<p>He is doing financial aid forms though? I don't know what you're asking.</p>
<p>Scrameron...sorry, I must have misunderstood somewhere in all this. Your family would be eligible for Plus loans assuming the finaid forms are complete. However, unless I'm missing something, a cosigner is JUST AS LIABLE for the repayment of a loan as the signer. In other words, if you default on your loan, your parents would be responsible if they cosign the loan. Here is my opinion...and I'm with the others. If your parents are refusing to contribute to your undergraduate education, you really need to weigh the debt issue carefully. Even for two years at full freight, your costs in Boston will exceed about $80,000. That is a lot of loans. You could finish your undergrad degree where you are or somewhere else in state (couldn't you transfer to somewhere where you could live ON campus instate....lots less expensive than Boston) and then think of graduate work in the Boston area. I'm sorry...we WILL be cosigning loans for our daughter if she picks her top choice, but NOT for $80,000. That is simply too much debt for HER to have and as we approach retirement it is too much for US to assume.</p>
<p>And just curious...you imply that your area of interest isn't available in Fl at all. Just what exactly is your course of study? I find it hard to believe that the state universities in Fl don't offer your major somewhere at a cost you can afford.</p>
<p>I don't really understand how I would have to take out 80,000 in loans for two years? I mean, if the full cost is about 105k for three years (on average), and I have 50k in assets, even if I get no grants, merit based scholarships, outside scholarships, or work study, that's still 55k, not 80k. And I'm hoping that somewhere along the lines, I'll be eligible for something, other than a loan.</p>
<p>And besides the fact that I've already applied to 6 schools in Boston and the deadline for transfer admission to state schools is today, I really have no desire to pay money and take out loans to transfer to an instate institution (I guess my mentality is that if I have to pay anyway, I should pay to go somewhere that I won't be unhappy at). It's not the none of the state schools have my major (International Relations), FSU does have a program, it's just that the quality of the programs, and the availability of internship/study abroad opportunities are better in the Boston area, and many of the things I don't like about my current institution would not be resolved by transferring to a similar state school (large class sizes, inaccessble professors, too large of a undergraduate enrollment). It doesn't make any more sense to transfer to a smaller private school in state, because I wouldn't receive any of the scholarships that would make florida more cost efficient (like Bright Futures). I could always hold off on Boston for graduate school, but if I can TA somewhere, in almost all cases tuition is covered and money is given towards living expenses (not enough to cover living expenses, but some amount generally), so it seems to me that the better place to spend my money is undergrad.</p>
<p>I'm okay with having some debt after college, I just needed to know how to devise a plan for covering costs.</p>
<p>EDIT: Initially, when I made the thread, my parents were not willing to cosign for additional loans. I plan on removing their responsibilities as cosigners after graduating.</p>
<p>Probably too late to be of help to you, but (given the name of this thread) does anyone know how a student (of usual college age) would go about proving independence from his or her parents--not just for undergraduate school but for graduate or professional as well?</p>
<p>According to the FAFSA, to declare independence, you need to be either:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>For the 2006-07 school year (blue FAFSA), the student must be born before 1-1-1983; or for the 2005-06 school year (green FAFSA), the student must be born before 1-1-1982);</p></li>
<li><p>The student must be married; or</p></li>
<li><p>The student must have a child or other dependents who receive more than half their support from the student; or</p></li>
<li><p>The student must be enrolled as a graduate student (master's, doctoral) or professional student (medicine, dentistry, or law); or</p></li>
<li><p>The student must be a qualified veteran of the U.S. military; or</p></li>
<li><p>The student must be an orphan (parents deceased) or ward of the court or was a ward of the court until age 18; or</p></li>
<li><p>The student must have special and unusual circumstances which can be documented to his or her college financial aid administrators (i.e., abuse in the family, alcoholism, etc.). This exception is rare and only an experienced financial aid administrator at your college can make this "dependency override" on the FAFSA application.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>For grad school, you are considered an independent automatically I believe, as it satisfies the criteria (#4)</p>
<br>
<blockquote> <p>I have 50k in assets>></p> </blockquote>
<br>
<p>Please clarify. In our original post you said that you did not have access to the full 50K because of restrictions on that money. </p>
<p>I have a student who attends college in Boston. It is an EXPENSIVE place to go to college, not just the tuition at the private schools (the tuition alone hovers around $30,000 per year....just the tuition), but living costs are high also....figure an additional $10,000 per year. That is where I get my $80K number for two years. For three it would be more like $120K. </p>
<p>I know it's too late now...but when you look into graduate schools, you also might want to consider the schools in the greater DC area where international studies are prime.</p>
<p>Good luck to you in your decision process. Perhaps one of those schools does offer transfer students financial aid. Many do not (I do not know specifically about the schools to which you applied). That may help with this decision. Try to get as much out of your undergrad education as you can regardless of where you go next year. Look for internship opportunities or study abroad. Some of those things can enrich a college experience that is less than enriching.</p>
<p>im a student cross town at lynn university and i understand boca is REDICULOUS good luck w/ everything im blessed w/ financial help from my parents but i still struggle financially</p>
<p>If you want to qualify as independent and are under - I think it may be 21 (maybe slightly older when it comes to college)- anyway. you have to live on your own and accept no money from your parents for at least one year.</p>
<p>In order to qualify for to be an independent student you must meet one of the following criteria:</p>
<p>Be 24 years of age or older by December 31 of the award year; </p>
<p>Be an orphan (both parents deceased), ward of the court, or was a ward of the court until the age of 18; </p>
<p>Be a veteran of the Armed Forces of the United States; </p>
<p>Be a graduate or professional student; </p>
<p>Be a married individual; </p>
<p>Have legal dependents other than a spouse</p>
<p>Please keep the following in mind before you appeal for independent status:
A student’s decision to move out of his or her parent’s home, in and of itself does not make the student independent for financial aid purposes.</p>
<p>A parent’s decision to request that the student move out of the parent’s home in and of itself does not make the student independent for financial aid purposes.</p>
<p>A parent’s unwillingness to provide parental data on the student’s financial aid forms is not a valid reason to grant independent status.</p>
<p>A student’s unwillingness to seek financial assistance from his or her parents is not a valid reason to grant independent status.</p>
<p>A student’s ability to pay his or her own educational expenses is not a valid reason to grant independent status.</p>
<p>Please note the age of this thread--if further posters want to offer general advice that might be helpful to students whose parents don't want to pay for college, fine. However, I suspect the original poster is past needing help specific to FL or Boca Raton.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Please note the age of this thread
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Yes. The thread was bumped by a spam post that has since been deleted. The OP is on to a different situation by now. </p>
<p>To deal with spam posts, wherever you see them, use the "report problem post" link on that post, and the moderation team will hear about it and deal with it.</p>
<p>Wonder how it all worked out...</p>
<p>At least the OP was trying to get his parents to "assist" him and didn't have the attitude that some have that his parents "OWE" him a college education.</p>
<p>As some of the others have told you, and as you have probably gathered by now, it is your parents' call to support your college. Just as it was their decision as to where you went to high school and earlier schools. That is just the way the situation is. It would be just as though you are 18 and want to leave your high school for a private boarding school. Without your parents consent and support, it's nigh impossible. </p>
<p>Do you know anyone in Boston? The only way I can see for you to do this is if you have an anchor there where you can get a start. Delay a semester or a year, find a job and save, save, save. Go to school part time and pay for it that way. The average college student is 24-25 years old and goes to school part time. So it's not as though you are doing something unusual.</p>
<p>ellmenope,
srcameron transferred to Simmons College in Boston. I know that she didn't get financial aid from the school, so she must have worked things out with her parents.
**Note to all-this is a very old thread from 2006.</p>
<p>I missed the age of this thread too. Thanks, Momof3sons for updating us. I am glad the student was able to work out something.</p>