No. If you want to build time towards establishing residency in Utah, Utah System of Higher Education schools, including the University of Utah, require you to spend a minimum of 12 months in Utah without receiving WUE reduced tuition rates.

A student may either pay the full nonresident tuition for 12 months until that residency is legally established, or they may reside in Utah while working or otherwise for 12 months until that residency is legally established.

In order for most students, both undergraduate or graduate level students, to reclassify from nonresident to resident, they have to prove 12 months of history in Utah.  If during those past 12 months that student was using WUE, they cannot qualify for residency.  All students who use a 12 month history of presence in Utah in order to reclassify from nonresident to resident cannot have used WUE during those 12 months at all.

If a student qualifies for a reclassification or exception in which the student does not have to prove 12 months of residing in Utah, then WUE reduced tuition rates will not be used as a criterion for residency approval.  Examples include:

• Using the Utah residency status of a student’s spouse for the student to qualify as a Utah resident
• A student who is a tax dependent of Utah resident parents
• A student who had to move to Utah recently due to a full time job they or their parents were hired for
• Military or veteran exceptions
• American Indian exceptions
• etc.

Please review the “What kind of student are you?” menu options at the top of our main webpage to review all residency reclassification and exception options.

Please note that per the Board of Regents and University of Utah Institutional Policy, no time spent during the 12 months prior to the term for which resident student status is being sought* on the following programs can be used towards Undergraduate One Year Rule or Graduate Policy residency reclassification requirements:

• Western Undergraduate Exchange
• Western Regional Graduate Program
• Professional Student Exchange Program
• Utah Tech Good Neighbor Program
• International Student Exchange
• Alumni Legacy Scholarships
• Other programs as specified by the state or institution
• More information can be found in the mandatory reading of the University of Utah Institutional Policy and the Board of Regents Policies, R512.

*Any student wishing to reclassify as a resident for tuition purposes after completing 12 months of residence in Utah must not have spent time during the same 12 months on any of the above programs.