In need of serious help. Forced to pay for school alone and no idea what to do.

<p>A little background on the situation -</p>

<p>I attend Ohio State University, unfortunately, my parents are quite overbearing and overprotective, so I have been forced to commute. I have decided that in my sophmore year (next academic year) I am going to live on campus. However, my parents have decided that if I do that I will be cut off completely, and I will have to pay for everything myself.</p>

<p>I'm totally Ok with going at this on my own, but i'm really confused as to what to do. I know that obviously I will need to save money (which is no problem because I already work so i'm used to it), but I have no idea how to apply for financial aid. I missed the FAFSA deadline (although it would be useless because my EFC would be far too much for me to qualify for any need-based aid), and I don't really know where I can find scholarships/financial aid opportunities for second year students. </p>

<p>I'm just very lost and confused about how to go about securing financial aid/loans/scholarships as a second year student who has missed the FAFSA deadline. If anyone has been in this situation or has any suggestions or ideas as to what I can do I'd greatly appreciate it.</p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

<p>I’m in a similar situation as you. The best thing you can do, if you are adamant about living on campus, is to meet with your financial aid advisor and explain the situation. They’ll help you out quite a bit as far as figuring out your options. I’m sure they could give you a list of scholarships as well, and you can go through and find ones that you are eligible for and apply. Sorry, that’s the most help I can give, I’m no expert. Good luck.</p>

<p>You will need to file FAFSA anyway if you want to be eligible for Stafford loans. You’ve only missed the priority deadline, your school will still accept your FAFSA filing and award loans (and perhaps other aid, depending on availability and need). The maximum sophomore loan is $6500.</p>

<p>Keep in mind that you will still need your parents financial info for the FAFSA and that the fact they said they will not pay will not get you aid. The EFC will be based mostly on their income and assets just like Freshman year.</p>

<p>I doubt her parents will help provide any info for FAFSA since they don’t want her living on campus. </p>

<p>I attend Ohio State University, unfortunately, my parents are quite overbearing and overprotective, so I have been forced to commute. I have decided that in my sophomore year (next academic year) I am going to live on campus. However, my parents have decided that if I do that I will be cut off completely, and I will have to pay for everything myself.</p>

<p>I’m guessing that you’re in-state for Ohio State. </p>

<p>The in-state COA for Ohio State is about $23k. Where is this student supposed to get that much money?</p>

<p>When you say that your parents are “overbearing and protective” what do you mean exactly? Does that mean that they won’t let you do any campus activities? Does that mean that they won’t let you take evening classes? Does that mean that you can’t do weekend activities?</p>

<p>How will the next 4-5 months be in your home, if you go thru with this?</p>

<p>Yes I am an in-state student.</p>

<p>I also receive half off of my tuition because one of my parents is a professor at OSU.</p>

<p>My parents are completely against students living at University. They both come from other countries, and in their home countries students living on campus is an oddity rather than the norm. </p>

<p>Things will be fine if I decide to do this, they have just decided to not pay for anything at all if I decide to live on campus. I’m just very unsure as to how to go about doing all of this.</p>

<p>Assuming average cost for housing, and the half off I receive from tuition, per academic year it will cost me about 13,000 (this is of course not taking into account books/pocket money expenses).</p>

<p>Call your parents’ bluff…and not to throw fuel on a fire…your dad is going to be mighty embarrassed if you have to talk to your advisors and this sort of garbage gets around with his colleagues. You might tactfully raise that point…</p>

<p>Aside…since you are the child of a professor, perhaps a good family friend also one of your dad’s colleagues can play arbitrator here…
what if you agreed to call them a few times a week, meet for lunch on campus…could that make things more manageable.</p>

<p>If all else fails, student loans, working while in school, work in the summer…meeting half the instate tuition seems like a manageable option indeed…you need all of $12,000…you’re half way there in loans.</p>

<p>Your parents don’t sound like they want to see you eating PB&J …they’ll come around…take steps to get your name on the housing lists now.</p>

<p>If you stay connected to parents in a positive way-- maybe they’ll turn things around second semester anyways b/c they’ll miss you!</p>

<p>Call your parents’ bluff…and not to throw fuel on a fire…your dad is going to be mighty embarrassed if you have to talk to your advisors and this sort of garbage gets around with his colleagues. You might tactfully raise that point…</p>

<p>I completely agree. If a parent is a prof, then certainly there is an appreciation of education and a desire for their child(ren) to get an education. I don’t think they’d want it getting around campus that they behaved this way. </p>

<p>Does your parent have tenure at the university? If so, s/he has been there long enough to know what the American way is. </p>

<p>How long have your parents lived in the US?</p>

<p>They’ll get over the fact that in this country, kids often live on campus.</p>

<p>My father moved here from Spain in 1975, and my mother came here from France in the 80’s. </p>

<p>My father is the one that is the professor and he does have Tenure. However, OSU is such a giant school that it is unlikely that the Financial Aid Adviser I would talk to would even have heard of my father. </p>

<p>They both feel that living on campus creates an environment that is not conducive to learning. They say that there is no reason for me to live there, because i’m not “missing out on anything academically”. They are under the mindset that all that happens in college dorms is various forms of debauchery, with no studying at all. It’s a really skewed and ridiculous view.</p>

<p>The total cost of Tuiton/Housing for one academic year will be almost exactly 13,000. I’m worried that because the EFC of the FAFSA will so ridiculously high I won’t be able to get much financial aid loans at all. Also, many scholarships that I find seem to only be for incoming freshmen, does anyone know where I can find scholarships for returning students?</p>

<p>There are very few scholarships for students already in the school. You could look at alternative schools within the state, like Kent St, Wright St, etc. They are less expensive to attend but you would need to travel to them.</p>

<p>In order to get the unsubsidized Stafford loan you will have to submit the FAFSA and have your parents financial info.</p>

<p>I doubt there’s any way you can afford to forego your parents financial contribution and stay at your current school. You will have to accept the fact that living at home is the price you must pay for the privilege of an education. Between your classes, studying in the library, and engaging in some extracurricular and social activities, I imagine you can arrange to spend most of your time on-campus and minimize your time at home. The next three years will pass more quickly than you can imagine.</p>