<p>My sister and stepsister both went to state schools in CA and receive monthly payments from my parents to help out with rent, gas, books, tuition, etc. I chose to get married to my high school sweetheart a few months after graduation, even with my dad warning me that would be essentially a declaration of independence and that I wouldn’t be getting any support from him. I ended up getting a nearly full ride to an out-of-state school and jumped on it because it would be my money going to pay for it. </p>
<p>Now, three years later, I have the highest GPA out of my siblings, and will be graduating with two separate STEM degrees and honors. I will be attending medical school next fall (fingers crossed) and will have accumulated about $20k in debt (we also put some away in retirement, just to form good habits). We also have six credit cards and an auto loan, and have built up credit scores into the mid-700s. During my time in school, my wife and I have both been working full-time to pay our bills - this has helped us keep busy so we are just too exhausted all the time to go out and spend the money we make. </p>
<p>In my opinion, not getting any help from my parents has strengthened my abilities, prepared me for life in the real world, and boosted my grades. And the best part - my dad said that since I have done so well in school and worked so hard he will be helping out with a down payment when my wife and I buy our first house, in the same amount that he has contributed to my sisters’ education (but we will still be saving for that purpose because we are too stuck in our ways).</p>