<p>Wow. So many great responses so quickly, thanks. </p>
<p>“Seems doable if you dot your Is and cross your Ts. Here’s the detailed residency info for UCI:” </p>
<p>Yeah, that was my interpretation of everything. I have the money all saved up, but I’m self employed and didn’t claim any earned income the past three tax years, as I was travelling. Does anyone know if this will be an issue? Obviously I filed my returns each year, but didn’t owe much/ anything the past few years. I’ve got an HSA, IRA’s, and a little other stuff. I’ve been financially independence for a long time, I just hope I can effectively prove it, which seems kind of weird. </p>
<p>“Even if you get residency, how will you pay the $30k”</p>
<p>From here ( <a href=“UCI University Registrar - Undergraduate Student Fees 2014-15”>http://www.reg.uci.edu/fees/2014-2015/undergrad.html</a> ) I see that UCI’s resident tuition is ~$15K annually. I hope I’m not missing something here. Of course there will be other expenses - cost of living, books, etc - but I can live simply if need be; add in the fact that my aunt recently told me I could essentially live in her place rent free, and this whole plan got rolling. I may be able to get away with $30k out of pocket per year for all living expenses, and I can just make that work for 3 years running, and that’s assuming I don’t work, which I almost certainly would. </p>
<p>“Who needs to argue? You’ve made your own case that you are trying to prove to the colleges that you are exactly what you are claiming not to be. You know that you are following the letter, not the spirit of the expectations of the state schools.” </p>
<p>All true, but is it wrong? And if so, is it so wrong that I should abandon these particular plans. Do any potential long term benefits outweigh the upfront loss to the State (ie, I game the system, go to UCI, graduate, and X% of the time I become a lifetime tax payer). Blah, blah, blah. I’ll be the first to admit that I do indeed think its wrong, but probably no so wrong that I should abandon these plans. However, I’m open to convincing arguments. I’ve currently got a lot of time on my hands :-/. </p>
<p>Many thanks for all the replys. </p>