Scholarships Overview

Scholarships are gifts, meaning they do not need to be repaid. Hundreds of thousands of scholarships from several thousand sponsors are awarded each year. Scholarships are awarded based on, but not limited to: academics, achievements, needs, or both. There are also scholarships available for particular groups of people such as women, ethnic groups, high school seniors, military families, and more. Scholarships will vary from one-time gifts or renewable gifts. More scholarship money will lessen your likelihood to borrow money to pay for things like tuition, room and board, books, and other expenses.

Note: You should never need to pay to find scholarships or other financial aid. Learn how to avoid scams.

Where to Look: Look Everywhere

There are both local and national scholarships. Some places to look for are:

• Your high school/school district (inquire with your school counselor)

• Your employer or your parents’ employers

• Foundations, religious or community organizations, local businesses, or civic groups

• Organizations (including professional associations) related to your field of interest

• Ethnicity-based organizations

  • Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund - The nation’s largest non-profit organization devoted to providing college scholarships for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI). Scholarship awards range from one-time $2,500 awards to multi-year $20,000 awards. 

  • Hispanic Scholarship Fund - Designed to assist students of Hispanic heritage obtain a university degree. Awards are based on merit; amounts range from $500 to $5,000, based on relative need, among the Scholars selected.

  • American Indian College Fund - Provides Native American students with scholarships and financial support for the nation’s 33 accredited tribal colleges and universities.

  • United Negro College Fund  - Awards 10,000 students each year through 400 scholarship and internship programs so that students from low- and moderate-income families can afford college tuition, books and room and board.

  • American Indian Graduate Center & AIGCS - The largest scholarship providers to Native students in the United States, awarding $15 million in scholarships annually and more than $200 million since inception. For almost 50 years, AIGC has funded students pursuing undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees in any field of study at any accredited institution of choice, working with over 500 tribes in all 50 states.

Scholarship Search Engines

The following free websites allow you to search for scholarships offering millions of dollars to help you pay for college. Many will require you to create an account and in doing so, update you on any scholarships that may qualify for based on your inputted information. You should avoid any scholarship databases that charge you to search and apply for scholarships.

• Scholar Snapp - A free, simple to use data standard that allows students to reuse their application information - including contact information, essays, transcripts, etc. - from one scholarship application to another thereby streamlining the college scholarship application process.

• Fastweb - Create a profile and let fastweb do the research on scholarships, internships colleges and more for you.  The largest free scholarship services on the internet.

• Peerlift  - Proven scholarships, internships, summer programs, and more gathered by fellow students like you.

• Common Knowledge Scholarship Foundation - Educational and scholarship opportunities for students of all levels.

• Scholarships.com - A free college scholarship search and financial aid information.

• Scholarship America - Provides information and resources for your scholarship search.

• Chegg - A place to connect with scholarships and learn about colleges.

• Reagan Foundation Scholarships  - Scholarship opportunities for outstanding student leaders.

• Student Scholarship Search - Mostly merit-based scholarships.

• Career One Stop - The U.S. Department of Labor’s free scholarship search tool

• College Board Scholarship Search - Search 2,200 scholarships that total nearly $6 billion. Sort based on personal, academic, and other information to find what's best for you.

• Niche - Search lists of scholarships by choosing a category or get matched to college scholarships you are eligible for.

• Peterson’s Scholarship Search Engine - Ability to filter available scholarships by school type, ethnicity, gender, field of study, state of residence, award type, and more!

• Thrivent Student Resources - Find scholarships created for students like you, that reflect your interests and passions.

• SallieMae Search Engine - Access to more than 5 million college scholarships that match your skills, activities, and interests based on the profile you create.

• Raise Me - Earn micro-scholarships for your high school achievements.

• Peerlift - Scholarship and summer program opportunities

type: embedded-entry-inline id: 5DYUcSAgYOL7HpwVj20EB6