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tstcbunny

I want to get back in school…?

I really want to get back into college and start a career soon. I have been working since I was 15 and on my own at that time, then I got married when I was 16. A year later I was seperated and completely supporting myself on $5.50. Now I am 21 and still barely surviving making $7/hour. I am tired of only qualifying for positions makine $7 or less. Im in a serious relationship and he helps me out greatly, and we both want me to go back to school (for my satisfaction and for our future). He makes pretty good money, but I know things will be tougher and I dont want him to carry all the financial burden when I do go back. Last time I tried to get back into school they told me that my parents should pay for my schooling and that FASFA wouldn’t help me because I am considered a dependant on my parents! I am divorced, havent even lived with my parents since I was 14. They are in a different state & they aren’t and can’t help. Any suggestions? Grants? Advice?

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Rachel-Pit Police-DSMG

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For some reason, you are not considered independant from your parents until you reach age 24. I was living on my own and working full time at 21, but I wasn’t able to get any aid until this year. You do have options in the mean time. Fill out the FASFA using your parents financial information just in case you are still eligible. If your parent’s joint income is low enough, you will recieve some kind of aid. Sign up at www.fastweb.com which is a free scholarship/grant website, and start applying for as many scholarships as you can. You can also apply for deferred student loans through the Sallie Mae website. Have you chosen a school yet? Once you apply and are accepted to a school, your student financial advisor can outline the steps you need to take. If all else fails, go back to school part time and keep working until you can get some aid.
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At the university I work at (and attended), I know that you are not independent until the age of 24. However, if you can gather letters of support from people other than family (professors, boss, mentors in high school and beyond), you may be able to “prove” you are independent despite your age. This may or may not work at the college you are trying to get into.

You could talk with the admissions dept and find out if they can do a “Special Adult Status,” meaning you can take a few classes here and there, prove yourself, and then switch over. I wouldn’t recommend this because the process of switching over is a major pain.

Try Fastweb.com for scholarships. Try looking locally as well — do you have an Elks Lodge or something to that effect? Are you in a position at work where they can fund some of your schooling in agreement to stay with them after graduating? You may just need to go to a bank and take our a school loan.

You didn’t mention your intended area of study; however, some states will do loan forgiveness for some majors. For example, in WI a person in education or counseling can have their loans forgiven if they work with an at-risk population for 3 years (some number of years) in WI. Other states do this as well. But if this is your area, you should check into it and find out what sort of loans can be forgiven.

If you go to the university full time, try to apply for work-study. This way, you can work on campus (hopefully in a position in your field of interest). Otherwise, perhaps you can work full time and go to school part time. It is managable, but stressful. So make sure you have a strong support system and an understanding employer.

It may not be the easiest path in the world, and it looks to me that life has handed you a struggle at an early age. However, it also seems to me that you are strong and you keep going no matter what. And for that, I honestly believe that if you keep working at all these struggles, you will be better off in the long-run. Best of luck to you!

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Unique
If you want to go back to school start at a community college and work your way up take your time and while in community college work on a certificate program while also working on your degree. You can usually finish a certificate in a year. This time next year depending on what you want to do you could be making between 30,0000-40,000
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