USU requirements for student residency defined
As the year is coming to an end, out-of-state Utah State University students may be thinking about their residency status.
With a new law the Legislature passed in February, the State Board of Regents will offer 500 out-of-state students nonresident tuition scholarships.
The scholarships will be divided among universities based on the effects of residency changes.
“This year the Legislature authorized some financial aid to some incoming students to cover them for a two-year period until they gain residency,” said Lynn Poulsen, associate vice provost for Enrollment Management.
This financial aid does not cover all of the out-of-state tuition. Instead it places tuition somewhere between out-of-state and in-state, he said.
But nonresident students still have to follow the guidelines to House Bill 331.
Out-of-state students can either live in Utah for 24 months prior to beginning school at USU or complete a total of 60 credits in order to gain residency, said Pousen.
There are exceptions to this bill. Students who are in the military and stationed in Utah on active duty, who are married to a Utah resident, or who moved to Utah with their parents do not have to gain residency.
“It’s OK to leave for the summer to work or go on a cruise or whatever … but if [you] attend as a resident for the summer in an out-of-state university, [you] will mess up [your] residency status here,” said Ann Gibbons, administrator’s assistant in Enrollment Management.
An option could be to enroll in USU’s electronic courses to help gain the 60 credits, Poulsen said.
“Too often people get their information from other sources. We’re [Poulsen and Gibbons] the only two on campus that know all about residency. If you have any questions, please check with us,” Gibbons said. “Laws change – don’t assume.”
Obtaining a Utah driver license and car registration is necessary for residency, Poulsen said.
International students do not qualify for residency.
-jannahz2002@yahoo.com