Resident, Non-resident, and "The Other": Examining Institutional and State Policies for International Student Residency Classification for Tuition Purposes and the Associated Cost of Fees

This study examined how public higher education institutions in the U.S. determine international student residency classification for tuition purposes and the cost of international student fees. Using a non-experimental research design, the data were collected from 229 public colleges and universities in the U.S. awarding bachelor's degree or higher (40.2% response rate). The results indicated that 84% of institutions used non-resident (i.e. out-of-state) classification for their international students at an undergraduate level, while 82.3% followed this practice on the graduate level. Four institutions or 2.0% reported classifying their international students as resident (i.e. in-state) students for tuition purposes. The remaining 14% respondents on the undergraduate level or 16.2% on the graduate level classified international students as neither residents nor non-residents and used a different criteria for establishing their tuition classification ("the other"). The tuition differentials between "the other" and non-resident classification ranged from $436 per academic year for an institution in Ohio to $5,046 per academic year for a university in Illinois. Results further showed that 50.2% of respondents charged additional fees to their international undergraduate students, while 50.7% implemented such payments for students pursuing a graduate degree. The cost of international student fees ranged from $3 at an institution in Florida to $500 at a university in Pennsylvania per one semester or from $75 in Indiana to $750 in Massachusetts per one year. One time fees ranged from $40 in Mississippi to $300 in South Carolina.