<prompt> Human: Hello, I only recently came back to my college dorm after having to drive back home to talk to officers to inform me that my last parent has passed away. I do not have any other adult relatives to rely upon. I will admit right now, I am naive and young. I dont know a single thing about the real world yet and how financing works. I dont know what responsibilities I bear now that I am alone. Im just looking for mostly financing advice on what I have to get done quickly as possible so that I do not have to pay hefty fines or debt later on. This is all the information I know so far. I am in the New Jersey area. Im estimating my father only had 3 or 2 thousand dollars saved, maybe even less. He owns a 2008 car. I am not sure if he had life insurance. I am not aware of any loans he owes. For sure he has bank accounts, but I am not allowed by the police to retrieve my fathers wallet. For now We lived in someones basement, and we dont pay rent, because of certain reasons, its a complicated situation. If anyone needs further information please pm or comment, I will respond as soon as I can. Edit: I woke up this afternoon and I didnt expect this to blow up. I thank everybody for their supportive comments and messages. It really means a lot to me and Ill try my best to read everything. Edit 2: I never thought I would receive so many thoughtful and helpful messages and comments. I feel a lot more comfortable with all the love thats been shown. I read every single message and comment as much as I can. Because I feel so grateful towards all of you guys, I thought that would be the least I can do to respect you guys back. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. You guys really showed me there is still light in life.Assistant: Can your college offer any assistance?Human: I will reach out to them tomorrow.  <response>: Id reiterate uEENewtons good advice from above here: avoid major life decisions for a whileyou might feel like you have to drop out of college to support yourself, but I would recommending trying not to, at least until the dust has settled and you have a much broader picture of what your finances will be like moving forward.You know this, but the kinds of jobs you can get with a college degree tend to pay more highly, so if you can feasibly make it through, even if that means going into a bit of debt andor perhaps switching to a cheaper college next year if necessary, itll give you more money to take care of yourself in the long run. Student debt can be a big, big burden but if you work to keep it low early through financial aid, grants, and being at a school with manageable tuition it wont be a burden for long, and youll end up making more money over your entire life even if the early portion is a bit leaner. An addendum: try your hardest to stay at your current school, because they already know you and are invested in you! This might not work if their tuition is too high for you to manage, even with all the resources I mention below, but its worth trying to stay at an institution of the same level of qualitycredibility, that knows you.Id recommend reaching out to the financial aid office or its equivalent at your college, as well, and seeing what they can do for youthis is something theyll want to know about, and that will almost certainly change your statuspriority with them.Youll want to talk to folksin financial aid, career planning, and any other student servicesto figure out the broad details of your student debt versus your college schedule versus the money you need to make to live. Come up with a plan to support yourself with a job work study or otherwise, take classes you might need to lower your courseload to keep your grades up, at least for a little while, and finish college expediently but not rushedly. Youll have to figure out a summer living scenario, but from your story it sounds like your fathers current housing situation might work for you you might want to check in with them and see if you can stay there during the summerand if not, your school might be able to help outoften they have relationships with local property owners and can hook you up with a cheap apartment or something of the like. They might also have good hookups for summer work, and sometimes professors have job opportunities depending on the field. For example in the sciences, labs are often looking for summer research assistants.Also make sure to talk to your professors, when youre ready, so they understand what youre going through. If they know whats up, and whats taking your time, your grades are less likely to take a hit this semester. On the flip side, remember that grades are more important to staying in college, and less important to getting a job. Some places will want to see them, especially right out of college, but in a few years the hiring criteria are more what are your skills, how did you do at previous jobs, where did you get your degree, do you have any cool awardshonors in that order.And finally, use all the resources available to you as a student to help you get through this. You have an RA who you can talk to, who can help you find all the school services you could need; your school probably has a counseling service; youre surrounded by friends and peers at all times; your professors have your best interest and bright future in mind.Overall, the fact that youre in college can be a big asset to you right now in basically every way, and you can take advantage of that!Im sorry for your loss, and I wish you the best of luck. 