@blakel14 , just remember that FAFSA is an acronym for an application. (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
FAFSA doesn’t give you money. If you were PELL eligible, you would receive a total of $6000 per year from the government). That wouldn’t, at all, help you with your $70K plus costs at Princeton.
The application goes to the schools where you’ve applied, and, that you’ve listed. It’s up to the schools to decide how much money they will give to you and they don’t give you anything separate from federal funds.
You were advised to check on the price calculators in early January. It doesn’t appear as though you’ve done that.
The private colleges will give you merit, but it doesn’t sound as though they’ve given you a full ride.
We live in California and we have an extremely high cost of living rate, so I know that your parents’ spending costs are a choice. They don’t have to spend every penny of their money on costs of living. They can save money by putting some away in a bank every once in a while, but you’re stuck because they didn’t do that.
The sad part is that your parents don’t have to fund your university costs. The colleges also won’t make up the difference because your parents can’t or won’t pay; they aren’t obligated to fund you, so you’re stuck.
You need to find an affordable college. You can also go to community college, which a lot of students do, because they don’t have the funds and then transfer later. You do need to know the transfers get little to nothing in aid.