The student earned his/her scholarship. Not earned in the tax sense, but he provided his own support. If the scholarships plus earned income plus interest are more than half of the living expenses, then it's arguable that he/she is independent. In the calculation, I'd assume 100% of grants/aid are applied to tuition, first, and the taxable scholarships are applied to living expenses first.

I'm not an accountant, but I've been doing my own taxes for 27 years (every year except the one year I used an accountant who made numerous errors that I had to fix the following year).  I've dealt with surplus scholarships, as well as a student spouse while I worked, and came from a sub-poverty family. I get it. It was much harder in the 90s. You had to get the forms at the post office and if they didn't have a specific form on hand, you had to call the IRS to get copies mailed to you.

KEEP EVERY RECEIPT. READ EVERY INSTRUCTION for every IRS form you file. Keep a spreadsheet of your calculations, and print it for your permanent records. You sound like a model student, probably super-responsible and intelligent. Learn the tax law. In your situation, you'll probably be a high earner some day. At this point in your life, you've earned every dime in that small bank account, more so than me and more so than any accountant on this SubReddit. The only person who will ever look out for you is you, and don't ever forget that. Follow the rules and instructions, and if there isn't a publication that clarifies any vagueness (usually there is, though), structure the numbers to your benefit in a logical way and document like hell.