<p>Muzicman-- there's debt and there's debt. If your family has taken out a second mortgage to pay for a grandparents nursing home, or to finance a liver transplant for a sibling, or god forbid, any one of a hundred unexpected, life altering emergencies, you have a shot at writing the world's most eloquent "special circumstances" letter with your financial aid application. If we're talking about credit cards out the whazoo to pay for ski trips and restaurant meals and what-not, the colleges take the view that those funds could be diverted to pay your tuition without a catastrophe falling on the family.</p>
<p>I can't tell your parents how to manage their resources, but you need to get a better handle on the family's finances so you can make some mature decisions going forward. If the income is there but it's going to finance a lifestyle that your parents are unwilling to alter, you need that reality check right now... not 12 months from now, when you're looking at a full pay admission at Brown and no financial back-ups.</p>