<prompt> Human: I just got my associates degree from a community college in NJ. I am looking to transfer to a university out of state, but the tuition is astronomical. I am mainly looking at schools in Florida, California, S. carolina and Maryland. I have heard of people establishing residency prior to moving to a certain state to get cheaper tuition. I am looking for advice on how to establish residency for tuition purposes as quickly as possible, and which states are the easiestcheapest for out of state transfers. I am looking to start school in Fall 2017, so I have some time to get things rolling. I am 26 years old work full time and file independently. I am willing to travel to change my license etc.. Thanks in advance.  <response>: This is really a state-by-state issue. Some states are quite difficult to establish residency for this reason, some are quite easy. I went to school in Washington for example, paid the first year out of state, and was able to pay in-state tuition for the final 3 years. There was nothing fishy about it either, the people in the department that handled tuition were actually really up front and friendly about it and told me exactly what I needed to do to qualify. If you have your eyes on a few places, I would call the department that handles tuition payment and ask them directly. 