Legal citizen but Undocumented Parents

Paying for College
1

<p>i was accepted to Parsons TNSD. they offered me a 5700 scholarship. i called the fin. aid office and ask an estimate of the reward money i would recieve when my fafsa was processes. on the last of feb i filled out the fafsa. however my parents are illegal and they DO NOT plan to file taxes and will not. i can't make any excuses for them but its not fair that i, who worked really hard to get into the school now cannot go because i cannot recieve any fin. aid from fafsa. my father, who is the one who works, earns less than 15,000 (let that tell you something).
parsons told me that i have to show proof of our income. how do i do that? i cannot fill out a w2 form because he gets paid under the table. are there other tax forms out there i can fill out for him. my last resort is become an independent student but that would just complicate the process. </p>

<p>what can i do. i worked so hard all my school year just to get denied because of my parents status basically.
i applied for more than 10 scholarships already so i'm already doing my part to recieve money.</p>

2

<p>You are in a catch 22 situation; you cannot get aid because your parents are working (under the table, but are still working. They however refuse to file taxes. They will either have to file taxes which they can still do even though they are undocumented (will most likely not have to pay anything). It is in your best interest to convince your dad to get a tax id # from the IRS.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/General-ITIN-Information[/url]”>http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/General-ITIN-Information&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>IF he files, you will most likelyhave a 0 EFC which will get you full Pell, and a stafford loan. </p>

<p>Are you a NYS resident? Then you would also be eligible for TAP. Were you able to apply to Parsons through the HEOP program? Sounds like you met the financial eligibility requirement (you would have gotten a full aid package- there would have been some loans, but you most likely would have gotten full aid). </p>

<p>Did you apply to FIT? As a NYS resident, you could have applied through HEOP. IF you got accepted and live in the City, TAP/PEll would have covered your tuition and fees.</p>

<p>

This is not going to happen, because you do not meet the qualifications to become an independent student.</p>

3

<p>I am not a NYS resident, I come from Texas but thank you. Once i get the number, what can i go with it? do i file his taxes? or do i do his w2 form? </p>

<p>I also heard of a automatic EFC 0. Can this quality for me. (I earn free/reduce lunch at my school) or how does one get an automatic EFC 0</p>

4

<p>Once your dad gets a ITIN, he can file taxes as an undocumented person. This way, you could use the IRS data retrevial tool to update your FAFSA (and also verify your income).
USe the link to find your local IRS office, you/your dad can call them regarding how to proceed and can even assist him in filing his taxes.</p>

<p>Unfortunately, the amount of money you will receive in Pell/and stafford loans will not put a dent in the cost of attending parsons. I hope that you have some financial safeties in the mix.</p>

5

<p>

See [Free</a> Tax Return Preparation for You by Volunteers](<a href=“http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Free-Tax-Return-Preparation-for-You-by-Volunteers]Free”>http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Free-Tax-Return-Preparation-for-You-by-Volunteers)
Find a VITA site near you, those IRS volunteer should be able to help your parents get ITIN and file tax returns.
However, they only open until April 15.</p>

6

<p>I’m a huge minority supporter ont his site (assuming you’re a minority). But in all fairness without tax returns there is no way to gauge your family’s income and need. Sorry but that’s just the way it is.</p>

7

<p>

ont his site??</p>

8

<p>I guess 4kids contribution is to point out a simple spacing error. Should be - on this site. Each according to his own ability?</p>

9

<p>I’m sorry that you are in this situation. Because there is a lot of press out there making it seem like it is so easy to get aid, and that those who get into a school will find some way to get it paid, the true picture of paying for college is distorted. First time around applicants and parents are amateurs and often get burned.</p>

<p>Can you see why any agency would want verification of income to give you financial aid? You do understand why tax returns are needed, do you not? The way financial aid is set up, parents are responsible for paying for their children’s education because there is not enough money in the system to pay for everyone. When you are talking about a private school like Parson. one of their purposes is to make money. Parson’s costs over $60K a year. The only ones willing to spend that much on an 18 year old would be the parents. Just like it would cost $30K a year to go to certain private high schools, more for boarding schools, Parsons costs a lot of money and they get it from those parents willing and able to pay it. The school does not guarantee to meet financial need and only meets it fully for 10% of its students, probably those who don’t have much need. Even fewer get full scholarships or even any merit aid to go to the school. This is a luxurious choice of a school, Mercedes priced.</p>

<p>Without your parents’ returns, you can still qualify for $5500 in loans, at close to 7% interest for freshman year. With work, you can make a go at it locally at some state school program if you commute. Just as you did with high school. Or you can take off a year, and work out your family’s financial paperwork so that your parents do have a valid tax return and you can try again next year, better apprised of how the financial aid system works Right now your options are more limited because there are limited funds and those who had their paperwork ready and in order first got financial aid and merit “worms” (you know about the early birds, don’t you?) </p>

<p>Be aware however, that even with all of the paper work in there, unless your parents income was under $22K or very low, you may not be getting much more. Even with an EFC of zero, all you are guaranteed is $5600 from PELL, and that same $5500 from Stafford loans, and the possibility of $4K more in loans to you, but with some of that interest subsidized while a full time student. That is still a far cry from what you will need to pay a $60K tab. Like a quarter of what you need. And it is highly unlikely that a school like Parson’s is going to come up with the rest of the money. If they do, there will likely be even more loans in the mix, and if you are in a family that has financial challenges, taking out large loans, especially in the field of study you are contemplating is not advised. You can come out with no more of a prospect in earning a decent wage and with a $100K loan monkey on your back that can not be discharged. It is ruining students’ lives. Even those who get a degree that is pretty much in demand with a decent salary are sucking it down big time for a long time. </p>

<p>So your choices are to enter this lottery again next year with your eyes wide open, maybe making some money so that you too can contribute something towards your education, or to find something doable locally and look for opportunities as they arise there. Being intrepid and doing well is what makes for success anyways. My friends niece became a Rhodes scholar from a small local school that never had one, a school that does not come up often at all in these forums, one hardly anyone knows other than in the area. Keeping ones eyes out for the opportunities, excelling in ones work and learning how the system around you works is what makes for success. Clearly in all of this you did not do so, and that does not bode well for your right now. Certainly not a candidate to leave home and go to NYC with n’ary a dime. I would not back you for that amount. Someone who did the research and dotted all i’s and crossed all t’s and looked at all of the options, that person will have a greater chance, though I personally don’t think Parsons is good choice for you. The chances of getting enough money to go there even if you do everything right is very small. The school runs off of parental money, as do most of these schools that charge $60K or so a year. As I said before, who else is insane enough to invest a quarter million dollars on a kid 18-22years old?</p>

10

<p>Cryinggirl, to answer your question on how to get an automatic EFC of zero, your PARENTS income as verified on their tax returns has to be under $22K or so. If that is the case, assets up to $100K or so are ignored and it is easier to fill out the FAFSA, but your PARENTS still have to be in the picture as long as you are not independent by FAFSA definitions. It does not matter that they are illegally in this country, but that they are not filing taxes is a problem and sticking point, the way it works for financial aid.</p>

11

<p>I appreciate on your advice and how you state that Parsons is not the right school for me. However if I do not get these tax forms filled out worse case would be that I have to take a year of school, work at MIN. WAGE and not be able to go to any colleges (including state) because my family does not have any money. My parents earn 14,500 a year (too much to not pay taxes). I am graduating top of my class (rank 13 out of 464) with highest honors. I have applied to other schools (out of states as well as in-state) but the maximum amount of scholarships I am recieving from a school is from Moore which offered 17,000 per year. Tuition to Moore is around 30-40 thousand. </p>

<p>Again, Parsons is my first choice. Cost of attendence is 60,000 but tuition wise it is around 40,000. When I talked to the fin. aid office at Parsons they told me that I would qualify for more scholarships if I showed max. fin. need. So it is possible of me attending Parsons without taking costly loans out. </p>

<p>I understand my father needs to file taxes. I am not making any excuses for him. As much as my mother and myself had told him to file, he still does not. Right now we are giving him a last chance (if he’s not going to file the taxes, then I will do all that’s possible to become an independent student) to file but I do not want to resort to the last option of taking a year off school to work at MIN WAGE. </p>

<p>I also applied to North Texas and I qualify for the Emerald Eagle Scholars program (which pays full tuition ) but they determine a person by their FAFSA and qualification for Pell Grant. So even if he does not file taxes, I still cannot go to college with heavy debt. </p>

<p>At most I would want to take out a 5,000 loan.</p>

12

<p>Also I do not plan to live on campus for Parsons. and i applied for over 47+ thousand dollars from scholarships.</p>

13

<p>When I talked to the fin. aid office at Parsons they told me that I would qualify for more scholarships if I showed max. fin. need. So it is possible of me attending Parsons without taking costly</p>

<p>I doubt that. Qualifying for more scholarship money does NOT mean that you’d get enough. There’s no promise to meet need. They might give you a small amount more…like a 5500 Pell grant, but you need a LOT more. They’re not likely going to give you that.</p>

14

<p>“because my family does not have any money” is NOT the reason. The reason is because it CANNOT BE VERIFIED. If cases like yours are permitted, a lot of people could simply not file taxes and their kids still get financial aid. Without some kind of supporting documentation or by filing taxes which is in itself an affadavit that you earn a certain amount each year, you are not meeting the requirements of proof. How many rules do you feel should be just put aside for you? </p>

<p>Maybe Parsons will come up with the money, maybe not. I can tell you right out that the chances are just about zilch. Yes, you would QUALiFY for more scholarships, but that means nothing. A lot of kids there QUALIFY and do not get the full need for which they qualify. If they REALLY wanted you to come they could give you merit money, which they did not do. Their record of meeting full need is abysmal as the stats I just gave you clearly show. A different school, I could agree with you, that you would certalinly or dang close to it, get the money you need. From Parson, nope. Also, don’t discount the cost of having to live in/near NYC. Very, very expensive. Not easy to find housing either when you are not local to here as you are not.</p>

<p>I don’t know if your family would owe taxes at what your father makes. He would owe for social security tax and there would likely be other complications, so I can see why he does not want to get into this. At your family income level, I can see how every dollar can be a struggle to pay, There could also be issues of proof as to what he earned. So, I can understand fully. That he is here illegally is also an issue, could be a big one that I am not about to discount in terms of his reluctance to pay. He may have very good reasons for that.</p>

<p>I am sorry that you, who are an American citizen are caught in this situation as are many, many other kids who have parents who can’t/won’t pay for any number of reasons. As a citizen yourself, you can avail yourself of inexpensive local public schools and continue to commute to schools. That is the other option you have. </p>

<p>Even as an independent student, there is no guarantee that any school will meet your full need, do be aware, as schools are very, very stingy with their own money. If you do take a gap year to figure out how to redo all of this, take a look at Momfromtexas (yes, from your own state) 's thread on Full Ride Scholarships. With your test scores and grades, there will be schools that will be willing to pay full freight for you. You might want to pursue those options. </p>

<p>But seriously, even if your parents forms were all in order and they were not illegally here, I wouldn’t bet a dime that Parsons would have given you more than the federal monies that most any school could give you. I know some very talented kids who applied to Parsons and to other New College divisions, and they did not get need met by a long shot, and they got a lot more in scholarship money from them than you did which showed that the school very much wanted them.</p>

15

<p>Here is a thread from last year started by a student whose situation was much like yours. Most of the advice that student received would also apply to you. Read through it and know that you aren’t alone:</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1306403-loss.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1306403-loss.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Your dad has his reasons for not filing taxes - for example he may think that he will owe a lot more money than he actually will, or he may not have strong enough literacy skills to handle the paperwork. Help him get this sorted out. Contact the local Vista group from the link up-thread. They will be able to help you do everything that needs to be done. Your dad will just have to sign.</p>

16

<p>happymomof1, you have been the nicest over all. and i appriciate that you understand that my father does not pay taxes but no matter how many threats and pleads we give him he will still not. I NOR my mother knows any of his finical situation. (how much he gets paid, employer, ect. ) so it is difficult for me to file his own taxes (if i knew all these information then I would) but my father is inconsistent and rarely comes home. he gets paid under the table and i know he has to fill out a self-employed tax form. </p>

<p>after reading everything, my hopes of attending parsons are now very slim. </p>

<p>I did however get OFFERED 16,000$ of fin. aid from North Texas (grants and work study). Would I still need to show proof of our family income? Also I was not needed to verify if that makes sense.</p>

17

<p>You need to call North Texas and ask about your aid package. If it is merit-based, they shouldn’t need to look at family income at all.</p>

<p>If your dad “rarely comes home” is he actually supporting your family, or is your mom working and supporting you and herself? If she has income, and she is willing to file, and his absences are extensive enough so that the two of you can consider that they are living in a state of separation (and/or if you know that they were never legally married), then you might be able to use her income for the FAFSA. Think about that.</p>

<p>If either of your parents qualify as self-employed then yes, those taxes will have to be paid even if no other income taxes are owed.</p>

18

<p>OP’s father will likely owe taxes. I live in an area with a very high illegal immigrant populations with many of them working and few paying taxes. The only ones we have been able to get into the system are those who find someone to sponsor them and pay the taxes they owe, even on a part of their income. The problem is that even at $15K, with self employed SS taxes, you end up owing a lot. And I for one, can offer no one assurance that it isn’t giving some sort of paper trail that won’t get you noticed and deported. The few times I assisted, there clearly was a discrepancy between money made and what they were saying they were paid by their own bank books and records. It’s not something one would want get involved in. Though, OP, if your father is filling out a self employed tax form, he is paying or reporting something in taxes some how. I can tell you that most of the ones in my town are not even there. And I can also tell you that my mother who doesn’t get more than $1500 a month in federal pension owes taxes each year. which really makes me burn considering more than half the country doesn’t pay taxes. With insurance premiums and meds that she pays out of pocket, there is no way she could be living on that amount, especially here…but I digress.</p>

<p>OP, call North Texas and ask about their package. My guess is that you will have to come up with a FAFSA, but maybe not. You CANNOT get federal funds without FAFSA., and usually work study is Federal though some schools do have some that they self support. </p>

<p>As I said before, you are not alone. I know a lot of kids from families that even look prosperous outwardly where the parents refuse to fill out FAFSA or give out any financial info and they just say straight out that they can only pay so much and that is it. That hamstrings the kid in that he can’t get financial aid, though maybe he would not even be eligible or the school may not even give him any even if he is, and all he can get is $5500 in loans. For some of these kids, my guess is that they would not get much aid anyways, but this does put a lot of stress and tension in the family</p>

<p>In your case, i would truly stick to schools that will offer you merit money, and I would take a gap year and use the knowledge you have gained to parlay self into the best position for getting it. You have the stats to get merit awards which is what most kids in your situation do not have. The truth of the matter is that most schools do not meet full need especially for high need kids, so that many kids after going through a lot of trouble to show that they have need end up with about $5600 PELL if they can come up with a zero EFC and that’s about it, in terms of actual grant, and some of the $5500 subsidized of the Stafford that they could get anyways. If they can get declared independent, then they get another $4K to borrow. But the interest terms on those loans at 7% are not great , and you are talking about $40-50K owed at graduation. Not a good idea when you have zero family support to help pay this, not to mention that getting a job and started in a career takes seed money as well. </p>

<p>I may sound mean about what I am saying, but really, I live in NY, know a lot of New School students and have worked with those who are here illegally and their children, as well as any number of families whose kids get caught with acceptances from schools but no way to pay for them.</p>