Loaded parents who refuse to pay for college..can I get any need based aid?

Paying for College
1

<p>Alright, here's what's up. My parents make alot of money (180,000+/year) and have alot of other wealth in assets. I make ok grades (3.8 UC GPA) and have good test scores (SAT 1460/ACT 33). The problem is my parents hate me. They view having children as one of the biggest mistakes of their life and let me and brother know often. They used to beat me until I got big enough to fight back, but I never went to a foster home b/c I've got a nice home, nice clothes, nice car, etc. I don't qualify for any need based financial aid because of my parents income, but my parents have no interest in paying for me to go to college (they don't see the point of educationg another liberal who is only going to work against everything they want). Is there any way I can qualify for need based aid when my parents are pretty much loaded? Please help me with this. I don't want to have to go to a community college with the grades, ECs (pretty good), and scores I have. Thank you in advance.</p>

2

<p>Wow, that's pretty bad. I say if the hand that feeds you strikes you as well, you have every right to retaliate. I'm not sure what kind of aid you could receive though. You could try to explain your situation to the FA office and if they don't believe you, tell them to talk to your parents. If they lie, then screw 'em. You don't need deadbeat parents anyway. If worse comes to worse and they absolutely will not support you in anyway (emotionally or financially), go to your local teen homeless shelter. You don't need to live on park benches to be homeless, ya know. You could be taken in as a foster kid, then go to college. I'm not sure who would pay for it. Of course this is a dramatic step and considering you're almost or am 18 years old, you might want to not even think about disownment. </p>

<p>But, if you're parents dont love you, why do they buy all those stuff for you???</p>

3

<p>They buy it because I need it. They buy nice clothes to keep up their 'image' among others and they bought me my car (a toyota prius) b/c they didn't want to drive me to my summer college classes and they got a tax write off for it.</p>

4

<p>you could apply for scholarships and make them aware of your situation, but im afraid that you probably cant get need based financial aid, becuase in the colleges eyes you dont 'need' it.</p>

5

<p>Your best bet is to apply to colleges that give good merit aid. Parent's unwillingness to pay does not qualify you as a need based candidate.</p>

6

<p>check out the ROTC programs</p>

7

<p>TheFAFSA (which is what you and your family will complete to apply for need based aid, does not consider whether or not your parents are WILLING to pay. It considers whether or not they CAN pay. The fact that your parents are continuing to buy you things indicates that they CAN support you. You would have difficulty demonstrating that they are not supporting you financially because they do things like buy a car for your use (it doesn't matter what the reason is). I agree that your best bet would be to look for colleges that have decent merit aid for students with your credentials. There are PLENTY of those out there. Also, have you HAD a discussion with your parents about college expenses?</p>

8

<p>Your best bet might be looking at schools where you know you'll be happy, yet you're high on the ladder and can get a full, or close to full ride. You've got great stats and there are probably many schools itching to let you in for free, and you can still get a great education.</p>

9

<p>If your parents can really afford college, and refuse to pay, you may actually be able to sue them to pay for it. I remember a case I read about a year or two ago where a daughter wanted to major in drama and the parents would only pay for her to take some other major. She sued and the court said she had an obligation to pay for her college. I don't know if you want to take it that far, but in theory it is an option.</p>

10

<p>that sucks, man
if your rents hate you guys as much as you say they do and you do sue them, that'll definitely make things worse.. they might try to get the upper hand somehow.
and yea, what would you be doing if you don't go to college? stay at home forever?
good luck...</p>

11

<p>Legally, if a child shows they are "college material," a parent has some financial responsibility in paying the college tuition! They may not be forced to pay for a very expensive private when a state college is acceptable and or available, however.</p>

<p>You may want to talk with someone from legal aid... or a lawyer - preferably a family law lawyer (you may be able to find one that will give you a free consultation). </p>

<p>Best of luck!</p>

12

<p>YOur parents are socially and morally obligated to provide you with a college education, however they are not legally responsible to pay your college tuition, especially if these 2 parents are still married. </p>

<p>IF they were divorced or had a standing child support agreement that covers college expenses then they would be legall y obligated to comply</p>

13

<p>I doubt very much that they hate you. Even the most miserable, abusive parents love their kids on some level. It's biologically hardwired into us. </p>

<p>Have you talked to your parents about college expenses??? You need to do that first. What are they planning that you will do when you graduate from high school? Are they talking about you getting a fast-food job and moving out of the house? If not, they probably figure you are going to go to some sort of college. Why would they buy you a car to get to college classes if they did not care about your education? You have to ask them what their plans are. Even a local jr. college would require some conversation with your parents about how to pay for it and where you are going to live. They might put a limit on how much they will pay, or they might have a list of colleges or majors they refuse to pay for. But it is unlikely that they plan to disown you. How would that look to their friends? If they only care about their "image", they should be wanting you to go to some college they can brag about.</p>

14

<p>my nephew whose parents are divorced is having to work two jobs to pay for his schooling. His mother has 4 kids at home and can't afford to help him much, and his father ( my brother) refuses to help him unless he attends a school of the fathers choice.
The dad wanted him to be a doctor, but he is a working firefighter, living in Tacoma but working in the firedept in Oak Harbor and attending school in Bellevue .( as well as a grocery store job in tacoma)
He still has a good if delicate relationship with his father, even going to visit him at Christmas, but he is more mature than his dad will ever be and I hope that he recognizes that it is his dads selfishness and need to control that contributes to his refusal to pay for school and not anything lacking on his sons part.</p>

15

<p>Tell your parents not to claim you on their income tax return, and youre set. Because they dont claim you, youll be independent and youll get all kind of aid.</p>

16

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<p>This is very simply NOT true. If all it took was not being declared on parents' income tax returns, there would be MANY independent students receiving aid. The reality is that there are some very specific criteria one must meet to be independent. First...your parents cannot have contributed to your living AT ALL (this would include your housing, your new car, food, everything). Evidence that your family is contributing to you financially would not support independent status. Second...you MUST be an orphan, or be married, or have minor children of your own, or be over the age of 25. If you wanted to be an emancipated minor (this is different than independent student which I explained already), you would have to demonstrate that you have NO CONTACT with your family for any reason including social, or financial, and petition the courts for such status or get an affidavit signed by clergy or some other reliable source. The reality is that your parents ARE supporting you, and you are not self supporting. It is very unlikely that you would be able to gain independent or emancipated status. Just because your parents may not be WILLING to pay for college doesn't mean that they can't. The finaid awards (need based) go to families who CAN NOT pay...not those who WILL NOT pay.</p>

17

<p>Thedude3,</p>

<p>You are misinformed as to what it takes for someone to be calssified as an independent student. This person will not meet the FA test for being an independent student.</p>

<p>For 2004-05, federal regulations state that to be considered independent for financial aid, a student must meet one of the following criteria:</p>

<p>be born before 1-1-81;
be married;
have and support a child or other dependent;
be enrolled as a graduate or professional student;
be a qualified veteran of the U.S. military by 6/30/03;
is an orphan or was a ward of the court before age 18;
have very unusual personal circumstances that must be documented to an experienced financial aid administrator at your school (i.e., child abuse, etc.). </p>

<p>If you do not meet one of these criteria, you must provide financial and other information for your custodial parent(s) on the FAFSA. Though you may not be independent, you should still be eligible for low-interest student loans, regardless of your parents' income and assets.</p>

18

<p>hm. i guess the easiest is to get married or have a kid</p>

19

<p>The way I see it, you have a few options:</p>

<ol>
<li>Wait until you are 24 years of age to start college. This may mean having to move out on your own for a few years. I started college at age 25 because I wanted the true experience (living on campus, going to the college I wanted instead of some CC, all the activities). Going at 18 would have meant commuting 45 miles to a community college (which I did for six credit hours and decided wasn't for me). Independent student status starts at 24 unless you're an orphan, married, or have a dependent child. (Someone else on here said 25, it's actually 24 and up...). Most traditional age college students don't even recognize that I am seven years older than them unless I tell them. And even in cases where I do (rarely), they do not treat me like the plague...It is not that unusual for people to start college a little later in life than 18, and no I am not just talking about working adult commuter students...I can say that it is pretty cool going in at 24 or 25...because (a) you can still pass for 18 or 19, and (b) you're legally old enough to have beer (not that it stops most traditional college students, but you don't have to mess with fake IDs to get into a bar). </li>
<li>With a 3.8 GPA, you should be eligible for tons of scholarships. Have you investigated that route? Once you get a scholarship, it's yours. They won't take it away from you because your parents are mad at you. I know because a friend of mine had a situation similar to yours. She had a 3.5 and got a lot of scholarships to go to a college 100 miles away, enough to get a free ride even living on campus. Her parents wanted her to live at home and commute to a college 10 miles away so they could monitor her...when she resisted they tried calling some of the scholarship sources and telling them that they should not give her the scholarships...she didn't lose a single scholarship and is now a graduate student elsewhere (someone who went to college at 18 and is about my age...)</li>
</ol>

20

<p>I've got a perfect Idea:
sue your parents for beating you (if you have photos or whatever)
and use the money to pay for college</p>

<p>Its a sad scenario, but you can make the best of it</p>