Taking a break from school may not be an option in his eyes, but if you can’t afford to pay for school then you plain can’t go. Its not like he can force you to go if you aren’t even able to enroll due to finances.
Are you all paid for the current semester? Maybe break down your income, college costs, r&b, etc., for the next semester, and then show him the deficit amount. Show him that you wont be able to afford it, and let him know you’ll have to take a hiatus unless he has some better suggestion.
Where are you planning to get this big scholarship…as a third year student? Really…unless your department has something available, you just Are not going to see a big scholarship. Even departmental scholarships are only a couple thousand dollars a year.
I’m not trying to be a Debbie Downer here…but it’s not that easy for third year students to suddenly get big scholarships from anyplace. That’s just reality.
I still say…show your dad what YOU can contribute…and what you have contributed. He might surprise you and understand.
Also, it’s nice that your step mom is allowing you to use a car. But I’m really hoping you can leave that at home with them…because having a car will also use your needed money for college.
@KDhomie I actually really like that your in the sorority. It seems like the expense is $1500 a year which would actually make no difference in that even if you had that $, you could not afford college at this rate. The sorority provides a family for you. Talk to your sorority about your situation to see if you can pay less. Are you a pledge?
Let your dad know that the college is going to kick you out for nonpayment because the college IS going to kick you out for nonpayment. All that insisting that you stay in goes no where. Then you will have to work until you can pay the bill. Then you can restart.
He should have received $2500 from your tuition he doesn’t pay for from American Opportunity Tax Credit. Can he at least give you that?
@KDhomie There won’t be a good scholarship. They are very difficult to get. Your only options and leaving school, working and saving or dad helping out if it is really that important that you don’t stop.
My step mom gets onto my Dad all the time about it. He said not to worry and that I will be put through school. And no, he can’t force me, but he can hold financial things and my job over my head since he’s my boss. I want to go to school. It’s just really stressful and frustrating when he says he doesn’t want to pay for it, even though he did anyway. The reason I’m trying to find a scholarship now is because I just transfered from a community college. I will be eligible for scholarships once the Fall19 semester starts, and apparently only a few of my credits didn’t transfer making me a sophomore, even though year-wise I am a junior. It’s not uncommon for people at this school to be 5th year seniors, in fact, most everyone I know will be 5th year seniors.
Reality- if you can’t pay your bill, you can’t go to class.
Whatever kind of business your dad runs, he is surely not allowing clients or customers to benefit from his products or services when they can’t pay him.
So he will understand reality when you show him- school costs X. I only have Y. My options are to take a year off and work to save enough money for next year, OR to get some help from family.
He’s a businessperson- this he understands. Nobody gets to eat a meal in a restaurant and then walk out when they discover their wallet is empty.
@KDhomie I would not worry about being a fifth year senior. That works in your favor because you’ll receive 15 k in federal loans over the next two years.
Your sorority might also have scholarships.
Do you have enough money to pay for this semester? You need to make it very clear to your dad that you do not have the money to pay if you don’t and that you will be dismissed which is the truth. Even if he is intimidating, there is no way around that. You still won’t be able to afford this semester if you leave the sorority. That is not a complete answer. I understand that he had you over a barrel and you are doing an amazing job. More than most kids have to do. Glad that your step mom is on your side. College is different than in the 80s probably when your dad went to school. You can’t work your way through it in the same way. Too expensive.
Do you have grandparents that could help or aunts and uncles? There also might be some scholarships/loans around for kids who have lost parents to cancer…I’m not sure on this but it is worth some research.
Can you live at home and commute? It sounds like you work for your dad during the school year so is where he lives somewhere near school?
You have what many of us face. Expenses that exceed income. The only solution is cut expenses or increase income or both.
On the expense side:
It sounds like you have your own single apartment. Get roommates or live at home if possible.
Forgo the sorority. Yes there are benefits to belonging but it doesn’t fit your budget.
Look for cheaper books. Look at renting books.
Do you really need a parking pass at school. Can you park elsewhere and walk or take a bus to school. Can you find an apartment that will make this work?
On the income side:
Is working for your dad the best option. Are there other jobs where can minimize the gas expense and related car expenses?
Can you work weekends? The sorority and community service are both worthwhile activities but unfortunately they are luxuries.
Can you go to school part time?
Who is claiming the American Opportunity tax Credit. If you are paying for your tuition and living expenses, then you have a fair argument that should be yours.
FYI, I doubt that you dad is required by law to keep you on his insurance unless it is part of your benefits as his employee. He is ALLOWED by law to keep you on his policy as long as he is willing to pay for it.
The reality is that you dad is supporting your education even if it is not enough. He is providing health insurance, allowing the use of the stepmothers car (and insurance?) and providing employment (yes, you are earning every penny and then some). The level of support is lacking but spend some time here and you will see many kids who have parents that basically cut off all support at 18.
I tried to look for scholarships for people who have lost a parent but they won’t reopen for another month and only apply to the Fall18-Spring19. My dad recently re-opened this business after they got shut down because corporate’s CEO was running the company into a lot of debt and instead of firing him they fired the workers. He’s focusing on building it back up and is doing a fabulous job and I’m proud to be a part and help him accomplish his dream. Maybe when things start picking up around here he will be more forgiving of my need for financial assistance. We do government contracting and we are “supposed” to get a huge contract soon but you know the military, they say they have money, then make you wait 10 months because they feel like it or someone important goes on vacay.
I’m hoping that once I get past rush and if I get initiated I’ll be able to get some scholarships. I do have the advantage of having all my Gen Ed’s under my belt and starting over on my 3rd year with a fresh GPA. I have the opportunity to make as many A’s as possible without worrying about my useless history and lit classes, etc. bringing me down or distracting me.
I think everything will work out in the end. I’ve somehow always made it work, plus, I’m saving the money I’m making now and trying to make a good reasonable budget for what I can spend. I know this probably doesn’t sound great but I just got approved for a credit card from my bank with only 10% interest. My plan is to use small payment things like groceries or gas on the card, keep it around 30% of the total limit and pay off a little more than I owe every month to help increase my credit and control my real money for big expenses like school, textbooks, car services etc. that I would rather not use fake(credit card) money for. My credit is on the low end of average (from applying to apartments and stuff and not having a long enough line of credibility) but he’s still never had to co-sign for anything so that’s a relief on him.
And we don’t have a lot of family, we don’t associate with my mom’s side and my dad’s mom died when he was 20 (like father like daughter), and my grandpa spends all his money of his new wife’s triplet grandkids and crackhead daughter(who recently got stabbed on his front lawn by her crackhead boyfriend). He’s got two brothers but they have their own kids to worry about.
Unfortunately, my school is not somewhere I can not have a parking pass and the public bus is NOT where you want to be. They also require a meal plan which is BS.
I’m very thankful for the things my dad provides for me but I think to get taken off insurance he would actually lose money on his tax return and I would need to change more than just the insurance (for tax purposes), and I get the work insurance through him either way. I’ve talked to him about the possibility of becoming dependent (which would require me to go to a court of law) and he said, in the long run, we would lose money.
Also for people suggesting going to school part-time, I become ineligible for more scholarships and certain loans I think. I’ve given it a lot of thought and been planning budgets the past few days since posting this and reading everyone’s comments.
I think I’ll be able to swing it. Thanks to everyone who has commented, it’s helped calm me down and be able to plan for things I might not have thought of before.
I’m concerned about this plan - it sounds like you are counting on scholarships before you’ve even applied. And, however nice a sorority would be, you don’t have the money for the dues and other costs associated with sorority membership. Please at least google sorority costs and read about some of the things sisters can be asked to pay for so you know what questions to ask during rush.
Buying anything on a credit card without the means to pay it off right away is a bad idea. You have a lot of misstatements about health insurance and taxes. You are saying you a commuter because you have an office campus apartment but can’t get a parking pass and are required to have a meal plan. So much of this doesn’t make sense.
I agree with this. Using a credit card for your education and related expenses does not sound like a wise plan to me. Student loans (parent plus or private loans with a co-signer) should be less expensive than credit card debt (even at 10%). If you run a balance on your credit card, every single charge you have will start to accrue interest immediately and you won’t get the benefit of any grace period. And how long does the 10% rate last? Is that forever or an introductory rate?
Does your school really have a mandatory meal plan for commuters? If so, I hope it’s a small one. I would expect most commuters to eat at home.
I would not count on any scholarship you haven’t received yet. I understand the desirability of a sorority, but your priorities may be a bit off where that is concerned. You need some certainty from your father as to how much he is willing to pay. Not knowing what he might contribute is very stressful, and could cause you to make decisions based on bad information/assumptions. I would go to him with your budget and ask for a commitment of what, if anything, he will cover. And if it’s not enough, I would seriously consider taking a break from your studies to save up some money.
I’ve already paid for this semester. I get paid bi-weekly about 700$. I have money and resources, I just can’t drop 2-3k at once. My university requires meal plans even if you live off campus and any apartment in walking distance is outrageously expensive or in the ghetto. The reason I wanted a card is so that I can get what I need and then at the end of the month I can disperse and allocate my finances in a good way. Such as putting money in a separate account to save for college that I don’t have access to, pay the card, pay bills etc. I talked to my dad and he agreed that if I put money away every month that he would match every 1$ with .50 cents. So let’s say I save 300$, 450$ is being put into the account.
Also, this was never stated before but I have two roommates, I live in a three bedroom apartment. We were originally looking at a 4-5 bedroom house to rent with more friends so it would be cheaper but we abandoned that idea when we took electrical bills, lawn care, and whatnot into account. It especially doesn’t help that our friend rented one of the houses we looked at and it wound up catching on fire (the jacuzzi tub engine had an electrical malfunction while everyone was at work) and they lost everything because the insurance company used a loophole to not cover them.
As for health insurance and taxes, I live in Alabama and they have crazy laws here compared to everywhere else. I’ve talked to people in the bursar’s office and financial aid at both my community college and University and talked to my dad and pretty much everyone is saying that I should stay the way I am and just try to save what I can right now.
Also, not sure if it was misread but I am NOT using the card for school, I’m using it for small, less that 60$ transactions. It has a 1500$ limit on it and I only plan on ever having it maxed at 450$ and making payments to increase my credit. I’ve talked to my sister about cards and finances and whatnot because she’s in graduate school for Accounting and Finance so I trust what she says.
My bank’s card works like this, there is a 24 month no APR on it, then you only accrue interest when you haven’t paid the balance off that month, which is 10%.