SAN ANTONIO - The inspiring story of a Texas State student who lived in his car during his freshman year has caught the attention of people and media outlets across the country.

Colin Ashby, a 20-year-old Texas State senior, shared his eye-opening experience of being a struggling college student in a USA Today College article Wednesday and has since been "bombarded" with comments, gratitude and interview requests from Good Morning America and Fox News.

"I didn't think it would have such a big impact," Ashby told the San Antonio Express-News. "I was hesitant because I thought people would think it was gross or weird and didn't think people would be inspired by it or even read it. But it just exploded."

Ashby, a 20-year-old mass communication senior, described the challenges he faced in the article but also calls his experience a "success story."

"The day of move-in, I wandered around campus not sure of what to do," Ashby writes. "While other freshmen were busy moving into their dorms, I sat in my car and duct-taped bed sheets to my car windows."

Ashby gained 44 hours of college credit in high school, applied unsuccessfully for numerous scholarships and maxed out on federal education loans, but after his tuition was paid, he said he was "left with nothing but a few hundred bucks in my bank account."

Texas State's dorm rooms were $3,000 or more per semester and the cheapest meal plan was $14 per day, Ashby wrote.

He had difficulty making friends and would tell other students he commuted from a nearby city and he used the library for "air conditioning and internet access." To make ends meet, Ashby got a graveyard shift job at McDonalds working 9pm to 5 am.

"Getting off work at 5am, I would take a small nap before waking up dreary eyed to head to my 8:00 a.m. classes," he wrote.

Despite the challenges Ashby faced pursuing his goal of a college degree, he began to make the best out of the situation, filling his "freshman year with personal and career goals."

"Although living out of my car definitely had more negatives than positives, I started seeing the benefits," he wrote. "Instead of spending afternoons taking naps or going on impromptu trips to Wal-Mart, I stayed in the library and studied. Whenever free time came up, I would visit my professor's office hours to talk about the course material."

Ashby, who now lives with his brother in Austin, is in the position to graduate with a bachelor's degree in two and a half years. Most college students nowadays graduate in about five years.

His story has resonated with many current and former students around the country. One Texas State student emailed Ashby saying they really connected with his story because they are in the same situation.

Jayme Blaschke, a spokesman for Texas State, said the school offers assistance "in any way possible... in instances when the university is made aware of hardships or challenges that students may encounter."

Ashby said many comments on the story asked where or if he showered because it wasn't in the article.

"I showered every day," he said. "Many times it was at the campus recreation center or other gyms around town."

Ashby said he decided to tell his story in hopes of showing people how the education system is broken and "just how expensive college really is."

The closing of Ashby's article, which you can read in full here, provides a piece of advice for incoming freshman.

"Seize the opportunities around you. Don't spend endless afternoons napping or watching Netflix. Visit career services, explore job descriptions, do internships. It will be a well investment to your time and future," he wrote.

kparker@express-news.net

Twitter: @KoltenParker