Close to half the country offers some kind of financial assistance or access to in-state tuition for undocumented students, a database shows. But at least one state has rescinded that access amid federal changes to immigration policies and President Donald Trump’s priority of mass deportations.
The Higher Ed Immigration Portal from the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration serves as an up-to-date policy tracker for K-12 educators and counselors, as well as higher education leaders seeking to advise college-bound undocumented students, said Felecia Russell, director of the portal.
It covers which states have comprehensive access policies, meaning they offer undocumented students access to both in-state tuition rates and some state financial aid or scholarships, and which states allow undocumented students to access in-state tuition rates. The portal also identifies which states bar undocumented students from these reduced rates, and which prohibit undocumented students from enrolling in all or some public institutions in the state.
Meanwhile, in Florida, state leaders recently ended undocumented students’ access to in-state tuition rates for higher education in a sweeping immigration bill, potentially tripling or quadrupling tuition costs for these students, according to immigrant advocates.
The Presidents’ Alliance calculates there are about 43,294 undocumented students in higher education in Florida. Starting July 1, state universities, public community colleges, and career centers operated by a school district or a charter technical career center will no longer be able to waive out-of-state tuition costs for undocumented students.
Cost is the biggest barrier for immigrant students seeking to attend a college or university, said Gaby Pacheco, president and CEO of TheDream.US, the nation’s largest college scholarship provider for undocumented students.
Texas became the first state in 2001 to allow in-state tuition access to undocumented students who meet certain residency requirements, Pacheco said. The policy was meant to boost graduation rates, since many immigrant students had felt college was unattainable due to prohibitive costs, she added.
As K-12 educators counsel undocumented students in applying to college, Pacheco said they need to think creatively about where to get scholarships—be it organizations like TheDream.US or individual university department grants. Educators can also encourage students to seek out Advanced Placement or dual credit courses that could allow students to earn cost-saving college credits while in high school.
Pacheco also reminds educators to speak with students about non-traditional pathways to higher education, such as starting with an associate’s degree.
In Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina, where state policies bar undocumented students from enrolling in public higher education institutions, Russell reminds educators that often private institutions can offer undocumented students the most assistance as they tend to be smaller and have less bureaucracy involved.
