Higher Education Access for Undocumented Students in the United States

Mapping the Policy Terrain

Abstract

This article focuses on higher education access for undocumented immigrants in the United States. Since individual states develop and govern their own policies, the political landscape around college access is always in a state of flux. This is confusing to school counselors, families, and students. We use cartography to make sense of this increasingly complex policy terrain. In addition to displaying a state-by-state overview of access and funding options for undocumented students, we interrogate the (un)intended consequences of these policies and reveal “sites for change and activism” (Marx, 2023, p. 286).