Parents won't pay for college, they make too much for?

Question

My parents won't pay for anything past high school, but they make too much for me to get any financial aid. What should I do?

Answer 1

Talk to them. Ask them why they don't want to pay for your college tuition. Did they just tell you this decision recenty, or have they given you time to prepare? If they didn't give you warning about you having to pay for college, explain to them calmly, that you didn't have time to prepare and therefor it isn't fair for you to be expected to dish out several thousand dollars out of pocket.

If they still refuse to pay or are not understanding, then I suppose you could take a year off and work full-time to save up money for school. I hate to break it to you, but college is so expensive now that getting into a good school and being able to afford it without parental help, scholarships or grants is nearly impossible. It can be done, but you have to work really hard.

Another idea is to make a contract with your parents-something along the lines of "if you pay for __yrs of my college, I will keep a GPA of __ and pay you back __% within __yrs of graduating"

There are also community colleges that you could attend, and scholarships that you could apply for as well as work-study programs that you could look into.

Answer 2

There is no "yes or no" to this question - In today's economy - College may once again become the privilege of the upper class -- I think that if the parents have saved for it, and/or can afford it, then it would be nice if they contributed to their child's education. However, I do not think they should borrow money to do so, nor mortgage their home or deplete their retirement. A student can qualify for aid, scholarships - and can get student loans with better rates than the parents can -- and most student loans are deferred until the student graduates and gets a job -- while the parent has to pay on the loan right away - Unless a student is playing sports, he/she should be able to help with a part time job,or an internship - and now that online classes are readily available - they could alternate classes on campus with online and work as well -- A college education may no longer be the carefree, party that it once was -- but anyone wanting an education badly enough - can find a way to procure one. (PS- stats say that a college education will net $1 million dollars more in income over your lifetime) -

Answer 3

I went through this and had a very hard time. So many people told me I could still get some kind of aid through fafsa, but i could only get an unsubsidized loan of $2500.00 and nothing else because my parents wouldnt cosign for anything either. If you do have family that can cosign for you, you may be able to get a PLUS loan that involves your parents or go to a private source that will probably have a higher interest rate. Check with your college's finaid office and see what options they suggest. I ended up taking a year off and saved enough money to pay cash for my first year and a half of school at a community college, and in the meantime I built up my credit very carefully and am now able to qualify fo rloans to pay for the rest of my education. It was actually worth it even though it wasn't what I wanted, because I will owe very little as long as I keep a part-time job while in school, I will have a excellent credit score and know that I earned it on my own. Keep your chin up and apply for as many scholarships as you can at fastweb.com

Answer 4

I would still fill out the FAFSA form if you have not already done that at this time. Usually there is some form of help out there financial aid wise for students. My brother got it working full time with nice commissions when he went back for his MBA. The other option is to join several free membership scholarship search websites. The final option is to start at a community college and work up the scale from there. I will include some informational websites below. Good luck!

Answer 5

You can get "financial aid" no matter what your parents income. The key is what kind of financial aid you get. You can get approved for a student loan no matter their income. You don't need them to cosign and you don't need to have good credit. Also remember, scholarships are "financial aid" as well. Spend a minimum of 20 hours per week looking for them, and apply to as many as you can. You can never apply for too many scholarships. Here is a good publication about federal financial aid and the types you can get.
Good Luck - work hard and don't give up!! It's your future, not theirs.

Answer 6

They must have some brains,, tell them you won't go because a four year degree means nothing anymore esp. having to pay back 30 to 100,000 dollars after-wards! College is for two types of people ones mostly that can afford it,, and the others that get to go almost Free! If your paying for it out of pocket good luck ! your student loans will be around 400 per month on average ,,that will be fun huh!!

Answer 7

get a student loan, pay it off after you get a job. Or join the military and get free college tuition. or go to community college and get a job and save up then transfer. you have plenty of options.

Answer 8

Get a job, your parants don't owe you is one way to look at it, the other is do they have a reason for not wanting to put you through college?

Answer 9

http://www.fastweb.com/ib/aff-1f/7KPDX1AI5TYLBQJ