Dependency for financial aid purposes is defined to include all students who are undergraduates and who are under the age of 24, not married, not supporting dependents of their own, not veterans, not orphans or wards of the court, not an emancipated minor or in legal guardianship, not homeless and not in foster care since turning 13 years old.
Even if your parents choose not to help you with school, their income and assets are used to determine how much they could pay, and financial aid eligibility is based upon this information. Exceptions to this policy do exist. Consult with a financial aid advisor at your college campus for help in documenting your situation.
Each recipient of federal student aid has a calculated financial need and the combination of all sources of aid cannot exceed this need figure. It may be necessary to reduce your financial aid, especially loans, if an outside scholarship arrives after our aid offer.
No, you can only receive financial aid at one school/college at time. Failure to disclosure that financial aid for the current award year has been disbursed to you by another college may result in an over award.