How to get educational financial help as a truly independent young adult?

Tomorrowful — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 14:04:26 -0800

Help me help my friend convince college financial aid departments that her parents are not and never will be willing to provide any help for her, and get money to pay for living expenses. Posted, obviously, on behalf of a friend.

My friend "Sarah" is 23, and has a modest full-time desk job - not an income she wants to keep for much longer, but enough to pay rent, food, etc, comfortably... if only just barely. She is not making enough to make any significant savings, but neither does she have any debt. She is currently taking occasional classes at a community college, and has a 4.0 average there. She wants/needs to transfer to a four-year public school full-time soon-ish and get her degree.

The problem is that her parents are actively opposed to the idea of her getting an education. They aren't just refusing to provide help - they've refused to cosign private student loans. They've even refused to give her the information she needs to apply for financial aid. Please don't provide any responses along the lines of 'go negotiate with them' - she's tried, and they're totally unsympathetic. It's an extreme case of the classic "We didn't need college, therefore you don't" story, and they can be counted on to not lift a finger to help her, no matter how trivial that help might seem.

She also has no other relatives who could be cosigners - and yes, she's made sure of that.

What she needs is money both for tuition and living expenses, since she won't be working full-time if she's taking classes full-time. Currently her boyfriend is helping pay for her community college classes, but she doesn't want to be dependent on him - and obviously a four-year school full-time is a whole different financial matter than community college courses one at a time. So this question has two components:

First, as a 23-year-old, what can she/must she do to convince a large public university that she really truly is on her own, and will never see a dime from her parents? They seem to expect that up until 25, they're providing assistance, but she's not a minor trying to get emancipated.

Second, what kind of loan options does Sarah have to pay for living expenses, and for tuition beyond what scholarships will provide, given that she doesn't have a significant credit history (just one secured credit card) and won't be able to make enough money working part-time to pay for everything, and has no cosigner available?

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How to get educational financial help as a truly independent young adult?