Help! I have a unique FAFSA question!

Paying for College
1

<p>To keep this brief, I'll just say my parents are divorced and are both quite bitter (even though it is 9+ years after divorce)</p>

<p>I have lived with my mother from the day I was born <em>but</em> I am under my dad's name for taxes (my mother had a bad lawyer).</p>

<p>I know my brothers had issues with their FAFSAs, but I think it is because they lived with my dad. </p>

<p>So, here is the rundown; My dad makes ~$120K a year, my mom makes precisely $0 a year. I have lived in poverty for at least the past 4 years. I know my dad will not contribute anything to my college fund (he doesn't even pay child support to give you an idea).</p>

<p>THE ISSUE: My dad insist I will have NO problem getting money from FAFSA because I LIVE with my mother; however, my mom says I WILL have problem because, although I live with her, I am under my DAD'S taxes, so I will appear to be under my dad's high income. </p>

<p>Which one of my parents' right? I hope my dad is, but I doubt he is (he is known for lying about that type of stuff plus my brothers had issues with FAFSA...)</p>

<p>There is no way I will have any money to pay for college, I need as much aid as possible, please help. What can I do to make sure I am accurately represented in FAFSA?</p>

<p>Thank you for the help</p>

2

<p>Doesn’t matter whose taxes you are on. It is who you live with most during the year that goes on FAFSA. </p>

3

<p>@swimcatsmom</p>

<p>My mother is claiming that although my brother (who lived with her) filled it out with my mother’s information, my brother did not get any aid because he was found on my dad’s tax forms.
That seems very odd, but it is true my brother did not get aid for his first two years. I will definitely ask HIM about it once I can contact him, but for now; any ideas why this occurs?</p>

4

<p>Hogwash…unless your brother applied to a school requiring the CSS Profile too. If that, BOTH parents financials were likely required.</p>

<p>For the FAFSA, only your mom’s info is requires. HOWEVER, she must also include any spousal support and child support she receives on the FAFSA. If your income is really $0, it is HIGHLY likely you will be selected for verification. The school will want to know how you pay your living expenses…and yes, they do have the right to ask.</p>

<p>Keep in mind that most schools do NOT meet full need for all students anyway. It is very possible your brothers got only a $5500 Direct Loan, and your dad does NOT view that as getting any aid.</p>

5

<p>@thumper1 </p>

<p>Yeah, $0 is a bit over (under?)-exaggeration. And bills do commonly get paid on her behalf (grandparent), should this be noted on FAFSA? </p>

<p>It is very odd that my mother is so set on making her claim, because I keep being told otherwise but she stands by what she says…</p>

6

<p>You know…why not just complete the FAFSA for YOU, using your mom’s info…and then see what happens? </p>

<p>You surely won’t get a nickel of financial aid without her FAFSA. </p>

<p>ETA…you are a junior and you are interested in MIT, the Ivies, CalTech, UCB. All but UCB REQUIRE the CSS Profile. And all require the non-custodial parent form. SO your dad’s info WILL be required for them to determine your financial need, and their awarding of institutional aid. UCB is a CA public university. I’m not sure you will see the aid you want from them either.</p>

<p>If your brothers applied to similar schools, then your mom would have needed to complete the Profile with her info, and your dad the non-custodial Profile using HIS information. Oh…and if either have remarried, their SPOUSE’s info is required ion the form they complete. Or if they resided with your dad…dad would have completed he Profile, and mom the non-custodial parent profile.</p>

<p>I looked at your stats. You need to get that ACT score or SAT score higher. But even with what you have now, you should be looking at schools with GUARANTEED merit awards for your stats. See the stickie threads above.</p>

7

<p>Your sibling may have had trouble if your parents live near each other and no one believed that you kids were living in a 0 income household with an affluent dad in the same town. </p>

<p>However, your dad is right that you dont use his income on FAFSA, and you may have to offer some kind of proof that you do always live with your mom.</p>

<p>you will have to show how you are eating/living with no income.</p>

<p>Why wasnt your dad ordered to pay child support? even a lousy lawyer could hardly screw that up.</p>

8

<p>Where do your brothers go to college? Do those schools require the Profile?</p>

9

<p>Here is your situation. You live with your mother more than with your father, clearly, so when you fill out FAFSA it will use your mother’s financial info and that of her spouse if she is remarried. If indeed, her income is Zero, you get a zero Expected Family Contribution (EFC) most likely. Doesn’t matter on whose tax return you are. In divorce situations, this is often negotiated, and if this was truly unfair as you lived with your mother and he paid zip towards your care, this could have been rescinded and your mother likely could have claimed you, but THAT IS A WHOLE OTHER ISSUE. Nothing to do with the here and now or the FAFSA. They don’t care who claimed you as a dependent for tax purposes. Doesn’t come up. So the story doesn’t make sense about your brother. I can guarantee you that much.</p>

<p>FAFSA is required for most all schools and it makes you eligible for federal money. All it guarantees you is access to PELL and Direct Student loans. The rest all depends upon the state you live in and the colleges on your list. SOme states have aid for college students and they most always link into the FAFSA though separate forms also have to be filed. </p>

<p>All a zero EFC guarantees you is the full PELL of about $5600 a year and Direct Loans of $5500 freshman year in your name only. If a parent applies for PLUS and is denied, which would happen if that parent owes money showing up on a credit report as over 90 days overdue, then the student could get about $5K more in loans. </p>

<p>That is ALL that a zero EFC guarantees you. Those colleges that take FAFSA only as their financial aid application tend to not meet full need for very many students. Many colleges just give you the government guarantees and then gap you. Too bad. You look for schools that you can afford with that money available to you which tend to be commuter state schools. By giving you 3 squares and a cot, mom is contributing to your keep to the tune of about $7-10K a year which is what it would cost you to live on your own. There will be questions as to how your mother is keeping a roof over your heads, paying electric and other necessities and feeding herself and you, by the way, on a zero income. </p>

<p>Many state schools, and my state is one of them, will give financial aid based on FAFSA so that tuition and fees are covered. They will take what the federal government gives you and any state aid if you are so eligible and then they will give you enough to take care of the tuition and fees part of this, but you have to take care of yourself, the commute, the books and other discretionary costs. </p>

<p>I do not know a single school that guarantees to meet full need based on FAFSA EFC. Not a one. </p>

<p>But some students at some schools do get better packages than others, and if you pick a school where you are a top student, someone they really want, your full need may be met. But getting a school to pick up your living expenses is tough to do. </p>

<p>Those schools that do tend to do just that, tend to ask for more info, often in the form of the CSS PROFILE and many of those schools want the NCP info and, yes, he would be expected to pay a portion but does not have to do so and if he won’t , then that’s just too bad. I know many kids in that situation. It’s usually the Dad who makes enough bucks that it squelches the kids’ chances to get enough financial aid to private sleep away colleges, and Dad won’t pay. Very typical. </p>

10

<p>First of all, if you live with your mother, your father is required by law to pay some support to her, particularly if he is declaring you on his taxes. He could refuse to pay, but then his pay would be garnished and your mother would get the support that way. It’s not a complicated process, people do it all the time. So what I’m saying is that the story you’ve been given doesn’t add up and you need to have your parents nail it down for you so you can really understand the situation. Only when you know what’s actually going on financially will you be able to start looking at different ways to afford college. </p>

<p>Good luck. I’m sorry you have to be in the middle of two bitter people.</p>

11

<p>The issue of my dad not paying child support has been a court issue for years. The issue is my dad has gotten away with only paying on occasion, and somehow he got around his wages being garnished.</p>

<p>And, admittedly, I’ve never heard of the CSS profile prior to these posts. So, the CSS profile is just going to show my father as if I benefit from his income, so I’m going to be completely out of luck for aid? That is absurd</p>

12

<p>I cannot believe this is the system. I know I am not going to get any money from my father, I know I won’t get any money from my mother; how am I supposed to be expected to pay for college?
Why have I need heard of CSS profiles until now?</p>

<p>What kind of systems is this?
So, I have to work my ass off for years so I can have a chance at a good college, so I can THEN go $150k into debt and then MAYBE get a job.</p>

<p>How am I a junior and NO ONE in my school, in my family, ANYWHERE mentioned a CSS profile?</p>

13

<p>@thumper1</p>

<p>What sticky are you referring to? I cannot seem to find it</p>

14

<p>First of all, not all colleges use PROFILE. Those that do tend to ask for the NCP info, yes, but there are some that do not. You can look all of that up on the PROFILE info site and focus on schools that do not. The schools that tend to use PROFILE are the schools that tend to meet full need as they define it, not as FAFSA does. They tend to be the private schools.</p>

<p>It’s not the school’s problem that your mother did not get child support and get what she should have from your father. That is an issue that she should have pursued and it’s not just bad lawyers. She could have had the dependency thing pretty easily rescinded. But none of this is the issue right now, so I’m going to end that discussion. That’s a whole other thing.</p>

<p>It’s unfair, I agree fully, but yes, the most generous schools will not give you financial aid if there is a parent in the picture who can pay and won’t. They will not give you financial aid if your parents refuse to fill out the forms and release their tax returns and let it all out. Them’s the rules. If you are unlucky enough to have parents that won’t do this for you, too bad. Just like all the other things you don’t get in life when you have bad parents. You can apply for a NCP waiver at the schools, and I urge you to give it a try at some of the schools on your list that you want to give a go, but it’s usually not a go when there is contact of any sort between child and parent. Everyone with a divorce situation would take advantage of this if that is the case. Most divorced families have this situation, it is not unique. Many kids with split families have to go to a school without the NCP contribution and get less or no aid because of it. I have a number of friends in that situation.</p>

<p>In any case, you need to apply to schools that you know you will be able to afford. Local state unis and community colleges, local schools good to students of your calibre and have been known to give good scholarships. Look for merit awards and FAFSA only schools, and PROFILE schools that don’t use NCP. But the fact of the matter is getting enough money to pay for ALL of your college costs is very, very difficult, nigh impossible unless you go locally to a state school where federal entitlements might pay for most or all of the costs. Even then, most kids in that situation have to find a part time job.</p>

15

<p>@cptofthehouse</p>

<p>Is there any compiled list of colleges that require only FAFSA or just custodial CSS profile?</p>

<p>This is probably the most discouraged I have ever felt about college</p>

16

<p>sine, if you really have the stats to be a competitive candidate for the Ivies and the like, there are many schools where you would garner significant merit aid. There is a stickie at the top of this forum about schools having these awards. </p>

<p>I hope someone will link the thread about merit awards here. </p>

<p>There ARE CSS Profile schools that on,y use the custodial parent info, look on the financial aid websites of the colleges you are interested in. In most cases, the deadline for submission of the non-custodial Profile is listed on there. You can also call the colleges and ask if they require the non-custodial parent Profile. They will tell you.</p>

<p>As noted upstream someplace…ALL the colleges that meet full need require the CSS Profile in addition to the FAFSA (with the exception of Princeton which has it’s own financial aid form). These are the most generous schools with need based aid.</p>

<p>You should look in your state and see if there are any aid programs for low income families. Some states have these programs. Some colleges have them.</p>

<p>With regard to your HS guidance folks…they are there to advise you about college admissions, not financial aid. You can look on EACH college website to see what the schools require for application materials, and you absolutely should do so.</p>

<p>Ask your school folks if they are aware of any programs for low income students. They should have this information. </p>

<p>If you post your state of residence here (please don’t feel obligated to if you are not comfortable doing so), someone here might be able to point you in some direction. Or PM someone who you think might be helpful.</p>

<p>There are LOTS of ways to skin the college cat. Your goal is to get a degree, and that IS possible. </p>

17

<p><a href=“Automatic Full Tuition / Full Ride Scholarships - Financial Aid and Scholarships - College Confidential Forums”>Automatic Full Tuition / Full Ride Scholarships - Financial Aid and Scholarships - College Confidential Forums;

<p>Here is the link to the automatic full tuition full ride scholarships…I hope!</p>

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<p>@thumper1</p>

<p>Maryland resident. I’m assuming most, if not all, low-income aid programs would be only for in-state schools, though</p>

19

<p>Yes…in most cases the money stays instate. </p>

<p>I don’t know about aid programs in Maryland…but…</p>

<p>University of Maryland CP offers some excellent scholarships for high achieving instate students. You might also look into UMD-Baltimore County.</p>

<p>Please don’t dismiss your instate universities. Remember, your goal is to get a degree.</p>

<p>And look at the link I posted. See if your stats match up with any of the generous scholarships. No, not HYMSM, etc. but there are some fine programs on that list. </p>

20

<p>@thumper1</p>

<p>I’m planning on applying to both UMBC and CP, actually. </p>

<p>How do you think this sounds for an application list?:</p>

<p>UMBC
UMCP
UC - Berkeley
MIT w/ request for NCP waiver
Harvard w/ request for NCP waiver
Stanford w/ request for NCP waiver
Amherst
AND a school or two that I can get significant automatic scholarships</p>

<p>Maybe a bit too many schools, but it would sort of encompass everything for me, I guess.</p>