I don't understand the fafsa all that much but does that mean they expect my family to help me out with school by giving me 19683 bucks??? Pretty sure I'm gonna get nothing from them! UGH!! Plus my friend check bounced so that 120 bucks i don't have plus a 6 dollar fee! Today is just not going good!!!

:hugehug I'm not sure what's going on.... but I hope everything works out :) :goodvibes

I'm not sure either. I wish they didn't base how much money you got off your parents for school. I don't live with my parents. Don't get any money from them! It just sucks!

If you are not married and under the legal age they have to add what your parents make. You can always see if your parents are willing to say they no longer support you.

If you are not married and under the legal age they have to add what your parents make. You can always see if your parents are willing to say they no longer support you.

I know they have to. I just wish they didn't have to. I should do that because they haven't supported me since I was 18 but this is the first time I'm trying to get a student loan and I'm so confused!! lol

I'm not sure either. I wish they didn't base how much money you got off your parents for school. I don't live with my parents. Don't get any money from them! It just sucks!

Yeah, that's what screwed me. :sadeyes

I'm sorry! I hate the FAFSA such a pain.. did you recently file? the earlier you file the more likely you are to get $

I got screwed that way too... and their "rules" for defining you as an "independent" student are ridiculous...

I can't wait to be done with my B.A. just so the government will look at me as "poor" again. (my mother married a doctor the second year of my studies, and then our EFC went way up, and all my grants went away, and all that crap... so they held it over my head.

Unless I get married, or join the military, or turn 24... I am stuck until I get my B.A. :kickcan

I'm sorry! I hate the FAFSA such a pain.. did you recently file? the earlier you file the more likely you are to get $
Yeah I just did it. I wasn't expecting to need it. My work usually pays for it and I was stupid thinking they would still do it they screwed me over so I found a new job that will. But I still got to pay for this semester so now I'm scrambling to come up with the money.

i know, fafsa is SO lame

Estimated Family Contribution...

Ugh...mine was like that too..my parents and let me emphasize "parents" not me... make quite a bit of money so they ASSUME they will help...which in my case was not true...my parents gave me money for books each semester and that was it...tuition was all me...its a bummer they way they figure up aide...

That EFC will probably not get you a Pell or any grants or free aid, but you should still be able to get a student loan. :)

if your parents will emancipate you they won't be considered as part of your fafsa, but that will mess up your insurance if you still use your parents.

that sucks, you should be able to get loans though.

i hated that...my parents didn't pay for a dime of college...i have 50k in student loans as a result :no

Yep, sounds about right. I had the same issue, I was independent since the age of 18, but still had to claim my parents even though I didn't get a dime. What was more frustrating is that I had to do that all through college, because you HAVE to claim them until the age of 25...its BS to me, but whatever, it is what it is.

its too bad they base this off of what your parents make, so many more people would qualify for grants. you should still be able to get loans to help... but i know i wasn't offered one large enough to cover everything (they offered a bigger loan to my parents.. thankfully they helped out by doing that)
the loans you get from fasfa i personally think are alot better then those from private companies... so take them if they offer them to you. dh has been nothing but royally screwed by salliemae :(

Wow, that sucks. I am so sorry for you.

My mom doesn't make a lot of money (and has three kids going through school right now), so I do get grants. But that EFC is bullshit especially when parents don't help out for whatever reason.

I'm 24 and jobless but yet my EFC as in independent student was almost $13000. Right. Let me just pull that out of my ASS. :rolleyes FAFSA is ridiculous. I got Federal student loans for my 2nd Bachelor's. This was my first time filling out a FAFSA (Grandma paid for my 1st degree :hail) and it sucked. They take all your tax info from when I actually had a job and not a DF in Germany. :sigh

It always seems screwy how they figure out the EFC... but keep in mind they are counting room and board in there too. And if you pay your own rent and buy your own food you probably spend about 1000 a month.. it still really sucks though!!

mine says something crazy like that too. Stupid Financial Aid.:vent

mine says something crazy like that too. Stupid Financial Aid.:vent

Doesn't it suck!!! UGH then I couldn't get student loans cause i'm an "undeclared/undecided" student....I'm not undecided the stupid generals you want me to take are just not in a program. and I can't get into the program i want without them

One school I was looking at applying to (and eventually did go to for a few classes)... my EFC was like 3 times the cost of the entire 4 yr degree program. :depressed

They really need to find another way to determine that, if they are going to have other asinine rules

I had to literally spend my summer fighting with my school. Ive always had "independent" not "dependent"...My mother does not claim me. My school (back in May) decided to go into my FAFSA and make *corrections* claiming I am not an independent. I said yes I am, she said no. She said I was not a veteran (I used 2 be in the army) and I shouldnt say that I am. WTF...I had to contact the VA and then contact my school....back and forth. Finally I gave her proof (piece of paper from VA and my VA id card) and she said "oh..im sorry"

stupid biatch. Now, I am an independent with an ecf of like 10000? WTH? Doesnt being an independent mean that you're on ur own?:arg

stupid biatch. Now, I am an independent with an ecf of like 10000? WTH? Doesnt being an independent mean that you're on ur own?:arg

Yes it does!! It sucks. I finally did get a loan but had to do it through a bank and its a different type of loan. couldn't get a stafford loan because of my status of student. I'm having to work full time though college just so I don't have to move back home!

yea it does suck been there and done that. The good thing is that once you turn 24, you are no longer required to include them. Then you get the true help. I know for me right now I have about 15-20k in student loans. Now, I get grants and am totally happy for it!