How much financial aid will I qualify for? (Specific Situation: Independency)

Paying for College
1

Hello All,
I’m curious how much financial aid I am able to receive, and by no means is this meant to be a sob story at all.
I would just like some feedback so I have a better understanding of choosing colleges.

I am considered an independent student, but I am not a ward of the court and do not have legal guardians.
This is because my father has passed away, I do not have contact with my mother, and I live with my uncle/aunt who are not considered my guardians and are both retired. I am not filed under their taxes/household.
I am 17 years old and live in SF, CA, and I only work in retail during the summer.

Essentially, I was told that I am independent by FAFSA & CSS Profile customer service and they redirected me to a bunch of different places, but long story short, I am unable to fill out these two forms properly and had to submit it without all my information because obviously it is impossible to have my father sign up for an FSA ID at this time.

Therefore, with incomplete information, I was denied Cal Grants, etc.
I know for sure I have to contact the specific University’s financial aid office and ask them ultimately for financial aid, but I am curious for your opinions.

I have been accepted to Dominican University of California, San Diego State University, and I am waiting for a response from University of San Francisco.
I have also been waitlisted for UC Davis, and will be receiving responses soon from Berkeley, LA, SD, & Irvine.

I would appreciate a quick/small analysis of my situation, if possible.
Thanks!

2

If your father has passed away and you were not able to file FAFSA in time for Calgrant deadline, file an appeal and have them tell you what you need to do.

Do you need to provide proof of not having contact with your mom?

Are you for sure considered independent for FAFSA or does it depend on each school?

If you are independent you provide your income and assets, not your parent’s.

3

If you are independent, you don’t need a FSA ID for a parent. I think there was a mistake done in when answering the FAFSA questions to determine if you are independent. If you said you are not a ward of the court and that you HAVE a mother, you probably were determined not to be independent.

4

If your mother is alive, you are not in legal guardianship, you are not or have never been a ward of the state…you would not be independent for financial aid purposes per FAFSA. BUT you absolutely might be eligible for a dependency override by the colleges…you have to apply for that.

I don’t know how the Calgrant deals with this. But really…as difficult as it seems…this situation was apparent in January, and February…and should have been resolved before the Calgrant deadline.

All that said…I agree you should contact the Calgrant folks about an appeal…and at the same time…you need to apply for a dependency override at your colleges. It sounds like you have sufficient information to get this…but you have to ask for it!

5

Thumper is correct, because your mom is alive, you will have to get third party documentation explaining your situation and request that each school will consider your eligibility for a dependency override.

Do you have a financial safety? Dominican does not meet full need. If necessary, will you be able to commute to SDSU? My recommendation is to make your appeal to SDSU to see if you can get the dependency override and if they can assist you in getting the cal grant.

6

Thank you all for your help.

@twoinanddone In my case, I had to put that I have a mother, therefore it required an FSA ID. For the time being, I said that the signature would be submitted later, but the FAFSA would then be withheld until then.

@thumper1 Dependency override was the exact statement that the financial aid staff told me to mention to their financial aid head at University of San Francisco. However, they have not gotten back to me for over a month and I have not been accepted yet, so I will personally call or visit their financial aid office for further information regarding my situation once I know my application status.

I understand that I probably could have done better in terms of preparation before the deadline, but there were just so many steps, unclear/misguided information from multiple sources. I ultimately sent the application quite incomplete, expecting a better outcome once I am actually admitted to the specific school so I would be able to contact their financial aid office with my specific situation.

I’m not sure if I will need to call Cal Grant for an appeal if I am possibly eligible for a large sum directly from the school’s financial aid department. However, I may be entirely wrong with the assumption that these colleges will be able to provide money for me.

Thank you again for your help!

@sybbie719 Yes, I was told by a University of San Francisco representative that I will need to provide sufficient information to prove my situation, including a letter from a certain individual in my life (counselor, teacher, coach, boss). In terms of financial safety, if you mean how much money I am receiving or have at all, I do receive survivor benefits from the Social Security department, but that will be cancelled this July when I turn 18 and I will have to find a job to support the rest of my expenses.

Although Dominican does not meet full need, they may “only” need to meet 35,000 because I was eligible for a yearly renewable 23,000 Trustee Scholarship, along with a yearly renewable 2,000 scholarship as a member of their honors program (received the acceptance into their program today). This will cut the cost of around 60,000 to 35,000, so do you think they might be able to cut the remainder of that cost down further after explanation of my situation?

I will contact the SDSU Financial Aid Office soon with an explanation of my situation and I will see what they have to offer. I do not know how to drive, and I am not sure how well developed the transportation system is in San Diego.
I plan to live on campus, if I do attend SDSU.

7

SDSU has the trolley system if you live near the trolley, you should be fine. Living anywhere else will require a car.

Have your guidance counselor help you to intervene with SDSU. SDSU financial aid will work with you, but you need to be in constant communication. Make sure your GC contacts the CALGRANT offices for your appeal. They will be your best source of funding for your education, and you should be able to qualify, barring anything “financial” from your mother.

8

@“aunt bea” thanks! I’ll be sure to swing by my counselor’s office and see what she can do.