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It’s very odd that USC offers a graduate program in speech pathology but not an undergrad program.
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@redpoodles
NO it is not odd. It is actually common. There are a number of occupational programs that are only masters programs. Students can get their undergrads in a variety of majors.
I thought they would all accept that were a resident wherever you actually lived, and only needed to verify your parent’s residency when applying to a school other than where you actually live?
Virginia (my state) is very strict about establishing domicile, for example, but specifically provides that a financially dependent student can still demonstrate domicile here, independently of the parents’ state of residence.
Would that work if you moved to the state and started college in the same year?
The reason I ask is because, based on how I read the OP’s posts, she currently lives in South Carolina and is considering moving in with her grandmother in Tennessee to attend college this coming fall.
If this was in Virginia (where I live as well), this wouldn’t work. Moving to the state solely to attend college – even community college – doesn’t make you a Virginia resident. (In fact, the VA Code explicitly prohibits this because it would mean that pretty much any out-of-state student would qualify for in-state tuition after they moved here.) There is a process for establishing residency if you are a student with parents who are out of state [but it’s a hassle](http://www.schev.edu/students/vadomicile.asp) especially as a dependent student and especially since it sounds to me like this student wants to start college this fall and not in a few years or so.
I am only familiar with Virginia’s rules. She could establish residency here regardless of where her parents live, but she would need to do it a full year before starting college. I presented it as an example that she is probably not strictly bound to her parents’ residence. I presume other states are no more strict than Virginia and that it should be possible anywhere.