So if somebody emancipated themselves from their parents at age 16, held down a job, lived alone, and managed to get through high school, would they be eligible for substantial financial aid if they got accepted into college?
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Yes.
Yes, and you would get more aid in fact, because when they calculate income to determine how much you will get they include your parent’s income. In your case they wouldn’t be able to do that.
Depends on your income. The difference between being emancipated and not, in terms of financial aid, is that if you’re not emancipated, you’re not considered “independent” for the purposes of aid, and your parents’ income comes into play re: the aid you receive. But if you are emancipated, you are independent, and it’s just your income they look at.
So if you don’t make much, you’ll get a lot of aid. But if you make a lot of money, you won’t.
Since most people whose lives are such that they’ve been emancipated at age 16 aren’t making huge money (no fault of yours – just life circumstances), you likely will qualify for decent aid. But know that aid comes in two forms – grants/scholarships, and loans. Grants/scholarships, you don’t have to pay back; loans, you do. So be cautious about taking on lots of student loans. You do not want to graduate burdened by debt. Be sure that, no matter where else you apply for school, you also apply to some public colleges in your home state – those are often your best deal, financially.