<p>Thanks everyone. To answer some questions, I stay with my mom on school days and my dad on weekends. On breaks, I spend half with one parent and the other half with another parent. The divorce payment was for the original house I lived in, which was a couple hundred of thousands of dollars. Unfortunately, my dad just blew that money on his fancy wedding when I was a freshman (I am a senior now), on buying a house, and completely remodeling with his own personal preferences. My parents got divorced right before I became a freshman.</p>
<p>My GPA and Test Scores are low. I have about a 3.5 GPA at a very competitive public school, ranked in the top 10 STEM high schools in the United States and top 100 of all other high schools. I got a 1900 to 2000 on the SAT from taking it two times and a 28 and 34 on the ACT on the first and second times, respectively. The second time was under extended time.</p>
<p>My stepmom is unofficially working for some company, but I haven’t asked her since I’m afraid I’d be yelled at again. Although my dad and my stepmom still buy expensive clothes and electronics, they don’t want to pay for my college fees and are upset by how much it has cost so far. Although my dad doesn’t want to drive me anywhere for school-related activities and community service, he still spends a lot of time either doing nothing, hanging out with his friends, or spending hours driving around the neighborhood for any “free” furniture.</p>
<p>I have applied to some CSUs and UCs and am applying to a few out of state public and private colleges.</p>
<p>Because of all this pressure, it has been difficult for me to finish my college applications and for me to have my essays be reviewed by those other than my parents.</p>