<p>Ok, so i just found out that my family makes under 5K a year and we have been living like this since the last four years. I know it's kind of crazy, but they would never tell me because they thought it was going to distract me from school work. But now that college apps are coming up I just found this out, and it surprises me that we have been living off in a place this decent with donations from my grandfather. Will this affect my college chances at anywhere? I'm really worried that because of my really low income, i wont be able to go to some of the schools i've been dreaming of. I've been going nuts trying to find any type of scholarship i can. Should i talk to my counselor at school about this? I just need some guidance and i am sort of embarrassed to admit that my family makes under 5K....Can anyone give me any suggestions? :(</p>
<p>similar situation, but most schools are need-blind. making 5k a year basically means that you’re get a full ride, but question first is which college you’ll get into. if you have the stats, all ivies are free for those making less than 60,000. so yeah.
hope that helps !</p>
<p>What does “need-blind” mean? Also, i’m definitely far from acedemic excellence and i won’t be applying to ivies. I’m a pretty average student who is mainly looking at state universities like University of Washington-Seattle(in state), Boston University, UMD, Occidental, etc.</p>
<p>Making 5K does most certainly not mean you’ll get a full ride. There are a very few, highly selective colleges that provide aid that generous, but the VAST majority of schools do not.</p>
<p>Grigg, is there a state university to which you can commute from your family’s home? This may be your best bet. You’ll get some federal aid in the form of grants and loans, and likely some workstudy. If there is a public univ. within driving distance, this ought to cover your basic costs. This of course depends on your family’s income and assets. Income sounds very low, but I don’t know what other assets they may have.</p>
<p>Going away from home for college will present you with much higher costs and may require you to take on considerable debt depending on the college.</p>
<p>Are you presently a high school senior? You will need to file a FAFSA (federal aid application) shortly after January 1st. to receive aid for the 2011-12 academic year.</p>
<p>(Neither Occidental nor Boston Univ. are a public, and are in fact quite expensive and not terribly easy to get accepted to.)</p>
<p>Some HS guidance counselors are really woefully unable to help steer students to financially viable colleges. By all means talk to the HS GC, but verify verify verify anything he/she tells you with published/publicly available information. </p>
<p>Many colleges can not give a “full-ride”. And even if they offer the equivalent to a tuition waiver (no fees) – students often still have to cover food, books, dorms. </p>
<p>And the college has to <em>want</em> you first - what are your stats? HS GPA and SAT scores?</p>
<p>If you let us know what state you live in and these other stats, posters can start outlining some of the more viable options out there for you.</p>
<p>In the meantime, start looking into how FAFSA works, what kinds of forms your parents will need to fill out (are they ready to do this for you?), and the difference between Sub and UnSub loans, etc.</p>
<p>Your state universities are the best place to start your search. Find out if any of them have special programs for low income students. Also find out if any promise tuition/room/board will be covered for 0 EFC students (two in my state do so). If you can commute, see if the local university will provide grants to cover the average cost of tuition. Also, consider community college as a great way to save money (make sure you develop an academic plan with a counselor). </p>
<p>My MOST important piece of advice is to file your FAFSA EARLY!!! If you are asked to submit documents for financial aid, DO IT!! If you don’t file on time and/or if you ignore requests for documents, you risk losing aid for which you might otherwise be eligible.</p>
<p>Please don’t be embarrassed about your family’s financial situation.</p>
<p>
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<p>o.O</p>
<p>Most colleges are not need blind, and coming from a family that makes 5k a year does not mean that you will automatically get full ride (although full tuition is possible). All the Ivies are not necessarily free for those making less than 60,000 a year.</p>
<p>@rentof, </p>
<p>I live about 30 min. away from UW-Seattle, so that’s probably my best bet. Plus, it’s public so that’s a super plus. I just hope i get accepted. :/</p>
<p>@annika,</p>
<p>My hs school gpa is 3.4 unweighted with 4 upper level courses. My school doesn’t rank but i am in the top 35% of my school which is fairly competitive. By the end of the semester, i will be bumped up into the top 30% if i maintain my grade my grades well. It will be in about 3.45-3.5 ish range. I’ve done cross country for two years but i had to quit because the sports fee got way too expensive and my dad wouldn’t pay for it even with the waiver. Hmm…I’ve been involved in some community service and have about 150-200 hours, I did FBLA for one year and i was an officer, and Paperstaff where i am the editor, and maybe a few other insignificant ones that i wont bother going into detail about. My SATs were poor, which i got 1600 but i am retaking it in Oct. to bring it up to 1800+, my ACT was 28 and i am pushing for a 30 this Saturday. Other than that, that’s pretty much my stats. </p>
<p>I’m probably not going to go out of state, so i am really aiming for UW,Western Washington, Seattle U, Washington State, and Whitman College. But it wouldn’t hurt to apply to out of states. Honestly, this finincial aid looks like gibberish to me. I am lost.</p>
<p>*similar situation, but most schools are need-blind. making 5k a year basically means that you’re get a full ride, *</p>
<p>That is so wrong! you don’t get a free ride for being low income! Where did you get that idea? Most schools do not have the money for anything close to free rides.</p>
<p>*so i am really aiming for UW,Western Washington, Seattle U, Washington State, and Whitman College. But it wouldn’t hurt to apply to out of states. Honestly, this finincial aid looks like gibberish to me. I am lost. *</p>
<p>Since the state of Washington also has state aid, you need to stay in-state since your stats may not be high enough for OOS schools that meet need.</p>
<p>If you go to a state school, you’ll get Pell, state aid, and hopefully some other free aid in addition to student loans and work study.</p>
<p>You need to apply to a variety of state schools and hopefully you can get some merit to also help meet need.</p>
<p>You are most likely eligible for the Washington State Need Grant (up to $7717 for UW/WSU and Privates and $5575 for other 4 year in state). Husky Promise is also available. With your stats, it would probably be a reach to get into UW Seattle, but UW Bothell and Tacoma are within reach & Husky promise applies there, too.
Seattle U has decent merit aid, but I don’t know if they fund full-need (my sister needed loans when she went there some years ago).
Whitman can be incredibly difficult to get into w/o high stats (25th %-tile for SAT is 1850, 75th is 2140) COA is $50K, so you’d need significant institutional grants to attend. </p>
<p>Google Washington State Need Grant as well as Husky Promise for more info.</p>
<p>Has your grandfather offered to help with college?</p>
<p>You are most likely eligible for the Washington State Need Grant (up to $7717 for UW/WSU and Privates and $5575 for other 4 year in state). Husky Promise is also available. With your stats, it would probably be a reach to get into UW Seattle, but UW Bothell and Tacoma are within reach & Husky promise applies there, too.</p>
<p>It does look like your instate publics are the best for your situation and your stats.</p>
<p>Apply as early as you can to UW, WSU, and the other state schools. Sometimes schools are more lenient stats-wise with early applicants. My nieces went to WWU and liked it.</p>
<p>Are UW and WSU accepting apps now? If so, send in your apps ASAP. Do either have rolling admissions? </p>
<p>Seattle U (and most other privates) won’t likely work because they don’t meet need and your stats won’t get a scholarship.</p>
<p>Also…and this is important…submit your financial aid paperwork (FAFSA, etc) as soon as you can after January 1st. Those who submit FA info early often get better aid packages. </p>
<p>You may have to include some mention that your grandparents contribute to your household (not sure what you have to say) because the FA offices may not believe that your family lives on only $5k per year. They will probably ask for some kind of verification or something. </p>
<p>Hopefully, Swimcatsmom, Kelsmon, or someone else can chime in here.</p>
<p>Another consideration: If you used a fee waiver for the SAT then many colleges will waive the application fee, in case you weren’t aware of this.
You might seriously look at beginning at a two-year school and transferring to a university later. Some of the two-year schools are less expensive, especially when competitive aid packages are added to the mix. There are other advantages to starting at a community college as well.</p>
<p>^^^ Do investigate the community colleges that you can commute to. When you visit, be sure to ask about all of the scholarship programs that you might qualify for. Students with your GPA and financial need usually qualify for “top-up” scholarships at our local community college that cover expenses above the maximum Pell Grant including all books and supplies.</p>