Understand that $6350 figure Hal-Al quoted above too. That's just the limit of which if you exceed, you may be required to file a tax return. It has nothing to do with the self-exemption issue. For a full time college student under the age of 24 on Dec 31 of the tax year, when it comes to exemptions and the such, the student's earnings do not matter. The student could earn a million dollars and still qualify to be claimed on the parent's tax return.
It's also important to understand what is and is not included in the "support" requirement. Spending money on a Caribbean cruise during the summer break, or buying a $40,000 new car is not providing your own support, any way you look at it. Self-support expenses must be reasonable and necessary.
