<p>My sister is interested in the University of Connecticut. We live in Pennsylvania, but my dad's fiance lives in Connecticut. Would it be possible for us to somehow switch my sister's residency to my dad's fiance's house in Connecticut in order to get in-state tuition prices? What are most schools' rules about this sort of thing?</p>
<p>Each state/school has its own rules about this. It is not the residence of the undergraduate student that usually determines the in-state residency, but the residency of the parent. Some states have a one year, or having paid taxes to the state rule. It is not easy to get in-state status. Otherwise there would not be OOS kids beyond freshman year.</p>
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<p>No. Not unless your dad marries his fiance ASAP and he and your sister move to CT…ASAP. Your dad’s fiance is NOT your sisters guardian. In fact, she isn’t related to your sister at all. Residency for undergraduate students is based on where their parents reside (in most cases) with the student. So…if your sister LIVES in Pennsylvania with one or both parents…or with one parent and a stepparent, she is a resident of Pennsylvania. To be honest, the residency of your dad’s fiance doesn’t matter one bit.</p>
<p>And they WILL check if you state you are a Connecticut resident and it appears from the application that you go to a non-boarding school in PA and your parents live in PA. With a lot of great applicants they can afford to toss an application that indicates dishonesty.</p>
<p>I think thumper1’s plan could work…some people marry for love, money, green cards, whatever…GO HUSKIES!!!</p>
<p>Here is what you would have to do…dad and fiance would need to marry…NOW. Your sister would have to move in with them and enroll at a CT high school for her senior year. Otherwise, to be honest, she will be considered a PA resident. </p>
<p>Keep in mind also that when dad and his fiance marry, BOTH of their financial information (income and assets) would need to be included on the FAFSA IF your sister resides with them and your dad is the custodial parent. So if financial is a consideration (since you are trying to figure out a way to be instate when you’re not , I’m guessing it’s for the reduction in cost), keep that in mind. Also, if your sister becomes a resident of CT (by living here her senior year and attending school…oh…unless she goes to a private boarding school elsewhere…), she will not be able to apply to any of the instate schools in PA. You can only be a resident of ONE state in most situations.</p>
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Just a clarification (which I’m sure happened from quick typing, thumper!) - she can apply to the instate schools in PA, but not as an instate student. Thumper is 100% correct that
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<p>Right Chedva…that’s what I meant..she can’t apply as an instate resident in TWO different states.</p>
<p>This question comes up repeatedly. To be honest, I think EVERYONE who asks it KNOWS their state of residency and is just hoping that there is some way to be an instate student where their family really doesn’t reside. In the vast vast vast majority of cases…this simply can’t be done…It just can’t.</p>
<p>What has any one seen with professional school apps, where the student is considered independent yet the parent financial info is still considered.</p>
<p>If the student is a resident of state A and goes to UG there, and the parents move to state B at some point- would the student be a resident of state A or state B- or both ;)</p>
<p>Well.. a student can only be an instate resident in ONE state…not two.</p>
<p>Regarding professional schools…some schools request parent information regardless of the age of the student. Medical schools and some law schools have this requirement. You would need to check with each school.</p>
<p>Re: residency…in most cases for undergrad, the residency of the student when they matriculate remains the same until they graduate. In other words, if the family moves OOS during the college years, the student remains an instate student where they began. </p>
<p>If a family moves to a new state and the student has finished undergrad, I would think the “one year” residency rule would apply…but I’m not sure about that. You would need to check the specific school. In other words, if the family moved at the end of the kid’s senior year in college, that family would have to live in the new state for one year to establish residency. I would think the student would still be considered a resident of the “old state” unless he moves with the family and establishes residency himself there, or remains a dependent on his parents and uses their address as his permanent mailing address.</p>
<p>We are grappling with a similar question. DS is independent for financial aid, but we still claim him on our tax returns (he’s a grad student OOS). We wondered if he can be a resident of that other state and still be claimed as a dependent on OUR return? It wouldn’t be his address but we certainly are providing much more than 1/2 of his financial support.</p>
<p>Well.. a student can only be an instate resident in ONE state…not two.>>></p>
<p>There are exceptions. DD just graduated from college in the state in which I’m a resident. We moved last summer from there to another state and DH is a resident of yet another state. Because we are military, she can attend school in any of those three states as an in-state resident. Each state treats military differently, so that would not always be the case - some don’t grant in-state at all, some grant it only for the time you live in the state and some will extend it if you move while in school until graduation.</p>