Some grants explicitly identify the eligible applicants as women and minorities; however, women and minorities also can qualify for grants that target underrepresented students. Need-based grants for low-income applicants or the disadvantaged require that financial need be demonstrated. Merit-based grants often recognize student achievement, academic excellence or leadership potential.
Grant requirements often include an unofficial or official student transcript, a resume, an essay and a letter of recommendation. Applications also have important deadlines. Late submissions rarely are considered, even if they are complete. Weigh one-time grants against renewable grants that offer multiple awards over various years.
Women and minorities also are eligible for federal grants (studentaid.ed.gov). For example, the Federal Pell Grant provides need-based awards of $400 to $4,000 to students who are seeking a bachelor's degree. One example of a merit-based federal grant is the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant, which offers up to $4,000 to students interested in teaching careers. Unlike the Pell Grant, which does not have to be repaid, the TEACH grant requires recipients to teach for four years at a school that serves low-income students.
Other sources of grants are professional organizations. For example, women and minorities interested in engineering can receive grants through the Society of Women Engineers (societyofwomenengineers.swe.org), the National Society of Black Engineers (national.nsbe.org), the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (shpe.org) and the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (aises.org).
Non-traditional students--for example, students who pursue higher education after having a family--also can find grants. The AARP Foundation Women's Scholarship (aarpfoundationwlc.org) funds job training and educational opportunities for women over age 40. Talbots Women's Scholarship Fund (talbotsinc.com) provides grants to students who are in their late 20s to their 60s.