Florida Southern College

Other Information

Admissions Information

• Are undocumented students considered international or domestic?: They are evaluated within the context of a domestic applicant from their place of residence, but they will be assigned to an admissions counselor who works with undocumented and international students. This is to help connect them with a counselor who has a stronger background on immigration concerns, but they are admitted as a “domestic" student for the purposes of application review.
• Are you need-blind for undocumented students?: We don’t admissions decisions based off of economic/financial situations. Our admissions is more based off of academic history.
• Are there any restrictions on merit aid for undocumented students at your school?: All students are eligible for FSC’s standard merit scholarships regardless of documentation status. There are a few specific scholarships that have a citizenship requirement, but most of FSC’s merit aid will not factor status into the scholarship award.
• Does your school provide merit aid specially for undocumented students?: No but our academic merit aid is offered to all students regardless of citizenship status.
• Is there a special contact point for undocumented students?: You would use the international admissions counselors.
• Other admissions information: Yes - please contact us so that we can help direct you to resources and ensure that we’re giving you accurate information. It will not be used in your application or decision process in any way and will only be shared to ensure that you are receiving relevant support. If you are uncomfortable disclosing your status in your application, you’re welcome to call us.

Financial Aid & Scholarships

• Are undocumented students eligible for need-based aid?: Yes, on a case-by-case basis. They are not eligible for federal student aid by federal policy, but they can still submit the FAFSA for us to potentially award institutional need-based aid. FSC does not currently offer full need.
• If need-based aid is not available, is there a feasible path undocumented students can take to pay for their education with stackable merit scholarships, loans and/or grants from your school?: All merit scholarships are stackable at FSC, but most students will not receive aid that completely covers the cost of attendance and would need to seek out private loans or outside scholarships to cover full cost if their families can’t pay out of pocket. The average financial aid award at FSC covers approximately half of the cost of attendance (tuition, room, meals and medical insurance). FSC does not work directly with any loans besides the Federal Direct and Parent PLUS loans, which undocumented students are generally not eligible to take.
• What would be the requirements for such scholarships and what would a student's chances of getting them?: Merit scholarships are determined based on academic record and most students are awarded a scholarship at time of admission. The Prestige and Premier Scholarships typically have rough GPA and SAT/ACT scores as a guideline, but were test-optional last year. The Prestige and Premier Scholarships typically receive about 500 applications, interview around 120 students, and award 8 to 10 Hollingsworth Scholarships (full-ride/full-cost) or McClurg Scholarships (full tuition). Other applicants and interviewees may receive Christoverson Scholarships of varying amounts. An example of a student with stacked scholarships: High academic achieving, graphic design, swimmer: This student received a merit based, christoverson (prestige), talent scholarship (graphic design) and swim scholarship for athletics.
• Other financial aid information: FAFSA. Refer here for additional information on undocumented students and federal aid: https://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/financial-aid-and-undocumented-students.pdf

Student Life

• Are there organized groups or clubs comprised of or advocating for undocumented students in your school?: Multicultural Student Council isn’t directly advocating for undocumented students solely but this is a club that has done so in the past. https://www.flsouthern.edu/campus-offices/multicultural-center/multicultural-student-council.aspx
• How often does your office receive applications from undocumented students?: The state of Florida has a large sum of undocumented students compared to other states and so we do get a fair amount. However, we are a private institution so we don’t get as many as a public school where some of those students may be offered in state tuition.
• Does your school allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers onto campus without a warrant?: I have never witnessed this happened in my time as an admissions counselor. I took this from ACLU: “ICE and CBP maintain a policy which provides that they will not engage in immigration enforcement in sensitive locations like schools absent prior approval by a supervisor or exigent circumstances. This policy has recently been reaffirmed by the Department of Homeland Security. This means that ICE and CBP generally will not arrest, interview, search, or surveil a person for immigration enforcement purposes while at a school, a known school bus stop, or an educational activity."
• Does the campus police enforce immigration law?: That is not their primary focus. Their focus is campus safety. I will say that the FSC police on our campus are part of the Lakeland Police and because of this, they would have to enforce their laws if the situation arises, but again, this is not their focus while on campus.
• Does your school share student immigration status with ICE?: We do not have to share this information. We only share the F-1 student visa information to them.
• Does your school provide distance-learning options for deported students to complete their degrees?: Fundamentally, FSC is an in-person institution and does not offer much in the way of fully remote coursework for undergraduate programs. This would be handled on a case-by-case basis and would likely depend on the individual student’s particular situation.
• Does your school provide confidential legal support to students with immigration law questions and issues?: No - while FSC may be able to help direct students to outside legal counsel on a case-by-case basis, FSC does not retain an immigration lawyer on staff.