<p>Hello everyone. I have a question for you, in hopes that someone may know the answer here. My dad easily makes over 300K a year, and I'm pretty sure that would bar me from any sort of financial aid. The only problem is, I don't live with him, nor does he support me in any way. Same goes for my mother. She owns her own business, and her husband is a fire chief or something. My personal income is only about $30,000... if that. I've been supporting myself since I was 17, however, I was never legally emancipated by any court. Being 21, I was wanting to attend college, however the FAFSA form says I can't claim myself as independent until I'm 23. Is there any way around this? Or am I pretty much screwed in the ways of getting aid/scholarships? </p>
<p>TL;DR - I'm 21, no parental support, parents make too much money for me to get aid, even though I haven't lived with them since I was 17.</p>
<p>Yes, that is the case. However, with an income of $30K, about half of that will be considered prime game for college as it is. With that kind of income, you are not going to be eligible for the PELL grant and many of the other awards are tied to that figure as well. That means that unless you are looking at colleges that cost more than $15K plus whatever cut of your assets that are considered, your parents’ situations are not even going to come into play.</p>
<p>So, no, you are not entitled to financial aid under your scenario. However, you can look for schools where you are likely to get merit money. Or go to school part time and work your finances so that when you turn 23, you can maximize your position in getting financial aid. Spend the next two years, taking inexpensive courses locally, and learning the financial aid system for when your parents’ financial situation no longer counts.</p>
<p>No there is no way around it. You are considered a dependent until the year you turn 24. My son lived independently and was self supporting for several years and when he returned to school at 22 he was considered our dependent for FA purposes.</p>
<p>With an income of $30,000 your EFC would be too high for federal aid other than loans.</p>
<p>Since your dad earns so much money, why not ask him to help you with college costs?</p>
<p>If you tell him that you can’t qualify/pay any other way, he might surprise you and be willing to pay. </p>
<p>Waiting til you’re 24 won’t be that great, either, because Financial aid will expect you to use a big portion of your income towards school anyway. Besides, most schools don’t meet need anyway.</p>