The National Institutes of Health (NIH) provides education funding for people from disadvantaged backgrounds through its Undergraduate Scholarship Program for Individuals from Disadvantaged Backgrounds. To qualify, students must pursue a health profession listed by the NIH and attend an accredited institution.
A qualified student also must be U.S. citizen or permanent resident; be enrolled in an accredited four-year institution of higher education; maintain a GPA of 3.5 or be in the top 5 percent of the class; and be from a disadvantaged background, as defined by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Recipients of the grant must agree to work for the NIH for 10 consecutive weeks during each year they receive money while in school, and, right after graduation, to work for the NIH for one year for each year they received NIH grant money as a student.
The Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant program was created by the federal College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007. The TEACH grant provides up to $4,000 a year for students pursuing careers in teaching. Applicants do not have to show financial need.
The applicant must be a citizen of the United States or an eligible non-citizen; be enrolled in a post-secondary institution that participates in the TEACH program; take courses that are pertinent to a career in teaching; maintain a GPA of 3.25; and sign the TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve.
Recipients must agree to work in a high-need teaching field in an elementary or secondary school that serves low-income students for four of the eight academic years after they graduate.
Like the Pell Grant, the Academic Competitiveness Grant is given to low-income students. The grant provides first-year undergraduate students with grants of up to $750 each. Second-year students can receive up to $1,300. The grant is awarded in addition to the Pell Grant. Grant applicants must be U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens; be a recipient of the Pell Grant; and be enrolled in a degree program on a full- or part-time basis.
The National Science & Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant, or National SMART Grant, is designed to help students with tuition costs during their third or fourth years of undergraduate study. The grant is available for students who are majoring in a field of science, mathematics, technology or engineering and who are eligible for the federal Pell Grant.
Students must be enrolled in courses that fulfill their degree requirements, and must maintain a GPA of 3.0. Applicants must meet citizenship requirements and be enrolled on a part- or full-time basis in a degree-granting institution. Students who qualify for the SMART Grant can receive up to $4,000 a year.