@schroengang Thank you! It’s certainly worth a try. It’s definitely tough for us since my mom really wishes she could pay for my college, but she can’t afford it. My sister feels awful too considering my dad paid for both her undergrad (at Duke) and is now currently paying for her grad school (at Stanford).
I’ll definitely have to check if my dad is claiming me as a dependent. I haven’t lived with him since my parents got divorced back in 2006 (when I was 6 years old). In hindsight, I probably should have known that he’d be upset with my sexuality since he’s an incredibly conservative politician and very religious, but I guess I thought it’d be different since I’m his son, but oh well. I have a mother and sister who care for me deeply and that’s what matters.
Good luck with your daughter! Both UVA and UMich are wonderful schools. UVA is actually my dad’s alma mater as he grew up in rural VA. Wonderful school, but definitely don’t let your daughter end up like him if she goes there! This financial aid process is definitely worse in my opinion than the actual application process—especially since it was sprung on me about a month ago that I actually had to start worrying about it more.
And yes, Swarthmore does require the CSS, as do most of the schools I applied to with the exception of University of Wyoming and possibly Georgetown (I have no idea how their FA works given that their application doesn’t make any sense either).