As I posted above…you will need a good reason to request a waiver. A non-custodial parent saying they won’t pay for college is not a reason a waiver will be granted.
You need to demonstrate that this other parent really isn’t able to be contacted, has not been part of your life for a long time, or something else like parent is in jail.
Schools that require the nonCustodial form use that information to determine their need based aid.
Northwestern requires the non-custodial parent form.
But if you have the stats for NU, have you looked for schools where you would receive decent merit aid? If not…start there.
The top ones mentioned are…Arizona State, University of Arizona, University of Alabama, University of New Mexico. All have guaranteed merit aid based on your stats…income not considered. All have honors colleges. All are good universities!
Many universities do not require non-custodial parent finances. This is typically findable by checking the college’s “apply for financial aid” web page. Check the forms needed:
FAFSA only → non-custodial parent finances not used.
FAFSA + CSS Profile without CSS Non-custodial Profile → non-custodial parent finances not used.
Own financial aid form (with or without FAFSA and/or CSS Profile) → read web site carefully.
Of the “prestige private” universities, Chicago and Vanderbilt do not generally require non-custodial parent finances. If your custodial parent is (re)married, Princeton does not require non-custodial parent finances, but does if your custodial parent is not married.