Unusual Circumstances
Does your family situation prevent you from providing parental information?
If you have unusual circumstances that prevent you from providing parental information on your FAFSA, you may be eligible to have your dependency status changed from DEPENDENT to INDEPENDENT. Not living with parents or not being claimed by them on tax forms does not make you an independent student for purposes of applying for federal student aid. In situations such as the ones below, you may be able to submit your FAFSA form without parental information despite being considered a dependent student:
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Your parents are incarcerated.
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You have left home due to an abusive family environment.
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You do not know where your parents are and are unable to contact them (and you have not been adopted).
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You are older than 21 but not yet 24, are unaccompanied, and are either homeless or self-supporting and at risk of being homeless.
Complete the FAFSA questions as instructed on the application, submit your FAFSA form, then contact the Financial Aid Office to discuss how your current family situation prevents you from providing parental information on the FAFSA. A financial aid professional will review your circmstances and can meet with you to make any necessary changes to your FAFSA dependency status.
Complete and submit the following appeal and a representative from the Financial Aid Office will contact you to schedule an appointment. If you submit an appeal, it will be reviewed and you will be notified of the results within 60 days.