Hello I´m a 19 year old girl from Venezuela and I recently moved to Florida due to the situation my country is going through. I graduated high school in Venezuela in 2014 with and average of 19.88 over 20, and I got into med school there. I started my medical education, but I had to leave it to move here.
Immigration wise, I am waiting for the approval of my political asylum case. It´s of my understanding that I can pursue higher education while my case is still pending.
My goal is to get a major in biomedical engineering and then go to medical school. I haven´t taken the TOEFL nor the SAT, but I am currently preparing for them.
What I´m wondering is, can I get In-state tuition with that immigration status? or would I be treated as an international student?
Does the fact that I graduated more than 2 years ago affect my admission? and am I eligible for scholarships?
I know this are a lot of question, but I haven´t found anyone who can answer them, and every time I think about it, I just feel overwhelmed by the whole process. Leaving my education in Venezuela was the hardest thing I have ever had to do, and I don´t want to choose between quality of life or being able to study, so I really hope I can achieve both here in the U.S.
Once your asylum is granted, you are an “eligible non-citizen” for tuition, residence and financial aid purposes. You would be eligible for in-state tuition just like US citizens or permanent residents, provided that you meet all of the other requirements for in-state status (e.g. living in Florida continuously for at least 12 months, demonstrated intent to make Florida your permanent home): http://www.flbog.edu/forstudents/ati/resrequirements.php
I don’t want to pry into your family situation, but I do want to mention that Florida presumes that students of your age are dependent on their parents and have the same domicile as their parents. If at least one of your parents is living in Florida also, that won’t be a problem. If they are alive and living elsewhere, you’d have to convince the university that you are independent of your parents (e.g. providing for your own living expenses) in order to qualify for in-state tuition.
With a granted asylum application, you are also eligible for federal financial aid. You may not be eligible for financial aid from the state of Florida because Florida aid seems to be restricted to graduates of Florida high schools - but I recommend you talk to someone who knows the Florida state financial aid system better than me. You may be eligible for university-funded grants and scholarships; each university sets their own policies and you may receive assistance from some universities and not others.
No, your age should not be a factor because you are still a “traditionally aged” college student. However, that you have already attended a university elsewhere matters. That may make you a transfer applicant, depending on how many credits you have completed there. Transfer applicants have a different application process and usually fewer scholarship opportunities available to them than first-time college applicants.
Thank you very much.
So I have to wait until my asylum case is granted? That could take years, that’s why I thought that while it was pending I could still go to college…
Also yes I’m dependant, I live with my dad.
And I don’t think I am a transfer student, I just went to university in Venezuela for a couple of months, I didnt even finished 1st year (in Venezuela medicine is in years not semesters) so I don’t think my credits count
Which visa status did you enter the US in? If you entered on something other than a tourist visa (such as a work visa), you may be eligible for in-state tuition based on that status.
Best as I can tell, a pending asylum application does not count because you haven’t been “granted an indefinite stay in the United States.”
BUT really your best option is to reach out to a few universities directly and ask them. Also reach out to your local community college. In some states, it is easier to qualify for discounted tuition rates at community colleges than universities.
Unfortunately you won’t be eligible for federal financial aid to attend college until your asylum is granted. I know it sucks. The US immigration system is set up to be paranoid about foreigners trying to game the system - if too many benefits were available to people with a pending application for asylum, the fear is that too many people would submit frivolous applications.
I wanted to throw out there that a number of universities have scholarships or need-based financial aid for international students. Head on over to the financial aid forum for a list of universities with significant academic scholarships. (You could feasibly get a full tuition scholarship if you are flexible about your choice of the university.) Many liberal arts colleges give need-based financial aid to a number of international students. You wouldn’t be able to study biomedical engineering at a liberal arts college though.
Are you expecting your asylum to be granted eventually? I hear that a majority of asylum applications from Venezuela are denied because most applications are motivated by economic hardship rather than fear of prosecution.
If you are not confident that your case will be granted, and you want to stay in the US anyway, it may be wise to shift gears and start planning for a future in the US that you can achieve without the benefits of asylum.
Green card through marriage. Unfortunately the easiest way to get a green card right now is through marriage to a US citizen. After two years of marriage, the green card becomes unconditional and you can keep it even if your marriage ends. It may not hurt to keep your eyes open for a suitable partner.
Green card through employment. If you managed to get an MD, you'd be golden cause physicians can self-petition for a green card. Alas, medical school in the US is extremely expensive, and as a foreign student you would have to finance it entirely by yourself. Most other forms of employment-based green cards require that the employer document that they were unable to find a qualified American for the position. It seems that the majority of employment-based green cards right now go to engineering or IT specialists with an advanced degree. (Tip: PhDs, unlike MDs, are easy to finance because PhD students typically pay no tuition and receive a stipend for living expenses from the university.)