need advice on how to help a student

Parents Forum
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<p>I recently found out that a very hard working student from my HS will not be able to attend the top 10 public university she was admitted to. She is the daughter of an illegal immigrant and was not born in the US. She had no choice in her mother bringing her to the US as a 2 yrs old. She has had a very difficult life being raised by a single parent who works for minimum wage and continued to have more children.</p>

<p>The student is devastated as she sees no future for herself. I understand the mistakes of the parent and do not think that we need to subsidize children brought here illegally. On the flip side, I don't know what advice to give this young lady that I respect as a student and human being.</p>

<p>Her only choice (since she does not qualify for financial aid) is to go to CC for 2 years and get a job and save up. This would be fine but since she is not a citizen she has no SS#. This prevents her from legally working (yes, I know her mother has broken the law). Is her only option to go back to a country where she knows no one and the prospects of an education are practically 0? Does anyone know of any "legal" options she could pursue? </p>

<p>Please don't make this a thread about bashing illegal immigrants, that would be for the mother. This young lady had no say in her circumstances and worked very hard to make sure she wouldn't follow in her mother's steps. Any advice I could pass on would be helpful.</p>

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<p>There’s a comprehensive page on finaid.org.<br>
Maybe you’ve seen that-?</p>

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<p>Sigh. Joining the military is about the only option (and it isn’t a very good one).</p>

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<p>I’m a bit confused about the problem. I would think since she’s not American, she should have applied as an international. Didn’t she do that?</p>

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<p>Or couldn’t she begin to take the steps to become a citizen? Yea, it would delay her college entrance, but she’s young.</p>

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<p>Unfortunately it varies from state to state. Texas and California state schools accept students with illegal status if they went to state high schools and give them in state tuition but I am not sure which state you are in. I believe Maryland is another state allowing in state tuition too (or they are trying to get there).</p>

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<p>I look forward to reading this thread because I’m always so impressed and amazed at the wealth of collective knowledge and creativity of CC parents. This is such an interesting problem to solve.</p>

<p>If she is a Mexican citizen and fluent, would she consider UNAM for her undergrad, and look to the US for graduate school? Tuition is free, if I understand it, and possibly her American highschool education would make her a very strong candidate (I believe the entrance exam is very tough). There are numerous other publicly funded Mexican universities. I realize it is not her country, except on paper, but she would not be the first student to opt to study abroad and grow from the experience. </p>

<p>Also try a google search on financial aid for illegal immigrants. I did that and there were tons of pages of websites with suggestions.</p>

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<p>These cases sadden me. Can you provide a little more information? The more specific you can be, the more helpful, but I understand if you don’t want to compromise this student. </p>

<p>Is the university she was admitted to too expensive?
Is your state one that affords undocumented immigrants instate tuition?
Is the country of origin Mexico or is it somewhere else?
Does she have relatives in the country of origin?
How much can she afford to pay?
Is she 18 yet?</p>

<p>There may be better options than community college. </p>

<p>I remember reading on another chat board about a student who gained admission to a university in Canada, where students on study permits can work, who went back to Mexico to go to the Canadian Embassy to get a Canadian study permit and then moved to Canada. It was a long and risky process, but this student will likely be able to graduate a Canadian university and legally immigrate to Canada. He did need relatives in Mexico to take care of a lot of the paperwork before the final embassy visit. That’s why I asked about that. I think it was somewhere on this website</p>

<p>[The</a> Lounge - DREAM Act Portal Forum](<a href=“Sign in - Google Accounts”>Sign in - Google Accounts)</p>

<p>I don’t think she can work in the US, and if she’s 18 or over and works illegally and found out, I think she’s subject to the 10 year ban. She can certainly go to college if her mother pays. </p>

<p>IMHO, the best strategy would be to go to college on a student visa and study a subject for which she can get into a funded PhD program that pays for graduate school with a living stipend, or for which Canada deems a skill in short supply so that she can immigrate to Canada. Along the way, meet, fall in love, and marry a US Citizen. I think getting married is Plan A, and immigrating to Canada would be Plan B. </p>

<p>I know in 2011, planning to fall in love and get married isn’t something people want to talk about, but many people ultimately do it anyway. She might as well be aware that it would solve a lot of her immigration problems. I’m not saying run out and get married, but getting herself into a position where she can be a funded graduate student indefinitely, is definitely putting herself into a position where she’s likely to meet someone she wants to marry anyway.</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>yes
yes
Mexico
no
close to nothing
yes</p>

<p>Her family is extremely poor. Mother and younger siblings came to a recent award night for her and were dressed in clothes one step up from rags.</p>

<p>Thanks for the helpful replies, I’m going to start investigating.</p>

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<p>So, I guess, the point is she can’t afford instate tuition. (which is true of so many these days, not just undocumented immigrants.) Sigh.</p>

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<p>mtnmomma, does the school this young lady applied to provide financial aid to international students? Did she apply as an international student to ANY schools that do provide need based aid to international students?</p>

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<p>Does your instate disqualify illegals from need based aid?</p>

<p>May be she can join ROTC to pay the bills?</p>

<p>I keep seeing letters addressed to my kid saying Navy ROTC will pay upto 180k for college if the kid signed up.</p>

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<p>I suspect that anything military-related requires US citizenship, but I am having trouble finding the eligibility requirements spelled out on the Army website.</p>

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<p>

Only US citizens and eligible permanent residents (generally green card holders) are eligible for federal financial aid.</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>I reread the OP…and caught this part. Most public universities do not meet full need for ANYONE. Some also provide NO need based aid for international students (those who are not citizens or green card holders). </p>

<p>However, the OP did note that the girl’s state DOES grant instate tuition status to students in this girl’s position. That being the case, could she go to a community college with an articulation agreement with a four year school…and then transfer to that four year school? Perhaps she could, in the interim, get her own application for permanent residency status underway.</p>

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<p>Ethical issues aside, the fastest way to get legal and qualify for financial aid is to marry a US citizen.</p>

<p>Student visa holders can get a social security number and limited work permits. However, applying for a student visa would be quite risky because it requires leaving the country. (And there’s a non-trivial chance that her visa application would be rejected if she cannot demonstrate foreign ties.)</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>You must be a permanent resident to participate in ROTC classes, and you must be a US citizen to receive an ROTC scholarship (and to commission even if you participate in ROTC without a scholarship, I believe)</p>

<p>The requirements to enlist can be found here: [Enlisted</a> Soldier | GoArmy.com](<a href=“What to Consider | goarmy.com”>What to Consider | goarmy.com)</p>

<p>The requirements for ROTC scholarships can be found here: [Four-Year</a> Scholarship | GoArmy.com](<a href=“http://www.goarmy.com/rotc/high-school-students/four-year-scholarship.html]Four-Year”>ROTC Scholarships | goarmy.com)</p>

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<p>[FinAid</a> | Other Types of Aid | Scholarships for Undocumented Students](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Resources for Undocumented Students - Finaid)</p>

<p>“The Texas law also allows illegal aliens to receive state student financial aid.”</p>

<p>The links do not show up below but you can find them in the URL above.</p>

<p>Scholarships </p>

<p>Another potential source of financial aid is private scholarships. There are a few private scholarships for undocumented students that do not require the student to be a US citizen or resident or have a social security number in order to apply. Information about such scholarships can be found in the FastWeb scholarship search. Other good resources include the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) (see especially the MALDEF List of Scholarships for Undocumented Students and the MALDEF Scholarships) and the Salvadoran American Leadership and Educational Fund. </p>

<p>Another good resource for California students is Latino College Dollars: Scholarships for California’s Latino Students. This directory directory includes several scholarships that do not require US citizenship and are available to undocumented students. </p>

<p>See also Ayuda Financiera del Estudiante en Espa</p>

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<p>Undocumented students who graduate from Maryland high schools can study at the community colleges at in-state rates, and after completing a full A.A. or A.S. they can continue at the public universities at in-state rates. Unfortunately, what I’ve read in the press lacks specific detail. The community college financial aid offices would be up-to-date though.</p>

<p>This young person is in a terribly difficult situation. I wish her all the best!</p>

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<p>Wanted to put in my vote for going to the local community college and finishing up at the four year school, if possible. </p>

<p>This is one of those situations when I hear this is happening, I wonder why we wouldn’t want to go ahead and educate the kid and grant her citizenship. But, what do I know?</p>