"hello, good morning, how you do?"

This is difficult.

Life, the whole undocumented deal, school, typing this introduction. It's difficult because it's unfair. Please don't misunderstand, I'm not so naive to think that life should be fair. I just... sometimes I just wish it was different. That politicians should keep their word, that people shouldn't be pushed to drastic measures with drastic consequences, that laws should should be compassionate and fair. I wish that I didn't have to hold my breathing steady when I pass by men in uniform and that I didn't have to keep secrets from my closest friends. But things aren't exactly fair, hmm. I'm sure you guys, of all people, understand this. In fact, I'm sure many of you could get an award for knowing how much crap life can dish out. Two awards, even.
Dry sarcasm aside, introductions.

Hi. I'm sleepless and I'm an undocumented student.
Nice to meet you.

Well. Let's see. Again, this introduction is particularly difficult to do because to me, this makes my status and everything just so much more real and god, it's slightly terrifying. But I didn't join to share silly feelings, I came here to offer my words and comfort (that's the intention, anyway) and ask for some advice in return. So, moving on!

I came to the US a little more than ten years ago. Visa overstay.

I'm seventeen years-old and a junior in high school. (I was going through some threads in this board and wow, there's a few other new seventeen year-old members! Hi! Let's be friends, yes?) I only became truly aware of my position a few years ago and I've been just quietly lurking around the DAP since then. Even though I wasn't a member, I grieved along with you guys when the 2010 DA failed to pass the Senate. There was this one post I read here that following week that really struck a chord with me, I don't remember who posted it for the life of me, but basically, he/she said not to be bitter at politicians or anyone and not to lose hope.

So, let me tell you this one thing. I'm not bitter. I'm not bitter at politicians or at my parents. Of course, there are moments between one discouraging piece of news and another where I wallow in mys self-pity and basically hate everyone, but for most of the time, I'm okay and happy. I don't regret meeting the wonderful people I can now call friends, I don't regret getting a good American education paid in part by my parents own taxes and I can't possibly regret my parents doing what they thought was for my best interest even if it led to a lot of heartache instead. I hope you, whoever's reading this who may or may not be in the same circumstance that I am facing, is not bitter about your life as well.

(Really, life's too short to be cynical all the time!)

It really surprised me at first when I found out that most members already graduated from high school and even college despite all odds. Knowing that people like me could achieve despite our peculiar barriers gave me determination to not lose hope and do my best in school. And now that leads to a lot of questions! Like, can I still take the SAT and ACT without a Social Security No.? And if so, what do I put down? Should I tell my counselors about my status? Are they obligated to keep that kind of information confidential? How would I get through college without papers? Is there some magical way I could readjust my status before I turn eighteen that I could have possibly missed? Should I have waffles or pancakes for breakfast? The questions go on. If anyone could answer some of those inquiries or direct me to posts with some information about how to go about the whole college-applying business, it would be greatly appreciated!

Uhm, wow, this is turning out to be quite a hefty introduction. So, what I really want to get across is that, to everyone here, thanks for being so supportive and informative and awesome. And to any lurkers that might be reading this, hi there. I know how you feel. I was scared to join here at first but...getting this all out is really relieving. Seriously. I hope someday, you'll click the join button too and share your story.

And yeah, that's it. I look forward to meet you all!


--

The title of the thread, "hello, good morning, how you do?" is from the song LEARNING TO BREATHE by Switchfoot. It's a pretty song. You should check it out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVlnHT8OkQQ

Welcome to the forum and thank you for sharing your story.

As you can see, many of us here have already graduated from college. From these examples, certainly it was possible for us to take ACT/SAT and even GREs and GMATs. Which means that no SSN was ever needed. All you need to do is leave it blank since it is not a requirement.

There is no way you can magically adjust status unless you return to your country of origin and apply for a student (F1) visa. However, I am unfamiliar with the success rate of that, since you need to demonstrate you have the funds to pay for college and have ties to your country of origin.

Applying and getting into a college is not much of an issue unless you live in states like Georgia or South Carolina. States like NY, IL, TX, CA offer instate tuition for undocumented students, meaning you could apply to their public universities and gain admission. However, the MAIN issue here is affording college. This is where finding a scholarship(s) can really help you.

That said, please visit the threads in the main forum about how to pay for college. I just replied to another thread where I list two websites that list some opportunities undocumented students could apply to.

Link: http://dreamact.info/forum/showthread.php?t=25616

Good luck!

Its possible to adjust your status, but since it involves leaving the country first, its a gamble. It may or may not work. But after 18 years and 6 months of age, that option is no longer open

Yes, that's right, you do have the option of going back yo your home country and try applying for another Visa. Yes, it is quite risky, it gets very complicated specially when it comes to getting another Visa. They can track to see if you overstayed and that can have a negative impact of you getting approved for another Visa. But it is your choice in the end.

About your SAT, I took mine with out having to put a SS. I think I just put my ITIN down and they dont care...they reason why they ask your SS because millions of kids take it every year so the best way to look up your results is to look up your Social. About your counselors, I say dont say anything till you have to.

I dont know where you live, but NY seems to lighten up on immigration. Just an idea


Good luck to you and your future endeavors!

I have a Social but never put it down for standardized tests. That's because I never had it memorized until I started college apps. :P

You should have waffles with 'la lechera' on top for breakfast, they're effing awesome.