Studying with children at home

Student parents make up a large share of college students. The aid system has a few rules written for them that are easy to miss.

Independent status

If you have children who get more than half their support from you, you generally file the FAFSA as an independent student, without your own parents’ information.

What to do

• Answer the dependency questions with your children in mind
• Ask for childcare in your cost of attendance
• Ask about campus childcare
• Check your state’s childcare assistance rules

Childcare in the cost of attendance

Schools can include a childcare allowance in your cost of attendance, which can raise the amount of aid you are offered. It is not always added automatically, so ask the aid office for it and bring your childcare costs.

A childcare allowance is only added to your budget if someone asks for it.

Help on campus and nearby

Some colleges run on-campus childcare, sometimes funded by a federal program for student parents with low incomes. Your state’s childcare assistance program may also count college attendance as an approved activity. Ask the campus student services office what exists.