It’s great that you are figuring this out.
If you qualify for Pell based on FAFSA and your custodial parent’s income/financials, you should still be able to apply for Questbridge, even though your NCP parent will have to fill out their CSS Profile. Questbridge app is a bit involved and competitive.
Funny, I was just going to ask if you parents can afford the $20K…it’s great they can.
And as you said if you take the student loans ($5.5K first year, then $6.5K/$7.5K/$7.5K for a max undergrad total of $27K) and get work study of say $1K-$3K per year, they would pay less than the $20K.
FYI, sometimes you can get non-work study jobs and make more money than in a work-study job (which is subsidized by the Fed govt). For example, sometimes you can get a job off campus (if there are close options that you can walk too), or babysit in the community, or get a bartending job when you are 21…all can be lucrative!