Q: Can I sue my former university for charging me out of state tuition due to the military moving me in highschool?
I applied to a texas colllege and when applying I informed the school that I considered myself a texas resident because I spent my freshmen, sophmore, and half of my senior year at a texas highschool and graduated from said school. I only spent my junior year and half of my senior year in new jersey because my parents are in the military and got moved there. The school responded by charging me out of state tuition. At the time it didn't matter because the government was paying for school but when I left and returned, now having lived in texas for 6 and half years they continued to charge me out of state. This was after I stated in my application that I had lived here for years. This status has hindered my residency status at the new university I am about to transfer too and I cannot afford out of state tuition. Do I have cause for suit and what are my options?
A:
There are rules that govern when in-state and out of state tuition should be charged. (When I was in school, after being employed in Texas for a year, I qualified for in-state tuition - so I paid out of state tuition for only the first year, and then switched to in-state tuition.) Here's a link that explains the rule. https://reportcenter.highered.texas.gov/reports/data/overview-eligibility-for-in-state-tuition-and-state-financial-programs/
It's not clear from your post how the rule applies in your situation, because the answer depends in part on whether you are a dependent of your parents, or independent.
However, I doubt that there are grounds for a suit based on the university charging you the higher rate, if you didn't show them that you qualified for the lower rate.
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