PHOENIX - A new state law triples tuition for college students who are undocumented immigrants, forcing many of them to scramble to find private scholarships that don't require Social Security numbers, proof of legal residency or citizenship.

Some of the affected students say they'll try to raise money from businesses and nonprofits as the spring semester approaches.

But with classes two weeks away, some of those students fear they will be priced out of college. Others worry they will have to move to Mexico to attend school.

Arizona voters overwhelming approved Proposition 300 and three other immigration-related propositions in November's midterm election.

The statute requires undocumented immigrants to pay out-of-state tuition at the state's public universities and colleges, prohibits students from receiving any type of financial assistance that is funded with state money, and requires schools to determine and report to the Legislature how many undocumented immigrants are attending their schools.

Arizona universities and colleges check legal citizen status, so it is unknown how many undocumented students are enrolled. Hispanic activists and college students estimate the number to be in the high hundreds to low thousands.

Many undocumented students currently pay in-state tuition while some receive state scholarships and state financial aid.

At Arizona State University's Tempe campus, undergraduate out-of-state tuition per year currently is $15,846 compared with the in-state fee of $4,686.

At Northern Arizona University, out-of-state tuition is $13,487 compared with $4,546. At University of Arizona's main campus, out-of state tuition is $14,960 compared with $4,754.

At Maricopa Community Colleges, the price tag for a full-time, out-of-state student is $3,360, up from $780.

The Arizona Board of Regents is discussing the proposition's impact and assessing admissions applications and how to enforce the law at the three state universities, spokeswoman Anne Barton said.

At its Jan. 25-26 meeting, the regents will review a draft Proposition 300 implementation plan.

Maricopa Community Colleges, which oversees 10 colleges throughout the Phoenix metropolitan area, said admissions staff, legal counsel and records staff also are working to determine how they will enforce the law.

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)