When you are searching for scholarships, it's important to consider all the ways you may be eligible for scholarship money. Are you majoring in accounting? There are scholarships for that. Considering a career in journalism? There are scholarships for that. One area where there are a number of scholarship award opportunities is for minority students. Minority scholarships may target African-American students, Hispanic students, Asian-American students, Native American students, or all of the above.
To help you get started on your scholarship search, we've highlighted a number of scholarship awards aimed at minority students.
Gates Millennium Scholars Program
Bill Gates gave $1 billion to start this incredible scholarship program. It's open to all minority students and will basically fund college so you can graduate debt-free. This scholarship isn't for all minority students, though... you need to have significant financial need to be eligible and good grades (3.3 GPA or higher).
Don't wait too long to apply. The Gates Millennium Scholarship has a fairly substantial application process, which even requires you to be nominated and to get recommendations.
More info: Gates Millennium Scholarship
Ron Brown Scholarship
The Ron Brown Scholarship seeks to identify African-American high school seniors who will be the leaders of tomorrow and make contributions to society. There are no restrictions on a recipient's major or school choices. This isn't just a scholarship, though... even if $10,000 a year for 4 years is a lot of money. The Ron Brown Scholarship Program makes a big effort to build a network of program alumni that encourages mentorship and collaboration. Again, academic achievement is an important factor in winning this scholarship.
More info: Ron Brown Scholarship
Hispanic Scholarship Fund
If you are Hispanic, you should make sure not to miss the deadline for the Hispanic Scholarship Fund. The Fund has worked with a number of companies to create scholarships for Hispanic high school, college, and community college students. What's great is that a number of programs also feed into internship programs... so you not only get scholarship money for college, you can get great work experience as well.
More info: Hispanic Scholarship Fund
Hispanic College Fund Scholarship Program
Another great scholarship program for Hispanic students is the Hispanic College Fund Scholarship Program. They've partnered with top-notch companies including Google, Lockheed Martin, and Hilton to provide these scholarship opportunities and to help Hispanic students gain access to careers in business, finance, engineering and the sciences. In 2006, they gave away $2.4 million to more than 600 students.
More info: Hispanic College Fund Scholarship Program
Accenture Undergraduate Scholarships
Accenture has partnered with the American Indian Graduate Center to fund scholarships for Native American students. These scholarships are awarded to the very brightest American Indian and Alaska Native students who are attaining a professional, teaching, social services, high technology or business degree.
More info: Accenture Undergraduate Scholarships
APIASF Scholarships
For Asian and Pacific Islander Americans, the Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund (APIASF) could be a great place to start your scholarship efforts. Founded in 2003, the organization has awarded over $1 million in scholarships to hundreds of college-bound students.
More info: APIASF Scholarships
More Minority Scholarships
These are just a few of the great award opportunities out there for minority students. Try searching for scholarships on College Toolkit to uncover additional award opportunities.
Labels: african american, asian american, hispanic, minority, native american, scholarship search, scholarships