I work a job that pays sh!t and it includes being on my feet up to 8 hours at a time, as well as physical labor. I'm a full time student and my first year of school I didn't even get as much in loans as you say you are entitled to get. I go year round, my third year coming up. I live on about $800 a month, I work and I study. And guess what I'm 30 years older than you.

You say you want to do this on your own, I'm here to tell ya it is hard work, but you can do it on your own. Each year you complete the loan amounts you are eligible for goes up, of course the cost of your classes goes up as well.

NOW - FAFSA offers three possible benefits, Pell Grant (a need-based Federal extension of funds which does not need to be paid back) which Obama just raised the max amount to about $5,500 - I have never qualified for Pell, even though I live at poverty level - so I doubt you will either. If you qualify for pell grant the college will be notified of your NEED and will automatically consider scholarship awards - but again your situation does not look good.

The third way FAFSA helps is getting you approved for Federal subsidised and unsubsidised loans - which you say you already qualify for.

NEXT: You are unlikely to find any grants, they are generally reserved for those doing research and they need to be underwritten - the whole procedure requires an education in itself.

ANOTHER OPTION - If your educational endeavor is in the health field check with your college - all of them currently have a ton of scholorships for specific health fields. There are also a ton of open scholorships try FASTWEB.com or google scholarships. Most require that you stand out from others by writing some kind of essay or making a movie or whatever - very time consuming and you often vie for between $250 and $2500 with many thousands of other students.

If you are intrested in nursing, it only takes a two year program before you can seek acceptance into an RN program - competition is tough - strait A's are not enough to get you in, you have to have mentors, and or references, and volunteerism is another quality they look for. BUT IF YOU DO GET IN, some states have a 100% paid program AND pay-off of student loans - just something else to check.

Check out a community college (a two year college) they are less than half the cost of a 4 year or private college and you can do much of your class work through distance education (on-line, but it requires extreme self-discipline and a keen mind for reading and comprehension)

So there you are, lots of options, lots of work means lots of planning - but get used to it, that is what college is like when you have to support yourself.

Good luck BY THE WAY WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
That's what I had to answer in my last psychology class. Can you answer that?

wow your info really helps. I am still trying everything I can to get into school. I was gonna go to a business college would only take me 15months to complete.

When I grow up I will be able to support myself, help more with bills. I will be in medical, maybe surgery.

15 months?

Short cuts will get you the appropriate short respect in the business community.

A college degree is NOT about the skills you learn to do the job, it is a statement about your commitment to completing a long and difficult series of tasks resulting on the completion of a goal. The most important skills you will gain will come from the courses outside of your major.

Bry

what wonderfully constructive criticism to give to someone young enough to be your daughter.

buy beer

what if you only drink Heineken?

I hope it all works out for you, i have been thinking about going to school but my credit sucks

I did not read all of the comments or suggestions that were given. So have you applied for the Pell Grant it is a government loan that you do not have to pay back if you qualifiy all you must do if you do qualify is keep your grades above a C in order to keep it you can go online and apply for the grant. I have used it many years ago like I said it is free you do not have to pay it back as long as you qualify for it.

http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/

I think that's included in the amount that she said she could get from fafsa.

As I said somewhere else, the reason that fafsa sets the dependent age to 24 and uses the parents income to determine need is to avoid rampant abuse of the system. This money comes from Dept. of Education and is funded by tax dollars. The government believes that it's a parent's responsibility to get their kids educated not the tax payers so they are the primary funders. If they drop the age to 18 or made simple stipulations like not living in the same home, parents would simply pay for an apartment for their kids, the kid would claim independent status and get more tax dollars while the parents are off the hook for paying.

You don't need great credit for a loan if you have a co-signer. Have you asked if your parents were willing to cosign a loan for you? Have you even talked to a bank yet or are you just assuming your credit will disqualify you for an education loan? Those are probably the best options.

You haven't mentioned what you want to go to school for. That might help us give you advice on other avenues to pursue while waiting for that magical 24. Medical is a huge field. Do you want to be a surgeon or surgery tech or what? If you want to be a surgery tech, I believe you can get an associates degree for that. If you want to be a surgeon....better get hopping on your education cause it's 4 yrs college, 4 yrs med school, and depending on type of surgeon it's 5-7 or 8 years residency. And if you think college is expensive, wait till you see what med schools want (30+ grand a year).

I'm guessing you don't want to move back home, not that you can't. Moving isn't expensive unless you have a lot of furniture and that can be sold (I'm guessing you don't have any really nice expensive pieces that are irreplaceable). And jobs, you're probably not getting a whole lot of options in NJ anyways, even a min wage job, if you were doing it full time and staying at home would net like 200 a week. Of course it's tough to give up a relationship, but that's a choice.