@bgbg4us sounds like we’re in the same boat. I really had no idea that financial aid had so many requirements and limitations. It’s only within the past year that I’ve started to discover all of these things. It’s hard working your entire academic career trying to get into an Ivy League school or the like and then discovering that no matter what you do, you can’t pay for it. I understand that I have lived a blessed life and I really am grateful for it but it’s disappointing to see kids who can pick any school without a thought about how much debt their family will incur while I have to “be realistic” as you said and limit myself.