So, I have a bit of a unique situation. I lived in California up until 4th grade–in 5th grade my family moved overseas to Shanghai. However, officially, we still “reside” in California. My parents still pay the state taxes and fill out paperwork. We have a house there (currently renting it out) and two cars. My parents also have Californian driver’s licenses, and I know at least my mom’s is up to date as we drove around when staying there for a week this summer.
Our family was only planning on staying in Shanghai for two years, but in the blink of a eye, it’s been six years already. I’ve decided to stay until graduation. After graduation, my whole family (including my younger sister) will move back to California. I will most likely stay there the summer before college starts. I know that if I do go to a public university, I will have to pay the full tuition the first year, because you need to be physically present in California for a year before to be considered a resident. My question is–it it possible to obtain residency the 2nd year? The UC website seemed to imply that they looked at your residency status while applying, and that status would stay the same for all 4 years.
I know it’s a bit early to be worrying about it because I’m still a sophomore/junior, and won’t even start applying for schools until later, and I don’t even know if I will be going to a university in California. However, it would be frustrating if I put all my effort into getting into UCLA only to have to pay the full out of state tuition all 4 years. I know it would just be better if I moved back a year early, but I really have grown to love my life in Shanghai and I don’t know how well I’d handle being uprooted from my current lifestyle. Any advice would be appreciated.