Hi, i’m a current High School student in United States. I lived in South Korea for 13 years and i came to America when i was in 8th grade. I started my 8th grade in United States junior high school, and i’ve been in United States since then. I am currently a junior(11th grade) in high school. The one thing that i’m curious about is that if i’m an international student or not. When i was searching for colleges and scholarships, it says that it’s required to be an U.S citizen or currently going to High School in U.S. It said that international students are excluded. I am in U.S. with F-2 Visa, 8th grade through current. I’m really confused because i do go to school in U.S. but i’m pretty sure i’m an international student. Can anyone clarify if i am an international student?
Which scholarship? there are many, and they have different rules.
i don’t care about the scholarship. I just want to know if i’m considered as international student or not
There may be some nuance between the states, but you are an international student by any measure. Some states might have different rules if you have attended high school for x amount of years, for example, but you would have to research the schools to check.
There may be exceptions, which is why you should check with the prospective schools, but for the vast majority of schools, you would be an international applicant.
Now whether you would be considered in-state vs. OOS for your state public colleges - that’s a totally different question.
You are an international students in every way possible.
It seems like you need to learn some facts about visa. Your F2 visa is only valid when whoever has F1 visa keeps his/her status. You can NOT go to college with F-2 visa. I heard there is a bill that proposes that F2 be enabled to go to college, but that won’t happen any time soon. Also, however much you stay in US with F2, or any kind of non-immigrant visa, you do NOT count as a citizen/permanent residents.
You need F-1 visa to go to college in the US. With your visa, you are not permitted to work out side the campus, and you will be able to work only for 20 hours a week, 40 hours a week during summer. Also, admission will be a lot harder in higher tier schools.
Now, whether you will get in state tuition or OOS tuition, that depends on states, but except NY and TX, all states will NOT grant you in state benefit since you are in F visa. I don’t know where you live, but don’t expect to get instate benefit if you are not in either in NY or TX.
Why do you list NY and TX as exclusions to the rule? Both NY and TX explicitly exclude F-1 students (and other students on visas that prohibit them from establishing a domicile in the US) from the rules that otherwise grant in-state status to students who graduate from in-state high schools.
Some public universities grant out-of-state tuition waivers to international students on a merit basis. Some states will grant in-state status to F-1 students if their parents are legal residents of the state (which in particular means that the parents must have a visa status that permits them to establish a domicile in the US, e.g. an H-1B work visa). That’s it as far as I know.
Unfortunately, the term “international” can mean different things in different contexts. Be sure to read the details of every scholarship or admission requirement you look at. (If the scholarship eligibility rules state, “US citizen or currently attending high school in the US”, you quality!)
While your visa status makes you an international applicant for legal and public financial aid purposes, you’d mostly follow the admission process for domestic students since you were educated in the US. For example, you wouldn’t need to submit an international supplement to the secondary school report, and most colleges wouldn’t require TOEFL scores from you either.
Strange. I knew 2 people woth F2 visa who claimed to have got in with in state tuition in Ny and TX, one in each state
F2 status and F1 status are different. I’m not surprised that some states give in-state status to local high school graduates who were in F2 status while their family member was in F1 status. Many states do give in-state status to local high school graduates who are in other non-immigrant categories.
Too bad Oregon doesnt
Something doesn’t add up. F-2 dependents are not allowed to enroll in college full-time, which leaves a few different options:
- They did not disclose their visa status to the college they enrolled in.
- They might have enrolled part-time, probably at a community college for cost reasons. I have encountered community colleges with a separate in-county rate, which was even lower than in-state tuition, and the in-county determination was made solely on physical presence.
Let me clarify. They did change to f1 when they went to college. They had been F2 dependent of their parents
Yeah i have to go back to South Korea to change my visa to F-1 visa. I was planning to change in after i get accepted to college. At least i’m allowed to send college application and be accepted with F-2 Visa right?
Yes. GOING to college needs F1 visa, NOT applying to colleges. If the latter were the case,it would be horrible
I’m really glad that i found this website. You have no idea what i’m going through. There is a Korean Community in the city i live in, but no one tells me anything that can benefit me in education. They all think i’m their competitor. The first year in United States was horrible!! i had no idea what to do in my first year and no one helped me go through it. I’m really really glad that you guys can answer my questions 
Seriously… not a single person told me about SAT and ACT until when i became 10th grade… I wish this highly competitive Korean society changes someday…
Don’t rely on Korean community…there are so many outdated or blatantly wrong information about colleges. I am a Korean too. So…Annyeong.
However, ANYONE should know about SAT/ACT…so you have to do researches on your own.
Incorrect info in post #17. You are considered a domestic student if you are a citizen or a permanent resident. Some states or universities have other classifications that would put someone in the domestic pool. However, most non citizens without a green card will be considered internationals.