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There’s some good news for women who want to pursue degrees in information technology. There are scholarships tailored specifically for women who want to make a career in computers. Read on to discover the number of scholarship opportunities available to you.
Michigan Council of Women in Technology (MCWTF) Scholarships
MCWTF offers several scholarships for women interested in majoring in information technology. The deadline to apply for a scholarship for the fall 2010 is January 31, 2010. To be eligible, women must be high school student getting ready to enter college, an undergraduate, or a graduate student who is a resident of Michigan.
Here are the scholarships that are available to recipients:
High school seniors may earn a $5,000 annual scholarship that is renewable yearly for a grand total of $20,000.
Undergraduate may receive a $5,000 scholarship with the opportunity to renew it annually for a total of $15,000 for the life of the scholarship.
The graduate-level scholarship is worth $5,000 and may be renewed for two consecutive years for a grand total of $15,000.
A one-time research grant of $3,000 is also available for qualified students.
For more information, go to the MCWTF website.
The Vanguard® Women in Information Technology Scholarship Program
The Vanguard® Women in Information Technology Scholarship Program awards up to ten $8,000 scholarships to female students entering their senior year of college. This merit-based scholarship is non-renewable and may not exceed the cost of college expenses.
Children of Vanguard® employees are not eligible to apply for this scholarship. For more information, visit the Vanguard® website.
Coca-Cola Scholarships
The Coca Cola Scholars Foundation is not exclusive to women or information technology majors; however, it provides financial support for more than 14,000 college students and awards more than $3.4 million in scholarships.
The Coca-Cola Foundation provides numerous opportunities for college students:
• Coco-Cola First Generation Scholarship — These scholarships are awarded to students who are the first in their immediate families to attend college.
• Coca-Cola Scholars Program — High school seniors who attend public, private, or home schools are eligible to apply for this scholarship. They must have a 3.0 grade point average to qualify and may receive up to $20,000 to pay for college.
For more information about Coca-Cola scholarship opportunities, visit the Coca-Cola website.
More Scholarship Resources for Women
As long as you’re willing to do a little research, you may be able to locate enough scholarship money to cover most, if not all, of your expenses. Here are some additional resources that you can investigate:
FastWeb — This site is a web service for students looking for scholarships. It claims to have access to up to $3 billion in scholarships.
The Ultimate Scholarship Book 2010: Billions of Dollars in Scholarships, Grants and Prizes by Gen Tanabe and Kelly Tanabe – This book contains 704 pages of resources for students who are seeking scholarships. It also offers practical advice for completing college applications and writing essays.
The Center for Women & Information Technology — This site is dedicated to helping women narrow the gender gap in information technology job. It provides an extensive list of scholarships, fellowships, and grants for women pursuing IT-related degrees.
If you’re a woman interested in the field of information technology, it pays to do your homework. Investigate your available options so you’ll be aware of scholarship deadlines. Keep in mind that many scholarships have deadlines that are far in advance of the award date, so apply early. If you’re willing to dedicate the time to the application process, you may be one of the lucky ones who can go to college for next to nothing.
