Scholarships for African-American Women

Socioeconomic conditions within the African-American community have long been responsible for low education rates. The apathy of this situation has prompted the government as well as other organizations to step in to help this community. There are several scholarships that help African-American women to continue education. The Obama government even increased the funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities in its economic stimulus package. Government grants for education have also seen an increase in funding so that they can help more students from low income families. Many of these scholarships have their own eligibility criteria and the application process may also differ. To apply for federal grants an applicant needs to fill the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form.

Scholarships Programs for African-American Women

United Negro College Fund
This fund was started way back in the early 1940s and has helped many students from the African-American community with their continuing education needs. The United Negro College Fund (UNFC) helps students with scholarships for African-American women in graduate school and colleges for 39 private member institutes. These member institutes offer several education programs that students could apply for. There is an online application process for all the scholarships and you can also check the details of participating institutes. Other important information like eligibility criteria, open and close date and the amount of the scholarship can also be gotten from the website.

HP Scholars Program
Students who are interested in engineering programs should apply for this scholarship for African-American women in college program, as this is a four-year cash scholarship. Under this education scholarship award program, students are eligible for USD 3,000 per year for a four-year program, hence making this a USD 12,000 scholarship. Under this scholarship program, qualifying students are also eligible for three years of paid internship programs. This scholarship for women is limited to the HP scholar partnership universities. You can check their website for further details regarding the application process and eligibility criteria.

The National Scholarship
This financial award program is offered to graduating high school seniors from the African-American community. Eligibility criteria for the program includes submitting two letters of recommendation from either the school counselor or principal. The student will also have to get a letter of recommendation from one of the school teachers who teach subjects like Maths, Science or English.

National Society of Black Engineers
The NSBE offers scholarships that value in the range between USD 500 to USD 6,500. They offer scholarships to undergraduate, graduate and some other programs. In addition to the scholarship program they also have cash award programs for students with good academic achievements. You can check the NSBE website for details regarding individual easy scholarship programs and the eligibility criteria.

Federal Grants
There are several government grants available for students from low income families that help with different education programs in over 500 participating colleges. Grants like the Federal Pell Grant award up to USD 5,500 to each student per year. Then there are TEACH grants for students looking to make a career in teaching. It is mandatory to fill the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form to be eligible for these grants. You can check the Federal Student Aid website for more details regarding different programs and eligibility criteria.

AORN Foundation Scholarship
One of the avenues for nursing scholarships for African-American women is the AORN foundation which offers nursing scholarships for women. The scholarship award given under this program can go up to USD 20,000 for each student. The AORN is a professional organization of perioperative registered nurses which awards scholarships to students aspiring to become nurses. You can check the details regarding how to apply for scholarship program on their website.

There are several other programs which offer scholarships for African-American women for different education programs, you can visit the financial aid office of your college or check with some of the local non-profit organization for more details.