Need help as a first-gen
Hii guys I really need some advice about my financial situation with the school I’m supposed to attend. Right now I’m honestly worried and trying to figure out what my next step should be. The school I committed to costs around 21k a year after aid, and I’ve been trying to look for loans to help cover it. I’ve looked into a good amount of private loans, but I can’t meet the requirements because I’m 18 with no credit history, and my mom who is my only parent, doesn’t have strong enough credit to qualify as a cosigner for a loan that big. I’ve also applied to a lot of scholarships, but unfortunately most of them rejected me. I talked to my school’s financial aid office to see if there was any way they could give me more funding, but they told me I already received the maximum amount possible as a low-income student. They did recommend applying for the Parent PLUS loan, but even with that, there’s still a funding gap I wouldn’t be able to cover unless scholarships come through before July 15. At this point, I genuinely don’t know what else I can do to pay for fall tuition and the rest of the year. I’m really trying to figure out if there’s still a realistic chance for me to attend Moravian University because I already committed, and it’s honestly been my dream school.
I do have a backup plan, which would be going to community college and then transferring later to a school closer to home, but I’m struggling with the idea of letting this dream go. I’ll take any advice or thoughts on my situation because I feel like the people around me don’t fully understand how overwhelming this has been. Part of me feels like maybe I’m being overly optimistic or looking at everything through rose-colored glasses, so I’d really appreciate hearing from people who’ve been through something similar. :)