<p>Smasoccer, there are schools that would consider you for some merit aid. To get substantial merit aid, you would have to start looking at some schools that are more obscure than on most kids' lists. There is a thread on full ride scholarships that list some of such schools.</p>
<p>This also comes from the same FAFSA website I quoted earlier: "Note: The following people are not considered parents on this form unless they have legally adopted you: grandparents, foster parents, legal guardians, older brothers or sisters, and uncles or aunts."</p>
<p>I don't agree with the regulation, but we are not given a lot of leverage for making someone independent, thanks to all those FAO's and parents who abused the dependency override regulations.</p>
<p>What is a professional student?</p>
<p>There are two main sources of merit aid - the colleges you apply to and outside scholarships that are merit-based. Choose colleges that offer generous amounts of merit aid (some colleges offer none or very little as a matter of policy), where you will stand out as an applicant. You have a pretty amazing profile (first generation, challenging life circumstances, and terrific grades and test scores), so your chances seem quite good. You shouldn't have to focus only on merit aid, though - even if you don't qualify for a Pell grant, you might get institutional aid from colleges based on their assessment of your financial need.</p>
<p>In general, local scholarships are better bets than national scholarships just because there are fewer applicants. But with your profile, you might be competitive for national scholarships. Somebody gets them, so why not you? For example, you might want to check the Mercedes Benz Drive Your Future scholarship, which is a $2500 award for first generation students. If you are Hispanic, there is the Sallie Mae First in My Family scholarship ($5000). If you're Asian, look at the OCA-UPS Gold Mountain scholarship ($2000).</p>
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Here's the quick deal on first generation issues: the fed. gov. has a particular finan. aid grant called a Pell grant, which is specifically aimed at first generation students whose families have few resources. The max one can get of that grant (no need to repay, GRANT--this will all get easier in the months ahead) is around $4700.
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<p>One does not have to be a first gen student to be eligible for a Pell grant. Pell grant eligiblity is driven totally by the family's EFC. As long as the EFC is under $401, the student will be pell grant eligible.</p>
<p>Sybbie is correct - the Pell is available to any eligible student (US citizen or qualified non citizen such as a permanent resident) whose EFC is low enough. There is a table that shows how much you would qualify for based on your EFC.</p>
<p>For 2008-2009 school year the maximum is $4731 for a 0 EFC and the minimum is $890 for an EFC between 4001 to 4041. EFCs over 4041 do not qualify for Pell. Other grants such as ACG require Pell eligibility also.</p>