Strange situation - resident of two states?

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custard

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So my situation is that I could be a resident of one of two states and I can't decide what to put on AMCAS.

I live in Ohio (designated as resident state on AMCAS right now) which has lots of state med schools, and my parents (who I am dependent on) are moving to New Jersey which has only 2 state schools. The schools in NJ said that if I switch my AMCAS designation I would be considered in-state there. I would really really prefer to live in NJ than OH, but I have more chances of getting into med school in OH because there are more state schools there. I really don't know what to do. I feel like it would be like shooting myself in the foot to not designate NJ since I really want to be there and my chances are slim of getting in as an out-of-stater. Would it be really weird to designate NJ on AMCAS but then on the OH secondaries say that I am an OH resident (and then prove it by filling out the questions about how long I've lived here etc)? Actually I've already turned in two OH secondaries saying that I'm a resident (since that is what AMCAS says right now and I couldn't change it on the secondaries).

MCAT: 31O
BCPM: 3.66, AO: 4.00, Cum: 3.82

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good thought, but as i understand it you can't be both. you are whatever you put on amcas, no matter what you fill out on your secondaries. i was in the same situation and ultimately picked CA over WV. i can't say i'm a resident of wv on the wvu application now.

however, sometimes they take into account ties to the state, even if you're not a resident. be sure and write about that in any "extra information" boxes on secondaries.
 
this is my understanding as well. Some state schools like UMass have a caveat that if you completed high school in Massachusetts, then you can be considered a resident, but AMCAS only allows designation of one state as your state of residence. So even if you went to high school in Massachusetts, but lived in California for the last 2 years, you could still only choose one.
 
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What are the two states? I think SDN could help you more if you shared what they were.
 
If either one is Texas, I'd say the decision is pretty simple.
 
Also I don't think tuition should be a deciding factor in this because after I'm accepted I can submit all the necessary stuff to prove I'm a resident in whichever state (NJ because my parents live there and I'm dependent on them/ OH because I've lived here for 5 years - I'd have to become independent but it's possible).
 
put whatever state you have a greater chance of getting accepted in, so OH. NJ isnt that far away anyway.
 
Do Ohio for the sole reason that I'm a NJ resident applying to both UMDNJs :laugh:

Biases aside, your stats seem strong enough that you need not worry about not getting into school, so apply where you want to go. No reason to play the odds in Ohio schools if you don't want to be there.
 
Have your parents moved to NJ yet? This probably matters...

I am pretty sure you cannot be a legal resident of 2 states at the same time, but I also think there is probably a reasonable "grace period" for you to make a claim of one over the other (however, it will not be your choice - you will either be deemed to be an Ohio or NJ resident).

Sounds to me like you are a legal Ohio resident right now, and even if your parents move to NJ tomorrow, you will probably still be able to claim Ohio residency for some period of time (my guess is that you would have the remainder of this tax year to claim Ohio residency, but beginning in January if you are still tied to your parents, you may then become a NJ resident, too). Also, it certainly was true when you filed AMCAS that you were an Ohio resident, but you may need to realize that by the time you matriculate, you will have to fill out other forms for verifying your state residency and you could get screwed on OOS tuition even though your in-state status conferred preferences on your admissions - so it could help and hurt you at the same time.
 
It's possible to be a legal resident of more than one state at the same time because of differing residency laws (I am), but it's not possible to declare it that way. Pick the state that gives you the greatest chance to go to medical school.
 
It's possible to be a legal resident of more than one state at the same time because of differing residency laws (I am), but it's not possible to declare it that way. Pick the state that gives you the greatest chance to go to medical school.

But he has to be aware that if he gets admitted to an Ohio med school, that next year when he files the forms and affidavits establishing his state of residency, he may be viewed then as a NJ resident and would be paying OOS tuition. This is just speculation on my part - I have no experience with this sort of thing - and it is unusual, but someone at a college or med school in Ohio should be able to shed some light on it for him, and he may want to get those questions answered now rather than later...he might ask his college (is OP in college in Ohio now?) how they would deal with this to get a feeling for how a medical school may view it...
 
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Thanks for all the replies.

To answer some of the questions:

My parents are moving this month.
I am in college in Ohio right now.

When I called some of the Ohio schools they said that if I want to remain an Ohio resident I will have to become independent from my parents. And I would have to fill out a bunch of forms to prove residency.

I guess I am just stuck on the issue of going with where I most want to be vs where I would have the most chance at med school.
 
Choose Ohio residency. The New Jersey state schools are really nice to OOS applicants because they realize they are second fiddle to all of the schools in Philly and NYC. Ohio has more schools and there has to be at least one (right?) that shows strong IS preference. Ohio is just a much better state to be a resident of.
 
Thanks for all the replies.

To answer some of the questions:

My parents are moving this month.
I am in college in Ohio right now.

When I called some of the Ohio schools they said that if I want to remain an Ohio resident I will have to become independent from my parents. And I would have to fill out a bunch of forms to prove residency.

I guess I am just stuck on the issue of going with where I most want to be vs where I would have the most chance at med school.

So which state do you want to be a resident of? Sounds like NJ, and you soon will be a resident of NJ.

It seems to me that on your secondaries to Ohio med schools, you can continue to indicate Ohio residency. And for your NJ apps, I think you can justify putting down the pending change to NJ residency. So you can in effect get the benefit of the doubt on admissions from both states (or did the NJ schools tell you to submit a change to your primary app?).

But eventually you will have to face the issue of residency vis-a-vis tuition, and even though you have been told you need to establish "independence" from your parents if you want to remain an Ohio resident, that is not an easy thing to do overnight - you will need to prove financial independence with a job and by filing a tax return in Ohio, and it will involve your parents who would have to stop listing you as a dependent on their tax returns, etc...
 
Similar problem. Ohio v. Indiana.

Ohio = more schools

Indiana = Extremely high chance of interview no matter what (IU)
 
So which state do you want to be a resident of? Sounds like NJ, and you soon will be a resident of NJ.

It seems to me that on your secondaries to Ohio med schools, you can continue to indicate Ohio residency. And for your NJ apps, I think you can justify putting down the pending change to NJ residency. So you can in effect get the benefit of the doubt on admissions from both states (or did the NJ schools tell you to submit a change to your primary app?).

But eventually you will have to face the issue of residency vis-a-vis tuition, and even though you have been told you need to establish "independence" from your parents if you want to remain an Ohio resident, that is not an easy thing to do overnight - you will need to prove financial independence with a job and by filing a tax return in Ohio, and it will involve your parents who would have to stop listing you as a dependent on their tax returns, etc...

Yes, the NJ schools said I have to change my primary app to say NJ if I want them to consider me in-state. I understand what you mean about remaining an Ohio resident... also getting a job during med school doesn't seem at all practical.
 
Do not change the primary to NJ. I can't emphasize that strongly enough. It is easy to get the in-state tuition and many, many OOS people are accepted (look at their stats). Your only real advantage is with the Ohio residence on the primary. Don't throw that away, especially if any of those schools have a preference and/or offer cheaper tuition in-state.
 
Do not change the primary to NJ. I can't emphasize that strongly enough. It is easy to get the in-state tuition and many, many OOS people are accepted (look at their stats). Your only real advantage is with the Ohio residence on the primary. Don't throw that away, especially if any of those schools have a preference and/or offer cheaper tuition in-state.

I actually thought that it's really hard to get in there being out-of-state. I have last years MSAR and 133 out of 1797 OOS applicants got interviews to UMDNJ-RWJMS and 27 of those matriculated vs 456 out of 999 in-state applicants got interviews and 130 matriculated. I'm surprised you have such a strong opinion about this considering these numbers.
 
From 2007-08 MSAR:

Ohio Schools (n=6) (applied/interviewed/accepted)
Case: IS - 722/255/44; OS - 4039/600/113
MU of Ohio: IS - 915/269/95; OS - 1814/178/52
Northeastern: IS - 678/122/115; OS - 505/7/5
OSU: IS - 1010/258/119; OS - 3003/407/90
U of Cin: IS - 1029/348/120; OS - 2426/279/40
Wright: IS - 904/368/90; OS - 1716/80/10

NJ Schools (n=2) (applied/interviewed/accepted)
NJMS: IS - 986/NA/142; OS - 2948/NA/28
RWJ: IS - 999/456/130; OS - 1797/133/27

These numbers bear out that there is an in-state preference for the Jersey schools, but I don't 100% trust their numbers since it is easy to switch residency according to their guidelines. I would still keep the Ohio.
 
OP:

Something else to consider...perusing another state med school website recently, I noticed that if you are accepted at this school as an OOS applicant, and then move to the state and change/claim in-state residency before med school begins, you lose your acceptance and are waitlisted as an in-state applicant and only admitted if there is an opening in the in-state pool...man, how much does that suck?

Not sure how this might affect you or if any schools in NJ or Ohio have a similar policy, but it is something to think about...
 
I actually thought that it's really hard to get in there being out-of-state. I have last years MSAR and 133 out of 1797 OOS applicants got interviews to UMDNJ-RWJMS and 27 of those matriculated vs 456 out of 999 in-state applicants got interviews and 130 matriculated. I'm surprised you have such a strong opinion about this considering these numbers.

The thing is that they will let you switch. Most schools will not let you, all of a sudden, become in-state. The Jersey schools will.
 
Do not change the primary to NJ. I can't emphasize that strongly enough. It is easy to get the in-state tuition and many, many OOS people are accepted (look at their stats). Your only real advantage is with the Ohio residence on the primary. Don't throw that away, especially if any of those schools have a preference and/or offer cheaper tuition in-state.

He may not have a choice (what does AMCAS say about this, a material change in your residency during an app cycle?). Sounds like he can leave it as an Ohio resident for now, but I still contend he will have a very difficult time maintaining that residency status once his parents move unless he can fulfill all of the other tests of Ohio residency like financial independence as demonstrated by an income tax return, etc. And then there is the issue of OOS vs IS tuition in Ohio if he cannot hang on to his Ohio residency...plus the other nightmare scenario I mentioned involving a change in residency cancelling out an offer of admission...
 
OK. I am wrong. Here are the definitive numbers and logic to bear it out.

The population of OH is 11.5 million. The population of NJ is 8.7 million (according to wikipedia). Now there were 5,258 IS applicants to OH schools last year, and 1,985 IS applicants to Jersey schools. Thing is, these are not all unique applicants. I would be willing to bet that, since the numbers are similar for the Jersey schools (999 for NJMS and 986 for RWJ) that we could assume most, if not all, Jersey residents applied to both of their state schools. That would mean about 1,000 unique IS applicants from a population of 8.7M. If we assume NJ students are as intelligent and ambitious as OH students, we could extrapolate that there would be about 1,300 unique IS applicants for the OH schools. Now let us look at acceptance based on those stats.

(IS accepted/applied)
OH: 583/1,300 = 21.7%
NJ: 272/1,000 = 27.2%
 
I think a lot would depend on whether his parents are supporting him materially during med school. That would make a difference. If they are, he might become a NJ resident as you said. If he only has OH acceptances and goes to an OH school, he could deny their assistance and then be independent, like you said postbacker.
 
FWIW - I just looked at the AMCAS instructions PDF and it says that you cannot change the state you designate as your legal residence once you submit the AMCAS application as follows:

Legal Residence

Select the state in which you have legal residence. If your state is not listed, select "Unknown USA" from list. Applicants who qualify for residency in more than one state may declare only one of those states as their legal residence on application materials. After selecting a state, the County drop-down list dynamically changes to display valid counties for the selected state. Select your county from the drop-down list. If your county is not listed, select "<state> Unidentified" from list.

Note: You will not be able to change your Legal Residence after submitting your application to AMCAS.

My note: AMCAS bolded the closing statement above...

And my interpretation of this is that you maybe could have listed NJ when you submitted your primary (if you knew of your parents' upcoming move then) but you basically made a choice of listing Ohio and it appears that you will not be allowed to change that on your primary. This may be to your benefit for admissions, though, since you can explain to NJ med schools you cannot change it (verify that with AMCAS) and maybe they will put you in the in-state pool for admissions purposes...
 
Holy crap, postbacker, thanks for the good work (Lshapley too, thanks for all the stats)! That's really weird that the Admissions in NJ told me to change it on the primary. I'll call them tomorrow. I really hope this works out...
 
Good luck!!!
 
Holy crap, postbacker, thanks for the good work (Lshapley too, thanks for all the stats)! That's really weird that the Admissions in NJ told me to change it on the primary. I'll call them tomorrow. I really hope this works out...

A pleasure, and good luck, let us know how it turns out.
 
Agreed -- you only get one state of residence. You can't straddle the fence on two. Sorry.

Not only that, you don't get to pick your state of domicile (what we lawyers call residence). Although AMCAS lets you designate it on the form, that doesn't mean that you can pick any one you want. The OP cannot be a "resident" of NJ at this time because he doesn't have a home there (yet). Once his parents move, he would have a good argument for being able to change it, as college students are often tied to their parents. Interestingly though, he must actually be physically in the state before he change to NJ. To establish a new domicile you have to have your feet in it.

All that being said, the school is the one who verifies a given applicant/student's status. Often time sthey are a little more liberal than the letter of the law. Also, do not forget that changing your residence may have implications on taxes, voting, car stuff.

Finally, to correct what another poster said, you cannot be a resident of more than one state. As soon as you change to a new state, you old residency status is abolished. However, for tuition purposes, you can be the resident of NO state. This is because some schools have waiting periods to permit you instate tuition, even if you are the legal resident of the state. Of course this doesn't mean that you can't hedge your bets by providing information selectively, but as an upstanding member of the bar I cannot condone this behavior ;)

Ed
 
Similar problem. Ohio v. Indiana.

Ohio = more schools

Indiana = Extremely high chance of interview no matter what (IU)

?

I've got time though, unlike the OP.
 
Well, I'm back to square one. AMCAS says if I fax a request, residency can be changed.

UMDNJ-NJMS has room on their secondary to explain my ties to the state (and why I want to go there) so maybe I should keep Ohio and just explain via the secondary how I am "almost" a resident there. RWJMS doesn't have any essays like that though. I wonder whether it would be appropriate to send a letter to them explaining my connection to NJ. They're pretty adamant that they won't see me as a resident until I change my status though.
 
Well, I'm back to square one. AMCAS says if I fax a request, residency can be changed.

UMDNJ-NJMS has room on their secondary to explain my ties to the state (and why I want to go there) so maybe I should keep Ohio and just explain via the secondary how I am "almost" a resident there. RWJMS doesn't have any essays like that though. I wonder whether it would be appropriate to send a letter to them explaining my connection to NJ. They're pretty adamant that they won't see me as a resident until I change my status though.

It's worth a shot. I am applying to both NJ schools and I remember that NJMS essay. I think you could use that to help your cause, they are the harder school to get into as OOS, right? RWJ might be a tougher sell since they have no secondary, but at least you would have an edge at NJMS. That edge plus the OH thing would probably yield you the most return. And yeah, you could always send a letter of intent to RWJ if you think it would be your first choice.
 
Well, I'm back to square one. AMCAS says if I fax a request, residency can be changed.

UMDNJ-NJMS has room on their secondary to explain my ties to the state (and why I want to go there) so maybe I should keep Ohio and just explain via the secondary how I am "almost" a resident there. RWJMS doesn't have any essays like that though. I wonder whether it would be appropriate to send a letter to them explaining my connection to NJ. They're pretty adamant that they won't see me as a resident until I change my status though.

You are in a tough position. I would suggest you do some more research and find out exactly what you will need to do to maintain Ohio residency after your parents move - you may discover that it will not even be possible to establish your independence in time before matriculating and that you will be subject to OOS tuition (of course OOS tuition may be better than no admission otherwise). And you should find out if admitted to Ohio med schools as an in-stater do you get to keep your admission if your status changes to OOS, or will you be placed on an OOS waitlist?

My gut tells me your "chances" of med school admission are greater with the NJ schools as an NJ resident. Have you actually ever visited these schools, "kicked the tires" so to speak? Or for that matter, have you checked out the Ohio med schools?

All else being equal, where would you rather go to medical school?
 
Well I just spoke to the OSU Registrar on the phone and it does seem that it may not be possible for me to get Ohio residency for tuition if I declare NJ on my application right now. I would have to prove that I had money to pay for med school in my bank account in 2006 (which I don't) or I would have to get a job (not possible).

If I declared OH though, and got accepted, there's some kind of grandfather clause which says that I can continue getting OH tuition rates even after my parents move (as long as I was a resident before they moved).

So I guess I am leaning towards Ohio now because of this. I do like the med school at OSU, and Cincinnati has a pretty good med school too. I haven't visited the med schools in NJ.
 
Well I just spoke to the OSU Registrar on the phone and it does seem that it may not be possible for me to get Ohio residency for tuition if I declare NJ on my application right now. I would have to prove that I had money to pay for med school in my bank account in 2006 (which I don't) or I would have to get a job (not possible).

If I declared OH though, and got accepted, there's some kind of grandfather clause which says that I can continue getting OH tuition rates even after my parents move (as long as I was a resident before they moved).

So I guess I am leaning towards Ohio now because of this. I do like the med school at OSU, and Cincinnati has a pretty good med school too. I haven't visited the med schools in NJ.

Then I would write compelling letters or essays to the NJ schools about your ties to the state and your parents pending move (don't mention a specific date for their move but say something like "in the next 6 months"), and I would NOT change your primary app res status - it sounds to me like you are not required to do so by AMCAS (not required to update a residency change mid cycle). Be prepared to deal with bureaucratic BS from the Ohio schools, though, when it comes time to proving your Ohio residency...

If the entire year turns out to be a bust, you can always apply to NJ schools the following year as a NJ resident (I know you don't want to contemplate that now, but it may happen). Give the Ohio schools your best shot this app cycle...

Good luck.
 
Yes, I think that is what I will do. Thanks for your help postbacker. :)
 
no one mentioned this: if your parent is military you may have some options re claiming a state of residence where parent is stationed or in state parent says is "home"---in other words, you might be able to choose when non-military dependent children cannot

may not be your issue, but something to think about
 
Not only that, you don't get to pick your state of domicile (what we lawyers call residence). Although AMCAS lets you designate it on the form, that doesn't mean that you can pick any one you want. The OP cannot be a "resident" of NJ at this time because he doesn't have a home there (yet). Once his parents move, he would have a good argument for being able to change it, as college students are often tied to their parents. Interestingly though, he must actually be physically in the state before he change to NJ. To establish a new domicile you have to have your feet in it.

All that being said, the school is the one who verifies a given applicant/student's status. Often time sthey are a little more liberal than the letter of the law. Also, do not forget that changing your residence may have implications on taxes, voting, car stuff.

Finally, to correct what another poster said, you cannot be a resident of more than one state. As soon as you change to a new state, you old residency status is abolished. However, for tuition purposes, you can be the resident of NO state. This is because some schools have waiting periods to permit you instate tuition, even if you are the legal resident of the state. Of course this doesn't mean that you can't hedge your bets by providing information selectively, but as an upstanding member of the bar I cannot condone this behavior ;)

Ed

To condense this point even more, you can never actually be a resident of 2 states at once. You can be a resident of one and easily switch to another without much penalty (best case senario), but not both at once. To me, more schools always equals a better shot, but I think ultimately you must thing about where you'd rather be for 4 years, Ohio or New Jersey.
 
To condense this point even more, you can never actually be a resident of 2 states at once. You can be a resident of one and easily switch to another without much penalty (best case senario), but not both at once. To me, more schools always equals a better shot, but I think ultimately you must thing about where you'd rather be for 4 years, Ohio or New Jersey.

a military dependent can have a situation where they live in one state (parent's duty station) and parent has a different "permanent residence" state and dependents have the option of being considered a resident of either (which is nearly the same as being considered a "resident" of two states)
 
As a Med1 at a public Ohio school, let me tell you this: There is a difference between "legal residency" and "resident-tuition status." I know this because I am not a legal resident of Ohio, yet I am paying state tuition. In my case, it is because my wife has a full time job and has started paying Ohio taxes. I know for certain that you can claim "resident-tuition status" after going to medical school in Ohio for a year. (in other words, you only ever pay 1 year of OOS state tuition)

I can't stress this enough: CALL THE SCHOOLS! Get your ducks in a row, and be sure to maximize your personal situation. Hopefully, that will be some combination of application benefits and tuition benefits.

I'm trying to say that there is a potential difference between the residency you declare on the AMCAS, and the residency they will decide your tuition on.
 
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