Would it work against me to voluntarily share my family's high income
Question Posted Wednesday April 22 2015, 11:08 am
In the last year, my family's income was roughly 700k, which was about 500k after taxes. But in reality, my household only made about 180k, because most of the money is actually tied with my parents' S corporation, so that money mainly goes to other investors, and to run the business (including property taxes).
Would it work against me to say "I do not wish to respond" whenever possible? Or would it help with admissions to say that my parents technically made over 200k, or would that mean they'd expect more out of me, or something? I understand for FAFSA I can't hide anything, but I don't think it's fair I'd be unable to do work study or get financial need scholarships when my family isn't living large or anything. We live like a middle class family, not like an upper middle class or upper class family.
Would the admissions and financial need people be understanding of my situation? When admissions are "need blind" do they ever look at and/or consider one's income bracket? And would financial aid only consider me for academic scholarships, because of this technicality?
The numbers may look like a lot but my parents are spendthrift and they've never afforded putting us in private school, or having a family vacation that didn't have something to do with seeing other family members and/or urgent health concerns. I knew kids growing up who had more technology, toys, and etc. than my family did, living on the conservative side, but I think a big part to why my parents don't have a lot of savings is because of a relative's health needs and the money needed to start and operate a new business.
Would my financial situation affect my admissions at all or will there be added pressure for me to get better grades and extracurriculars than say, a lower income individual with the same stats I have now
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