🎓 How College Students Can Maximize Their Refunds

A guide for students (and parents) on filing for tuition credits, scholarships, and side-hustle income

College life comes with plenty of lessons — and not all of them happen in the classroom. Learning how taxes work can save students and parents real money every single year. Whether you’re juggling textbooks and a part-time job or you’re the parent footing the tuition bill, knowing what to claim can make a big difference come tax time.

Here’s how college students can make sure they don’t leave money on the table this tax season

🎓 1. Claim Education Credits You’ve Earned

If you paid tuition or other qualified education expenses, you may be eligible for valuable tax credits designed just for students and parents.

The two big ones to know:

• American Opportunity Credit (AOC): Worth up to $2,500 per student for the first four years of college. Even better — up to $1,000 of it is refundable, meaning you can get money back even if you don’t owe taxes.

• Lifetime Learning Credit (LLC): Worth up to $2,000 per return, available for college, graduate school, or even job skill courses.

💡 Tip: Keep your Form 1098-T from your school — it shows what you paid and helps your tax preparer claim these credits correctly.

💰 2. Understand How Scholarships & Grants Affect Your Taxes

Scholarships and grants are amazing, but not all are completely tax-free.

If your scholarship money is used for qualified education expenses like tuition, books, and required fees — you’re in the clear.

However, if any portion goes toward room, board, travel, or other non-qualified expenses, that part could be taxable income.

💡 Tip: Keep track of how scholarship funds are used so your preparer can help you correctly report what’s taxable (and what’s not).

💼 3. Don’t Forget to Report Side Hustle or Part-Time Income

Many students earn money through part-time jobs, tutoring, gig work, or even selling items online.

If you received a W-2, your taxes were likely already withheld — but if you were paid through apps like CashApp, Venmo, or direct deposits and earned over $600, you’ll probably get a Form 1099.

💡 Tip: Keep records of your expenses — such as supplies or transportation — because some of these may qualify as deductions to reduce taxable income.

📃 4. File Even If You Didn’t Make Much

Even if your income is below the filing requirement, it can still pay off to file a tax return. Why?

• You might qualify for a refund of taxes withheld from paychecks.

• You may be eligible for refundable credits, like the AOC or Earned Income Tax Credit.

💡 Tip: Many first-time filers miss out on refunds simply because they think they don’t “make enough” to file. Don’t skip it — file and see what you qualify for!

🤝 5. Let a Trusted Preparer Help You Get It Right

College tax returns can be tricky — especially when parents also claim students as dependents. A professional preparer can help determine who qualifies for which credits and ensure you maximize every opportunity available.

At Progressive Tax Services, we specialize in helping families and individuals file with confidence. Whether you’re a college freshman or a parent paying tuition, we’ll walk you through every credit, deduction, and opportunity for savings — the Progressive Way.

Ready to file?

📞 Call us today at 972-761-5082

💻 File virtually or in person at www.ProgressiveTaxUS.com

📍 Proudly serving families and students across all 50 states