<p>I have an unusual situation. My parents are divorced and my mom remarried. I currently live with my mom and my step-dad, along with my half-siblings and step-sisters. My mom and step-dad, about 3-4 years ago, decided to file jointly for taxes and because my step-father, who is a dentist, does not support me much financially, did not claim me as their dependent. I'm not quite sure of the details, but my mom does not work. From what I know, my biological father, who works in another country, supports me. But because they were divorced outside of the US, there's no court papers claiming he has to support me financially-- he basically does this because he wants to.</p>
<p>The bottom line is, nobody claimed me as a dependent and I am under the age of 24 and do not support myself in any way. I need to apply for financial aid because my parents can't pay for my college tuition (My college of choice is USC) What do I do about my financial aid? Do I still use my step-fathers tax paper and apply for financial aid? But he didn't claim me as his dependent so I would assume that his income has no affect on me. But I am not an independent and I would need my parents income statements. What do I do?</p>
<p>My best bet is to try to get scholarship from the school. But does anyone know if I need to turn in my financial aid in order to get scholarship from USC? </p>
<p>I am so lost and worried. I am currently attending a community college because of this problem.</p>
<p>In your situation, you file the FAFSA using your Mother and Step-Father's information. Who claimed or did not claim you as a dependent doesn't matter. These instructions from the FAFSA will help: Who</a> is considered a parent? . You must file the FAFSA to be considered for financial aid. For USC, you must also file the CSS/Profile. For merit scholarships, you must apply to USC by December 1, 2008. (If you apply by that date you will be considered for USC merit scholarships whether you file FAFSA and Profile or not, but you would not be eligible for Federal loans, so I urge you to fill out all financial aid forms.)</p>
<p>If you are hoping for a big merit scholarship, you should cast a wider net than USC. Look for schools where your qualifications put you in the top 10% (or higher) of all applicants and those that offer automatic scholarships to students with your GPA and test scores. See the stickied threads at the top of this forum for lots of great suggestions.</p>
<p>Your step dad's income does have an affect on you. In your particular circumstances you have to report the financial information for you mother and step dad on FAFSA. A student who is under 24 and does not meet any of the other FAFSA criteria to be considered independent (married, have a dependent of their own, military veteran etc) is considered dependent for financial aid purposes. It does not matter whether you are claimed as a dependent for tax purposes or not. (for instance we have not claimed our 21 year old son as a dependent for taxes in years but he is still a dependent for FAFSA). </p>
<p>As your parents are divorced and you live with your Mom you do not have to report your father's information on FAFSA. If you were applying to a profile school you would have to report your father's (and spouse if applicable) information in addition to your mother and step dads.</p>
<p>At Profile schools, like 'SC, you will need you mom & stepdad's income and asset info and also the info for your bio dad! You might try calling the finaid dept and asking what an award might normally look like for some one in your situation</p>