# Do they actually want this information or is it a test? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 8, 2015, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017 "2015-11-08T15:58:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![boffking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/858c86/32.png) [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/1 "2015-11-08T15:58:51Z")
I have decided to take classes in \*\*information security \*\*online at WGU. They want me to email a copy of both my parents tax returns, even though I made it quite clear to financial aid that my parents aren’t paying for it at all. Is this a test where I’m supposed to refuse to tell them? ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/2 "2015-11-08T16:01:46Z")
The only conceivable need for parental financial info is for financial aid. If you’re waiving all aid, there is no reason the school needs that information. I’d bet more on relentless bureaucracy than any clever trick related to the class. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/3 "2015-11-08T16:07:10Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > The only conceivable need for parental financial info is for financial aid. If you’re waiving all aid, there is no reason the school needs that information. > > I’d bet more on relentless bureaucracy than any clever trick related to the class. He clearly posted that the FA folks asked for the info. Its to determine the level of aid he is eligible. Op…if you want FA you are going to have to submit parental info. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/4 "2015-11-08T16:13:20Z")
It’s not clear if the OP wants financial aid. If he’s rejecting it, it’s a nonsense request. If he’s trying to get FA and is under a certain age, it’s a legitimate\* request. - For certain values of “legitimate.” ---
**Author:** ![boffking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/858c86/32.png) [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/5 "2015-11-08T16:21:15Z")
I do want financial aid. The last college I went to didn’t ask for any of this information(I applied for financial aid there too) and it sounded rather like something a scammer would ask. I highly trust WGU, and considering my major, I was wondering if this was supposed to be a test. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/6 "2015-11-08T16:32:01Z")
Most schools will happily deny you financial aid if your parents could, in their estimation, pay for it. They will also deny you information if you don’t submit your parents’ data, because they assume you are lying about your parents’ ability to pay for your schooling. Whether your parents will pay for it is immaterial to them. They have zero sympathy for the fact that grown-ass adults do not necessarily have access to (or need, or want) their parents’ tax information. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/7 "2015-11-08T17:20:36Z")
My guess? If your parents list you as a dependent on their tax return, the financial aid office will expect them to contribute. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/8 "2015-11-08T17:31:19Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > My guess? If your parents list you as a dependent on their tax return, the financial aid office will expect them to contribute. This. FA of any useful level has gotten nearly impossible to get for most middle-class students, which is why student loans have rocketed to the outer planets. And until you’re around 24-26, if your parents make a decent living, your FA rate is probably zero. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/9 "2015-11-08T18:47:45Z")
> [@boffking](#): > > I do want financial aid. The last college I went to didn’t ask for any of this information(I applied for financial aid there too) and it sounded rather like something a scammer would ask. I highly trust WGU, and considering my major, I was wondering if this was supposed to be a test. That’s an interesting idea! Are there any universities that _do_ do these kinds of tricky “tests”? There’s the infamous [beggar test](http://www.snopes.com/college/exam/compassion.asp), but it was from research project, not a class per se and test subjects were not officially penalized or rewarded in terms of grades, degrees, or official discipline. It would be awesome to walk across a university campus one day, find a piece of paper with obscure markings on it, take it home, translate it using my mad leet knowledge of ancient Babylonian grammar, find out that the note tells me to call a certain phone number, call the number, be told that my outstanding performance clearly demonstrates sufficient mastery to be awarded an MS in Linguistics, and be invited to come get my degree next Tuesday. Sure, that’s sort of extreme, but has there anything been anything similar on a less profound level? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/10 "2015-11-08T19:00:15Z")
About eleven years ago,[Google put up a billboard in Silicon Valley](http://www.cnet.com/news/google-recruits-eggheads-with-mystery-billboard/) with a math question ({first 10-digit prime found in consecutive digits e}.com), that once solved would lead people to a recruiting website. And the [Brits recruited people to work at Bletchley Park](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bletchley_Park#Personnel) using a cryptic crossword puzzle. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/11 "2015-11-08T20:07:58Z")
No, it’s not a test. WGU asked me for the same thing for my BSN (Nursing), and I’m 40 years old. I told them to stuff it. I got loans anyhow. This may not work if you are younger, even if your parents don’t claim you as a dependent on their tax returns: > [@](#): > > There are many reasons why a parent may be unwilling to complete the FAFSA. Some of the most common reasons include: > \ > The student no longer lives in the household, is self-supporting and/or has reached the age of majority. A student is considered to be a dependent student for federal student aid purposes until he or she reaches age 24, gets married or satisfies other criteria for independent student status. Parent information is still required even if the parents do not claim the student as an exemption on their federal income tax returns and do not support the student. Financial self-sufficiency is not sufficient grounds for the college to perform a dependency override. > > \ > > If a student’s parents refuse to file the FAFSA, the student should talk with the college’s financial aid administrator about the circumstances surrounding the parents’ unwillingness to complete the form. Sometimes, financial aid administrators are able to address the parent’s concerns and convince them to complete the form. > > If the student does not qualify for a dependency override but is unable to provide parental information because the student’s parents refuse to complete the FAFSA and have cut off all financial support, the college’s financial aid administrator can allow the student to borrow from the unsubsidized Federal Stafford loan program. Such a student, however, is not eligible for other forms of federal student aid, such as the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Federal Perkins Loan, subsidized Federal Stafford Loan and Federal Work-Study. > > Otherwise, the only other option is for the student to wait until he or she reaches age 24 and to reapply for financial aid as an independent student. > > - See more at: [When your Parents Refuse to Fill out the FAFSA | Edvisors](https://www.edvisors.com/ask/faq/parents-refuse/#sthash.gtEH3YXC.dpuf) ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2015, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/12 "2015-11-09T08:22:27Z")
> [@boffking](#): > > Is this a test where I’m supposed to refuse to tell them? To paraphrase Hanlon’s razor, > [@](#): > > Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by bureaucracy It is highly unlikely to be a test of anything aside from your patience ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2015, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/13 "2015-11-09T14:39:30Z")
> [@boffking](#): > > I do want financial aid. The last college I went to didn’t ask for any of this information(I applied for financial aid there too) and it sounded rather like something a scammer would ask. I highly trust WGU, and considering my major, I was wondering if this was supposed to be a test. The government and schools feel that it is more of your and your parents’ responsibility to help you pay for school than it is theirs. Just because you want to be considered financial independent from your parents, if you want financial aid, then they are part of the picture. If you refuse to provide your parents where-with-all to help support you, then why should the government or the school consider supporting you, when they are lower on the totem pole than your parents are? ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2015, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-they-actually-want-this-information-or-is-it-a-test/737017/14 "2015-11-09T15:09:52Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > About eleven years ago,[Google put up a billboard in Silicon Valley](http://www.cnet.com/news/google-recruits-eggheads-with-mystery-billboard/) with a math question ({first 10-digit prime found in consecutive digits e}.com), that once solved would lead people to a recruiting website. > > And the [Brits recruited people to work at Bletchley Park](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bletchley_Park#Personnel) using a cryptic crossword puzzle. On the other hand, [they may send a wetwork team to kill you](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120749/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_72).