’s insurance plan or would I need my own?
I understand the 3rd question is weird, but I really need help with this because both my parents are immigrants and only my dad works. And I am wondering, lets say I go to college and have a part time job (I will be 18), will my income count towards my family’s total income? and for health insurance, would I need to buy my own or can I stay under my parents’?
Federal work study is awarded as part of financial aid. Students need to qualify for it. There will be an amount you are allowed to earn from some jobs that have been approved to be in the program. They are often jobs in the library, gym, dorms, departments at the school, administrative offices, labs. You find a job and you can work up to the number of hours your grant allows. Work study is just a job, no different than if you were working at a cafe or Starbucks, except that the ‘employer’ (the university usually) is often much more flexible in your hours and needing time off to study, and there are a few tax benefits.
Your income, before or after your 18th birthday, are yours. You file your own taxes and pay the amount due.
Whether you stay on your family’s insurance depends on they type of insurance they have. If they have a group policy through an employer, you can usually stay on it until you are 26. It will depend on how far away you go to school if there will be providers in the college area.
@twoinanddone so if I get a work-study program, will I be paid like a normal job, or would they not pay me and instead just reduce my tuition?
They will pay you.
But realize that means you won’t have the money until you earn it. If you start school in September, you’ll likely get a bill in August that is due before you have a chance to earn the money. If you earn summer money and use that to pay your school bill, you can then earn money in the fall to save up for the spring bill.
Campuses usually have two different types of job offerings. Jobs open to anyone and “work study” jobs available to only those that qualify. Work study gets federal funds (I believe) and once you’ve used up your work study amount, it will be up to your employers if they can keep you on paying you from a different fund or you will have to find a different job. The nice thing is you can have several different jobs both work study and not.
My eldest works for the campus art museum, her department as well as a paid writer for the alumni magazine. The hours and various pay all comes to her in a regular paycheck which she tries to live on (non-dining Hall food, entertainment, toiletries, haircuts, transportation, etc.) She dips into her summer savings for things like books. It’s super helpful to us that she takes care of these things.
Your income won’t affect your family but it will be on your fafsa and your savings will be part of the computed EFC. My own daughter’s income/savings never made much of a difference in that way.
My word of advice, start looking for campus jobs before school starts. They often have listings in the summer and you can start applying before you get on campus. You can find some nicer or higher paying positions and on some campuses, getting a job is difficult even if you qualify for work study. Keep in mind that different states have different minimum wages so don’t be shocked like my daughter was when she went from her summer job in our start earning 13 and hour to different state campus where most of the jobs were around 8.