Thanks JamesG1. Both you and Lena H have been helpful. From what I gather, we essentially have two options, neither of which allows us to treat the income as earned in a similar way that we would with a W-2. We can either go the Schedule C route and pay the requisite 15.3% employment tax (odd for a 22 year old who technically isn't self employed running his own business) and look to deduct what ever is appropriate...or we treat it as Other Income and are seemingly forced to fill out form 8615 as if it is unearned investment income. In the latter case, the parent's tax details are brought into the mix and the liability rises.. Both seem a poor reflection of the ultimate reality, but if forced to choose between the two, I would lean towards the Schedule C argument, especially if there's no wiggle room with 8615.
