My parents won’t pay for any part of my college education, which is the same situation with my sister. I need to work through college to be able to go in the first place, which is why aid is a significant factor for me. My parents are only willing to fill out the FAFSA, and not contribute any money themselves. And I don’t know what the EFC for my sister is, but she only applied for one scholarship and ended up not getting it, so she applied for a federal loan to help pay for college. But she is commuting, whereas I want to live on-campus, away from home.
And I’ve definitely been doing test prep, through Khan Academy and also from the official SAT prep book from College Board. I’m working my tail off so that I can get good merit aid to maximize my opportunities!