While undocumented students are permitted to attend college in most states, they are ineligible for federal financial aid, cannot legally work to pay for college, and are required to pay out-of-state tuition rates. Their legal status serves as a continuous barrier when it comes to driving, working, and paying for college, despite having spent most of their lives in the U.S.

 

A new version of the bipartisan “Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act” (The “DREAM Act”) addresses this problem. According to a recent College Board report, the bill, introduced in the Senate by Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Richard Durbin (D-IL), could benefit 350,000 undocumented students.

 

The DREAM Act would provide conditional legal status to undocumented students “of good moral character” who entered the U.S. before age sixteen and lived here at least five years and graduated from a U.S. high school or earned a GED. If, within this six-year period, DREAM Act beneficiaries complete two years of higher education or military service, they would be eligible to apply for U.S. citizenship. College Board’s report estimates that the DREAM Act would provide 360,000 undocumented high school graduates with a legal means to work and secure additional resources for college, and could provide incentives for another 715,000 youngsters between the ages of 5 and 17 to finish high school and pursue postsecondary education.

 

Similar bills have been introduced in Congress and have failed to muster enough votes. One proposed explanation for their defeat is the fear the act by expanding the pool of college applicants, American-born children would have a smaller chance of filling the finite number of seats in the university system.

 

However, proponents of the DREAM Act highlight its potential as an economic stimulus package, and the bill now has more bipartisan support than those in the past.

-Melanie Young