<p>Indeed It is for sure very complicated world today - our situation: very low income family of 7, in US for 15 years, kids are DACA, very bright students. We have our first HS Senior from one of the best HS here in San Antonio - Health Careers magnet school, so the process for applying for colleges and scholarships was completely new world for us. Knowing she doesn’t have any chance for FAFSA, just TASFA focused us on private scholarships, which do not required U.S. Citizenship. We applied for over 40 scholarships, ended so far with only 2 - I keep asking myself how much brighter and involved she has to be to get more??? I have to say very disappointed that the time, effort doesn’t equal the result. I felt that the system is so well build that except few exceptions of “full ride” (exceptional academic merit or sport scholarship and choosing the right school which is generous to offer the full ride) the rest of students is in some kind of trap - at least judging on the base of our own experience: accepted at 14 colleges in and out of TX - private universities gave her generous academic scholarship, but of course don’t get any money from state (TASFA), in public colleges she was able to receive TASFA, but not academic scholarship, because the pool of accepted students is so huge. So you are short no matter where you go, no matter how many scholarships you applied for, no matter what you do or not do… do we really expect each young person end up with over 100,000 in debt upon finishing their college studies??? to pay for it their whole life when they are just in the beginning of their life? How they can ever learned to be debt free when society doesn’t give them any other option? To me it is really wrong. I met not only low, middle class parents worried how they put their kids through the college but as well higher, well paid class… … if for society it is important to have highly educated people, why it doesn’t find the way to support them? Whoever will object that that is the role of a parent – I will argue that even if you are saving since your child was born – the dollar devaluates over the years and tuition went up significantly over the years, so you will be short no matter what. I will say: lucky those few with a full ride. The rest? get used to it, because right now there is nothing else you can do about it??? It is a pity. Sorry this isn’t any practical advice to others, just nostalgic recapitulation of facts. </p>