Hey yall! I need a bit of help of overcoming my situation, as I’m a bit real-world-naive and would appreciate any guidance! Sorry if some of my questions are stupid I’ve looked online but everything assumes I have savings/income/a place to live, I need one to get the others.
So I’m 18 transferring to a university in San Diego this Fall. I’ve just been kicked out all the sudden by my parents and now have no idea how I’m gonna pay for college or even have a place to stay. I have no job (wasn’t allowed to have one) , no money saved up (except $60 pay pal) , no friends/family.
My parents refused to fill out FAFSA though we’re pretty poor and would get quite some aid. People said in my situation getting a dependence override is virtually impossible so if my parents aren’t providing information I pretty much can’t get aid.
So the two concerns I have are 1- living 2- tuition.
For tuition: Since I don’t have FAFSA I can’t take out non-private loans (I’ve been told to never ever do private loans). So I’d have to just pay out of pocket, through the university’s monthly payment plan right? Is this even possible for me, since I have no savings or income? I’ve called the university but they’ve just given me very vague information, and told me to go to their office in person but I live in another part of california. Anyone have any ideas about how I could make this work?
For a place to stay: How would I find a place to stay since I don’t have any savings (they all ask for ~3xmonths + deposit + income) ? Is it that I pretty much have to explain my situation to landlords/roommates and see who trusts me to pay back in a few months or something? What ways can I convince them? I’ve looked at airbnb and I do see some $10 a night places that I could stay at for like a week, using my paypal money.
I assume that once I get there I have to firstly get whatever job I can get and start saving immediately. But don’t jobs usually ask for address? How would I cash the checks since I don’t have a bank account?
Again I have no clue what I’m doing or how anything works and thus, I’d appreciate anyone who can provide a bit of guidance or advice, or even just support that this is possible lol. Thanks so so so much thank you <3
I think you are not going to be able to attend college this year. You have no money and no ability to borrow.
Why did you get kicked out? Is there any chance of reconciling with your parents? Any shot at getting a relative or family friend or pastor or someone to talk them into filling out FAFSA?
You might need to stay at a homeless shelter for a period until you can earn some money (safer than the streets). Sometimes YMCAs have cheap rooms, or youth hostels depending on what city you are in. San Diego is a pretty expensive city to live in (so if you aren’t able to start college, you might pick somewhere else to live).
Here is the bottom line. You may not be able to afford full time college any time soon. You won’t be able to borrow on your own or fill out FAFSA for yourself until you are 24 years old. Options:
Start working and get on your feet with a place to live and some income.
Maybe start taking a class or two in the evening if you can at a community college. It will take quite a while, but it might be your only option if you have no money and no cooperation from your parents.
Another option is to enlist in the military. You may be able to get some education benefits for when you get out, learn some marketable skills, and gain status as a veteran to quality for FAFSA and federal loans even if your parents won’t fill out the forms.
You can give the address of the Y or homeless shelter if they need it on an application. A fast food place or something isn’t going to have an issue with it, I’m guessing. Not that I’d tell them in an interview about your circumstances. You can cash your first checks at a check cashing place (although they charge a fee) until you get a bank account opened (which you need some money to do).
I agree with ^. I would also recommend not going to college yet if you have no place to stay, or way to pay tuition. University’s are very expensive so I also recommend first getting a place to live then getting a job quickly.
I would first start at why you were kicked out. What ever the reason that needs to be fixed first.
The Military is an excellent idea if you have no other options or people you can stay with.
I would let your family know first incase this might tip a change of heart.
This might be available in your area. Typically it’s work you do for free room /board /food. This is mainly for people traveling around but there might be something in your area.
If your in dire straits try the police or church etc in your area to get some temporary help.
I think the best thing you can do is see if you can reconcile with your parents. If not I would look into what social services or nonprofits in the area that may be able to offer you temporary shelter as you seek out jobs, etc. Sorry you are in this position – it is certainly a tough one.
I’m so sorry you’re going through this. Big hugs to you. Do not go join the military. The armed services shouldn’t be the go to solution for young people whose parents kick them out.
Is there any chance at all of reconciling with your parents? If you can go home, immediately look for a job. You need to be able to support yourself. College can wait. Would it help to tell them you’ll work and pay rent? If you can’t reconcile with your parents, find your county social services office and ask for help. Look [here[/url] for details.
Apply for emergency food stamps and welfare (money to tide you over until you get a job). Ask for help finding a job and for information about local transportation to get to interviews. If you need transportation to get to the county office, try your local churches to see if they can help or refer you to someone who can.
It doesn’t sound like college is affordable right now. I think you need to contact them and withdraw (in writing). You’re not in a position to pay right now and you don’t want to get billed for services you’re not using. Send an email to the registrar and copy residential life. If you accepted, you need to tell them to cancel housing and the meal plan, not just classes.
@MYOS1634 will probably have ideas for options for homeless youth. If you aren’t able to reconcile with your parents then you’ll eventually need to get your ID and personal papers (driver’s license, social security card, and birth certificate). I’d wait until you have a safe place to stay to get them. You don’t want them to get stolen.
@austinmshauri, of course the military isn’t the “go to” but far too many people discount it as an option for young adults. While there are certainly pros and cons to enlisting, there are many benefits for those who have little or no support system. I don’t advocate joining up if your are anti-military of course and you wouldn’t last too long anyways, but what’s the harm in at least exploring it as one of your options? Personally, I’d rather see a kid this age enlist than sign up for welfare. If nothing else, he/she is physically and apparently mentally able to work and should do everything possible to support themselves, which is difficult with just a high school diploma and no resources.
You need to talk to your parents about their reason for kicking you out. See if you can come to some form of compromise with them. Barring that, it’s not an option I recommend, but if you honestly have nowhere else to go, you could file suit against them, and force them to evict you.if you’ve been living in their home, you have a right to reasonable notice before they can kick you out. There are a couple of high profile cases right now, based on this premise. But again, that’s a last resort, if you only other option is living on the street, and if will just give you a grace period to find another place to live.
I have seen young people join the military if they aren’t sure what they want to do or if they have a home life they need to escape from. One of these young people went in as a medic as I think they were more of a pacifist.
Do you have any relatives or other trusted adults that could help out?
Look in your county for social workers or homeless shelters.
Contact the college in SD and talk to them about what is happening.
Thanks everyone for responding, sorry I couldn’t respond earlier, I just got wifi.
So based on everyone’s responses, school would be hard for me to go to in this situation. Before calling that off, I was thinking of perhaps contacting the school to see if there are any options for me. Since the Fall semester is starting so soon, do yall think there’s much of a chance that they could even help me at this point?
Though my parents wont will out FAFSA themselves, I COULD get a few pieces of information and fill it out myself, but idk how much of a help it would be anymore. I know their SSN and I could get into their online bank of america account, so those are the two resources I have. The situation is that I live with my mom, who doesn’t work and has zero income and no taxes, but some savings from 25+ years ago (though she mentioned about not being able to be used, i have no clue.) Our expenses are paid by my dad who lives in Asia and voluntarily sends like $1200 a month. They were never married and he has no obligation to pay.
Anyways, being that I am financially illiterate, I have no idea what documents I would need to prove this. I think part of why my mom didn’t want to fill out FAFSA is to avoid going through a bunch of stuff to prove no income (i heard it’s super hard to prove, and sometimes they investigate.) Could I just prove this using her SSN and her bank account information or something? I don’t really have any of his information, nor do I really have contact with him. I literally have no idea.
Also, thanks for the shelter and calworks and workaway and couchsurfing resources!! I’ll look into them to see what I could do, if I have any questions I’ll ask yall.
Would your mom let you move home if you work and pay rent?
Yes, talk to the school, but without the FAFSA I’m not sure there’s much they can do. You can’t sign it for your mom, she has to do that. You may have to start at a ccommunity college. But let’s get you some housing and food first. Contact CalWorks immediately and tell them you need emergency aid.
No, my mom would never really let me leave the house even for friends, let alone work.
I’m a transfer actually, so I’ve already gotten my AA in Computer Science.
Since I’m a transfer, can I still take a gap year or something to get my stuff together before actually attending school? I couldn’t find anything about that for transfers who already got accepted to a school. If I reapply I’m worried I wont get in again, because I barely got in this time.
There are no FAFSA police who will come to your door. By investigate it means they will ask questions about how the family is supported, how you pay the bills. If you cannot provide answers, financial aid may be denied.
You cannot fill out the FAFSA without a parent signing and completing the parent’s section. In your case, it is just your mother who you lived with for most of the last 12 months.
Honestly, without the FAFSA, and without the FAFSA having been filed before March 2 for California financial aid, you won’t be able to attend school this year. You need to work it out with your mother.
With an Associates degree you should be trying to get a job. Does your mother have any relatives nearby? Perhaps you could ask them if you can stay for a few months while you find work. Moving out of your mom’s house is probably a good idea anyway as your situation there seems odd.
I’ve looked online but everything assumes I have savings/income/a place to live, I need one to get the others.
<3