Hi my parents both work out of the country and I live in Maryland. it is quite unfortunate that since they live abroad I do not have in state residency for any of the states. Is there a way I can gain residency during college?
In some counties in MD, you can be considered in-county for tuition and fees at the community college if you can show that you have provided the majority of your own support for 12 months. Check your local CC for that. It could be a back-up plan. I know that works for the CCs, but I don’t know if that status continues once you transfer to a state U.
In recent years, some of the state universities in MO and TX have made it easy for students to establish in-state residence. Those would be worth checking out. Also there are a number of state Us such as Bemidji in MN that don’t charge different rates for OOS students.
More importantly, however, you must find out from your parents what they can pay. Once you know that you will be able to think about your options. If you have grades and test scores that will qualify you for merit-based aid, some OOS publics and some privates can become very affordable.
@happymomof1 Thank you for such a detailed advice!! I am actually a current senior trying to decide between umd, uw, and ucla, in which I am considered OOS for all three. I am totally crushed to see that I am a huge financial burden for my parents when I am just going to a state school. Is it virtually impossible for me to establish residency in these states?
Also my family are all permanent residents of the US but my parents are considering giving up their permanent residency. If my parents are no longer citizens could this differ my situation and help me get in state residency on my own??
(I know its a lot of questions but Im a little desperate here)
If your parents give up their legal permanent resident statuses, it will not change your ability to get in-state status anywhere, and it will make your financial aid applications messier. Instead of being able to link to their federal returns for the FAFSA, there will be the whole headache of converting their foreign return information into numbers that can be entered into the FAFSA. For the longer term, it will also increase your own hassle-factor if they want to regain permanent resident status at some point in the future and you have to sponsor them. But that is something that the three of you should discuss with competent legal advisors.
You are not going to be able to get in-state status for UMD, UW, or UCLA on your own until you are an orphan, you are 24, you are a US military veteran, etc. Check each institution’s website for the exact details.
If money is an issue, you should consider taking a gap year, and applying to an affordble set of places for fall 2019.
@happymomof1 Thank you again for a detailed answer. These are some hard facts to swallow but they will help me make my final decision.