Struggling college student wins $1 million lottery

Asif Khan, a 21-year-old college student from Villa Park, Illinois, can finally pay his outstanding tuition bills — thanks to a winning lottery ticket.

Last month, Khan bought a winning instant lottery ticket from a local gas station. The machine informed him he'd won $600,000.

"I immediately drove home," he told the Chicago Tribune. "My mother was sleeping so I woke her and told her I won. She told me, 'Good luck to you, be safe and don't go crazy, and always come to me if you have any questions.'"

He kept the winning ticket hidden in a college textbook for days before contacting lottery officials.

When he did make the call, officials told him that the $600,000 win was a receipt error. He had actually won $1 million.

"I never expected this," Khan, a third-year student at East-West University in Chicago, said. "A majority of the money will go toward my education for a better future. If I do have some money left over, I'll invest it and save it for (the future)."

He told the Chicago Tribune that a new car will be among his first purchases, as he currently uses his mother's 2003 Honda Accord. He also plans to transfer to University of Illinois at Chicago now that he can afford the tuition.

Khan, who moved to the United States from India in 2006, plans to eventually become a medical doctor.

"I can actually imagine my life...a better future," Kahn said at a news conference. "My long-term goal is to be a cardiologist, relating to the heart. Science has always been a very broad field for me and I love it."