{"id":64,"date":"2017-10-06T18:31:56","date_gmt":"2017-10-06T18:31:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wcsu.wpengine.com\/undocumented\/?page_id=64"},"modified":"2025-09-17T17:30:34","modified_gmt":"2025-09-17T17:30:34","slug":"top-10-things-undocumented-students-in-ct-should-know-about-college","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/undocumented\/top-10-things-undocumented-students-in-ct-should-know-about-college\/","title":{"rendered":"Additional Resources for Undocumented Students in Connecticut"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>1. <strong>You can go to college &amp; will receive\u00a0your diploma even if you are undocumented.<\/strong><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>There are no laws in Connecticut that prevent you from applying or going to school.<\/li>\n<li>If a college admissions officer or other staff member tells you that you cannot go to school, reach out Connecticut Students for a Dream so that they can help navigate the situation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>2.\u00a0<strong>You can pay the in-state tuition rates at Connecticut Public Colleges if you meet the following requirements(instead of out of the state tuition rates or international rates)<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>2 Years of high school in Connecticut<\/li>\n<li>Graduate from a CT High School or GED program<\/li>\n<li>Sign an affidavit with the university that you will regularize your status when you are able to do so (see your admissions office)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>3.\u00a0<strong>Colleges will not share your or your family&#8217;s status.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You will not get in trouble if they know that you are undocumented, you are protected(the law that protects you is called the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act- FERPA for short)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>4.\u00a0<strong>If you feel uncomfortable answering any questions about your status you can simply say, &#8220;I&#8217;d rather not answer that. Why do you need to know?&#8221; You can then ask a friend\/ally to help you reach out to folks and ask questions you might have!\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>5.\u00a0<strong>There are scholarships available to undocumented students.<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Current College students and high school seniors check out <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ct4adream.org\/\">www.ct4adream.org<\/a> for more information (College Access tab) and to get <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ct4adream.org\/scholarship\">scholarship<\/a> lists.<\/li>\n<li>Do you research and call schools to find out what kind of scholarships and aid they give to undocumented students.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>6.\u00a0<strong>You can call schools &amp; ask about their policies on undocumented students and if they don&#8217;t know, ask who at the University you can speak to that would have information.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Some schools may give you specific resources that may be helpful in terms of applications, scholarships, etc.<\/li>\n<li>Some schools have special scholarships that you may be eligible for from the alumni association or foundations.<\/li>\n<li>Some schools may not have any information, do your own research and see if the school is the right fit for you.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>7.\u00a0<strong>You don&#8217;t need a social security\u00a0number to fill out a college application.<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If you don&#8217;t have one, leave it blank; do not fill in fake numbers.<\/li>\n<li>If an online application\u00a0 doesn&#8217;t let you submit online without the SSN-simply submit a paper application instead.<\/li>\n<li>Never lie on your college applications, if you are not a U.S. citizen or a legal permanent resident (green card), don&#8217;t say that you are.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>8.<strong>If you are undocumented or have Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) in most cases you should NOT be classified as an International Student.<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If you are, confirm with your institution about their policies (some schools still list undocumented students as international)<\/li>\n<li>International students pay higher rates than in-state tuition students so if you are falsely classified as an international student talk to admissions so they can make the change.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>9.\u00a0<strong>Everyone&#8217;s path is different. Do not feel pressure to take a certain path!<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Community Colleges are a great place to start your education.<\/li>\n<li>Not everyone graduates college in four years, many students take several extra years to graduate.<\/li>\n<li>Don&#8217;t sell yourself short either; if you meet the requirements for a private or selective school. Apply. You just might get in!<\/li>\n<li>College is not the right next step for everyone, reach out to us to talk about careers and other opportunities.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>10.\u00a0<strong>Be your own advocate.<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You can find help and guidance outside of school.<\/li>\n<li>Sometimes it helps to selectively &#8220;come out&#8221; to those you can trust at the school- a counselor, professor, teacher, they may be able to advocate for you in the system, for scholarships and financial aid.<\/li>\n<li>There are educators and organizations that support you, seek them out- Build a support network of friends, educators, and community leaders.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>1. You can go to college &amp; will receive\u00a0your diploma even if you are undocumented.\u00a0 There are no laws in Connecticut that prevent you from applying or going to school. If a college admissions officer or other staff member tells &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"left-navigation.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-64","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/undocumented\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/undocumented\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/undocumented\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/undocumented\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/56"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/undocumented\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/undocumented\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/64\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/undocumented\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}