SC Residency Questions

Applicants for admission and students who are seeking to be classified as a resident of South Carolina must file a petition requesting in-state status. Residency is determined by the University Residency Officer in the Office of Enrollment Management, according to the South Carolina Code of Laws.

Procedure and Timelines

View the General Information and Petition for classification/reclassification are available in PDF format at the following link.

Petition for Classification as a South Carolina Resident (PDF)

Deadlines to apply for residency for Tuition/Fees purposes:

• March 1 - Summer Semester
• July 1 - Fall Semester
• November 1 - Spring Semester

Note: South Carolina does not recognize, as residents, those who are here primarily for educational purposes. As a result, the opportunity to petition based on having been in the state for twelve months is not available to you once you have accepted an offer of admission. (section 62-605. A) The MUSC Board of Trustees passed a resolution in 2009 supporting this state regulation.*

The MUSC Board of Trustees Residency Resolution (PDF) clarifies MUSC's policy on granting in-state status.

Entitlement

Eligibility for payment of in-state tuition and fees shall be determined under the provisions of Sections 59-112-10 through 59-112-100, South Carolina Code of Laws, 1976, as amended. This law is set forth in its entirety as follows (subject to further amendment by the General Assembly).

Commission on Higher Education Approved Determination of Rates of Tuition and Fees Regulation (PDF)

Questions not answered in these web links should be addressed to oesadmis@musc.edu