The U.S. Government will "forgive" a loan if you go into a field that needs people. Teaching, nursing, or medicine are some of the jobs you can go into. You would have to go to areas that are at risk, like large cities, poor towns, areas of low population, etc. You agree to work in those areas for so many years and you are "forgiven" of the money you borrowed. Ask your financial aid office at college about it.
Apply for every scholarship you qualify. Thousands of dollars go unclaimed every year because no one applied. Some are as simple as having the same last name as a family that created a fund. Don't use the companies that charge a fee to match you with a scholarship. Go to the book store and look for a book that lists scholarships. Apply now. It will be too late by March.
Being middle class makes it harder to qualify for grants or scholarships. You can't pay for college outright and you make too much money to get a grant. If you are still in school, make the best grades you can. Go after the best grades as though your life depends on it......it DOES! You might be lucky enough to qualify for an academic scholarship. Pester your Guidance Counselor to death. Make yourself known to him/her and tell them you need help finding money to go to school on.
Apply for scholarships that don't pay for your tuition entirely, too. If you don't get a full scholarship, you might be able to pull several together to make it work.
Consider that your parents may not think you will apply yourself in college. Do you play around in school and don't take responsibility seriously? $10,000 a year is a lot of money to throw away on a child that doesn't appreciate it. Prove to them, you want this and you won't disappoint them. GL
