Immigrant Students

Financial Aid and Scholarship Information for Dreamers and Undocumented Students

(presented by College Sense)

Financial aid is generally not provided to undocumented students or illegal aliens. Federal and state financial aid programs require the recipient to have U.S. citizenship or permanent residency (i.e., have a green card). However, there may be scholarships available to Dreamers and Undocumented Students.

New York State does allow undocumented students who attended high school within the state for three or more years to receive in-state tuition to its public colleges and universities. This law considerably increases the likelihood that an undocumented student will be able to afford his/her tuition without financial aid.

* If the student is a US Citizen but one or more parents are undocumented, the student is eligible for federal student aid. However, if the parents supply a fake or stolen social security number (SSN) on the form, the student's FAFSA will be rejected when the parent's social security number fails to match. The FAFSA may also be rejected when the parents submit a SSN or Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) that is valid for work purposes only. If the parents do not have a social security number or the social security number fails the match, they should use 000-00-0000 as their social security number on the FAFSA form.

Undocumented students should begin researching scholarships and grants early because there are fewer sources. Undocumented students and families should make inquiries to their community-based organizations and churches. Other useful resources to review are:

• FastWeb - The Internet's leading scholarship search service helps students make decisions that shape their lives: choosing a college, paying for college, and finding jobs during and after college.

• Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF) - Leading non-profit Latino litigation, advocacy, and educational outreach institution in the United States.

• Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF) - The nation’s leading organization supporting Hispanic higher education.

• EDUCATORS FOR FAIR CONSIDERATION (E4FC) - Empowering undocumented young people to achieve educational and career goals.

• CollegeBoard Repository of Resources for Undocumented Students