Military Spouse & Admissions ?

[Discoteca]

My fiance is in the Air Force and told me that when we get married, any school I apply to will consider me as an in-state resident applicant.
Being considered as an in-state applicant everywhere during the admission process would be a huge advantage.
However, I think he has this confused with establishing residency for tuition purposes AFTER ACCEPTANCE.
I don't think the AMCAS even asks about military status, but the FAFSA does.

Does anyone know anything about military members and state residency status during application????

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[edmadison]

I looked this one up and in New York, you are considered in-state for tution purposes if you or your spouse are active duty military. This requirement could vary from state to state, what state are you interested in?

Ed

 

[Mutterkuchen]

I am not sure that this is true. If you are stationed in a particular state I believe you are in state for tuition purposes, and you are in state at the place you consider your home (where you pay state taxes?). As far as other states. . . I would treat each of them on an individual basis. They all have slighly different rules.

As far as being instate for purposes of admission. . . most state schools give preferential treatment for its residents. You are only allowed to designate one state as your state of residence, so if you can choose, choose wisely. I am sure that you cannot choose all 50 states as your state of residence, and therefore have an easier time than out-of-staters getting in all of them.

 

[Andrew_Doan]

Originally posted by Discoteca
My fiance is in the Air Force and told me that when we get married, any school I apply to will consider me as an in-state resident applicant.
Being considered as an in-state applicant everywhere during the admission process would be a huge advantage.
However, I think he has this confused with establishing residency for tuition purposes AFTER ACCEPTANCE.
I don't think the AMCAS even asks about military status, but the FAFSA does.

Does anyone know anything about military members and state residency status during application????

While on Active Duty, your wife may designate one state as her state of residency. You will then be considered as an in-state residence for the schools in that particular state. When you decide which state to claim as your place of residence, pick a state with the schools you aim to apply to.

 

[Teach]

I am currently going through the application process and am married to an Active duty AF. The residency situation is confusing and you will get conflicting information from everyone that you talk to. I seeked out assistance from military legal aid and was told that spouses cannot maintain residency in another state (state not stationed in) unless you own a home in that state and continue to pay taxes. I trusted this person (since they were part of the legal office), but I know of numerous spouses (not medical school applicants) that have never changed their residency from there home state.

I do know that you are only considered an in-state resident for tutition in the state your husband has orders (unless you are trying to declare a different state). Like I said this is confusing and frustrating - but I would guess that medical schools will require documentation when it finally comes down to determining your state residency for tuition. I would not think schools would part with 10,000 - 18,000 difference in tuition easily.

So, I would suggest you find the legal aid office at the base your fiance is at and get some advice. Since you are not married yet - he will have to make the appointment and go with you. Good luck!

 

[edmadison]

There should be an entire forum dedicated to this issue, but I hope I can clarify a few things.

For adults and those other than college students, residency is determined by your presense in a state and your desire to remain there indefinately. Generally, if you live in a state and work there, you are a resident. Under the constitution, states are required to grant the same rights to all US citizens, regardless of their state of orgin. The Supreme Court has ruled, however, that certain exceptions can be made, such as charging a different tuition for in-staters versus out-of-staters or new residents. Thus, you could be a resident of a state and not qualify for in-state tuition and also no longer qualify for in-state tuition in your old state. One interesting exception is students who are at college can still retain there state of original residence under certain circumstances.

If you examine the rules carfully, most states try to avoid a potential confusion of words by referring to "domicile" as what determines if you get in-state tuition. Rules of domicile vary from state to state and most determinations are made by the school, so if you have a close call, plead your case to the school, sometimes they go for the student in close cases.

An interesting exception to all these rules is for military personnel. You can maintain your original state of residency indefinately as long as you are on active duty -- this is pretty cool because you can stay a resident of a state with no income tax. I do not know whether spouses can do the same. The exception that I noted in my first post, however permits a non-resident military member or spouse to get in-state tuition even though not a resident. Here is New York's law:

355 h (3) of the New York State Education Law
3) Such regulations shall further provide that the payment of tuition and fees by any student in any state-operated institution of the state university who is a member or the spouse or the dependent of a member of the armed forces of the United States on full-time active duty and stationed in this state, whether or not a resident of the state, shall be paid at a rate or charge no greater than that imposed for students thereat who are residents of this state.

I hope this helps.

Ed

 

[Discoteca]

Wow! THanks for all the info. Sounds like my fiance was a little mistaken as I suspected. Being able to be considered as an in-state applicant everywhere seemed a little too good to be true. With your information, it sounds like I can establish residency where he is, which is what I want to do. I hope we can reside in the same city somehow....
I think one of the hardest things about medicine is the moving around for med school and then again for residency. It is hard enough to have a life while busy, but in combo with long distance relationships....