The mortgage/taxes/etc can be well over $5 a month neat NYC for an ave house. And Some folks ran up debt in the crisis.
Op: I’m afraid you will need to face the reality that you must stay home and commute to a low cost option, community college nearby? You can’t get where you want to be from where you are right now. I’m sorry.
What are your parents paying for your siblings? And what kind of school? Are we talking college? Public K-12? Private K-12?
If you are talking about private high school…do your parents currently pay for you to go to private high school?
If you are talking about college…how are The others paying for college?
Temple has a great film school, would not cost $50K
This year for OOS students, Temple is $41,774 cost of attendance.
The OP says his parents have NO money to contribute to his college education.
I can say NJ is very expensive. A three bedroom one bath house can be 3/4 million dollars with property taxes up to 20k. Nonetheless credit card debt could be from anything a bout of unemployment paying medical insurance premiums, groceries, gas and utilities for all we know. The economic downturn destroyed many families finances. And if family has credit card debt they can’t pay mins on balances and ever get out of debt. Lastly I doubt a 180000 income leaves family with 145k after taxes. FICA is about 8% alone plus state taxes and federal. Also if parent commutes to ny that’s hundreds per month. Unfortunately colleges font care about credit card debt which really isn’t fair when debt was amassed due to economic hardship and not luxury vacations.
It doesn’t matter how much your family makes, how much they owe, or what they’ve spent their money on.
You’re looking at a school you can’t afford.
Can you save some money for two years while you attend community college, then transfer to a school with a film program?
Do any NJ state schools offer film studies?
Have you contacted people in the industry, and asked them what major you would need to break into it? You may find that there’s a wider choice of majors than you think.
Would you consider a gap year while you work and save money?
Would you consider a related major at a local or state school, while you save money, then a graduate degree in film?
I’m not sure I (and probably lots of other people) want college admissions officers reviewing piles of credit card statements in an effort to determine which charges were “necessary” and which were “luxuries.” Maybe it’s not completely “fair,” but no one said that life ever was.
for now, since you still have time to create some money, why not have a job, your course is expensive bro. so that whatever earnings you can get on that job, you can ask your parents some of their share for the tuition.
Read this article
I never said life was fair. And it’s not admission officers its financial aid officers. Its not even going through credit card statements if unemployment hit a family for two years which was not uncommon in recent years it’s not hard to figure out the costs and not hard to prove via income tax returns. In any event in state tuition in nj seems to run about 12k a year looking at Rutgers and Montclair state. I would work fora year and save up money apply to a school within commuting distance of your parents home. If your parents credit is bad I think you can qualify for 9k in loans per year otherwise it’s 5500. In any event it’s possible to do.
Sorry, I did not realize that Temple was that much OOS.
Look at instate schools. Do your parents go on vacation, could they give you that money?
It sounds like your parents would benefit from credit counseling
If the parents are in debt due to medical bills or an extended job loss or something totally out of their control credit counseling is not going to solve their problems. The debt can’t be desmissed there is only one way out and that is paying it off. When the banking laws were changed and the credit squeeze arrived many peoples credit got cut not because they weren’t paying but because of the laws hence people’s credit scores went down and as a result and the rates sky rocketed. In any event none of us know why they are in debt and can be from any number of things. The problem will not resolve itself overnight and in the mean time he has to figure out how to go to college under the constraints his family has.
This is ridiculous!
I’m an NJ resident as well! Our state schools are nowhere near 50K.
Your grades & scores won’t get you full-ride anywhere, so check out these options:
-CC ($14,000 in Bergen County)
-Montclair ($11,772 Commuter, $25,656 Dorm)
-Ramapo ($20,183 Commuter, $31,000 Dorm)
-Kean ($11,581 Commuter, $23,000 Dorm)
-William Paterson ($6,120 + Fees)
-Military ($0 + benefits)
-I’d recommend getting a job ASAP.
-Definitely look into NJSTARS. If you’re in an Abbot District, a 3.5 may put you in the top 15%.
I wouldn’t go to college in that circumstance. You’d be adding debt to debt to debt. I’d get a job, get a decent camera, and start shooting short films. There are always classes out there for various subjects–screenwriting, making a short film, editing, acting, etc. Some are available online, at very good film schools.
I appreciate all the answers guys. I’ll fill in more of you with some questions posted. The debt is mostly economy based. Or so I’m told. Nj is really expensive. My dad is police officer near NYC. My mom is a part time hospital tech. Maybe my parents are lying to me about where the money goes. I wouldn’t know. I’m 19, I’ve been working for a year and a half. But cmon 9 dollars an hour, I work full time. My pay check is like 400 bucks a week. I’m saving such little money. Because I have to buy my own clothes, food, phone bill etc. I’m in a gap year. I did a semester at a CC. It wasn’t much fun. I want to go away and live on my own and really get lost in the college experience. All I can say is when the mortgage is due things are tight. That’s why I’m on my own. Yeah my parents are financially irresponsible I get it. They never went to school so they think i don’t have to. It’s a different world now then it was in 1975 when they were 18. Anyway thanks guy. If you have any more to add. I’m open to listening.
Your mom works part-time and your dad is a police officer = $180k/year?
You make $20k on an annual basis and save very little?
I’m completely independent, my money goes towards a lot of little things that add up. My parents make good money I know Madison. But they are like 80k in the hole. What’s your advice ?