Winter 2008 Access Report
Scholarships and Directories Help Students Identify and Access College-Funding Opportunities
Hold Fast to Dreams Tour Stop, Philadelphia, PA
A record number of scholarship applications — more than 14,000 — were submitted last year to The Sallie Mae Fund, which has annually awarded $2.5 million in scholarships to more than 1,000 students enrolled in colleges and universities across the country.
Currently, The Fund is accepting applications for its 2008–2009 scholarship programs. Deadlines vary for each program, ranging from Feb. 15 to May 31. Applications, eligibility, and other information are available online.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, by 2016, colleges are expected to see a 45% growth in the number of Hispanic students enrolling and a 29% growth in the number of African-American students, many of whom will have greater financial need. To help meet this challenge, The Sallie Mae Fund provides scholarships through a number of its own programs that address a common barrier to higher education access: financial need. Among these programs:
- “American Dream” Scholarship Program: The American Dream program was developed in partnership with the UNCF and offers scholarships ranging from $500 to $5,000 to African-American students with demonstrated financial need. (Deadline: April 15)
- “First in My Family” Scholarship Program: This program, developed in partnership with the Hispanic College Fund, offers scholarships ranging from $500 to $5,000 to Hispanic-American students who are the first in their family to attend college and have financial need. (Deadline: April 15)
- “Unmet Need” Scholarship Program: Open to families with a combined income of less than $30,000, Unmet Need scholarships provide a “last-dollar” resource when no other funds are available. (Deadline: May 31)
- Community College Transfer Scholarships: Offered in collaboration with the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, this program provides last-dollar scholarships to Latino students transferring from a community college to an accredited higher education institution. (Deadline: Feb. 15)
- The Sallie Mae 911 Education Fund: Created in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, this fund provides scholarship dollars to children of those who were killed or permanently disabled in the attacks. (Deadline: ongoing)
- “Writers of Passage” Scholarship Program: In partnership with the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education, this essay competition awards four students from a Historically Black College or University, or a predominantly black college, with a $5,000 college scholarship and their school receives an additional $20,000 grant from The Sallie Mae Fund. (Deadline: Feb. 15)
Other Resources
The Sallie Mae Fund also recently announced three new resources to help students research scholarships available from various organizations:
Latino College Dollars, a directory of scholarships for Hispanic students, developed in partnership with the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute at the University of Southern California.
Black College Dollars, a directory of scholarships for African-American students, developed in partnership with BET Networks and the Pell Institute for the Study of Opportunity in Higher Education.
- A free, comprehensive database of scholarships.
View more scholarship resources.
