As a former Berkeley grad, I congratulate you and wish you all the best! Your life story sounds like you will be a superb addition to their ranks.
As for hiding assets, my friend, I fear it is pay now, or pay (with your soul) later… think of it as an investment in yourself. You will not regret later on being able to think of yourself as an honorable person for paying your own way, by playing straight by the rules.
(That is, unless you’re applying to business school there… now, by the new rules, you must prove your worth by finding every shady and schemy hole you can! “Honor” is worth: negative squat. Sad to say it, but that’s the new world of the high executives, I believe… but this is just the view of a lowly scientist who once left a 60K ill-gotten check uncashed on the table, when I was unemployed… modern mileage certainly seems to vary!)
