[somehnguy]

Maybe people more well off or the opposite than I. As someone smack dab in the middle (my parents were just starting to make OK money and not struggle as I finished high school, AKA non-existent savings but current income looked good) the university said our out of pocket costs were around $40k a year when we sat down with financial aid. They give you next to nothing in cases like that, it is expected to be all parents money or loans. Not happening.

That was the case for the 2 private schools I visited while in the process of picking a college. Very small sample size of course, YMMV.

[nitrogen]

it is expected to be all parents money or loans

It's really problematic for large families, where schools expect parents of six kids to pay tuition as if they only had one kid.

[monocasa]

Or my friends who were twins, but all of the algorithms were setup as if they wouldn't be going to college concurrently for some reason.

[chrisseaton]

Or I wonder what happens when you have parents who just decline to pay for you.

[monocasa]

I had parents that not only refused to pay, but also refused to fill out the FAFSA forms. At the time even being an emancipated minor wasn't enough to not look at your parents for non private loans or grants.

I only got private loans and dropped out after one year. I couldn't make the numbers work beyond that.