Scholarships for LGBT Students
New Social Acceptance and Positive Activism Stimulates Awards
A growing number of scholarships are devoted exclusively to students who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. Some scholarships are available nationally, and other scholarships are exclusively devoted to students from specific geographic regions. These populations have become much more visible within higher education, but still face formidable social challenges. Scholarships reflect the trend in diversity: encourage students of all backgrounds to participate to their highest potential.
LGBT scholarships are primarily funded by organizations, both national and regional. So your search should not stop with these we have listed, by any means. Check with community and outreach organizations in your area for current fund opps.
National Scholarships
- Fund for Lesbian and Gay Scholarships (also known as FLAGS) rewards community-minded students with scholarships in varying amounts based on financial need and academic performance.
- The LEAGUE Foundation Academic Scholarship Fund is for graduating high school seniors who have identified themselves as LGBT. Qualification is based on their GPA and community involvement.
- National Gay and Lesbian Task Force administers the Messenger-Anderson Journalism Scholarship and Internship Program which offers $10,000 scholarships to LGBT students who are studying journalism and communications at four-year colleges. Scholarship recipients are also required to take part in a summer internship program in Washington, D.C.
- The Point Foundation provides scholarships in varying amounts to undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate students. Of particular attention are those students whose sexual orientation has led them to be isolated and/or abandoned by family, friends, and separated from traditional support systems.
- Transgender Scholarship and Education Legacy Fund (TSELF) is for students who have identified themselves as transgender and are pursuing careers in religion, social services, healthcare, law, or teaching are eligible for these scholarships which are sponsored by the International Foundation for Gender Education.
- ZAMI awards at least ten $1,000 scholarships to African-American gay male students who are able to offer positive contributions to their communities.
Regional Scholarships
- Just Out Scholarships are offered to children of “sexual minority” parents living in the Oregon and Washington. Preference is given to rural applicants. Award amounts vary.
- The Equity Foundation administers a handful of GLBT scholarships: Orchard-Hoyman Fund, Kaiser Permanente Northwest Pride Scholarship, and Pride of the Rose Scholarship. Applications are accepted from students living in Oregon and Southern Washington.
- The Lax Scholarship Fund for Gay Men awards multiple $5,000 scholarships and one $20,000 scholarship to gay male students from the five-county Philadelphia region or gay males coming to study in the Philly area.
- LGBT Asian American students living in the Bay Area: the George Choy Memorial Scholarship/Gay Asian Pacific Alliance Award gives out $1,000 to an outstanding student.
- eQuality Scholarship Collaborative Awards funds 12-$5,000 scholarships! Open to GLBT graduating high school seniors and active peer-allies who reside in northern and central California.
- The Harvey Milk/Tom Homann Gay and Lesbian Student Scholarship awards scholarships ranging from $250 to $1,000 to San Diego area LGBT students.
- The Matthew Shephard Scholarship Foundation was established to support the educational pursuits of visible GLBT Iowa students, as well as to raise awareness of homophobia and social violence.
Children of LGBT Parents
There is a huge population of students that have been raised in LGBT households or under the eye of parents challenged by social mores. These students, especially those passionate about diversity promotion and social activism, may find quite a surprising vein of scholarship funding that does not stop here:
- Two-$1,000 awards are given annually through the Lee Dubin Memorial Scholarships. Applicants must possess at least one parent that identifies with the LGBT community. Preference is strongly shown to students involved socially, especially in activities that showcase positive alternative family values.
- Joseph Towner Fund specifically encourages students of LGBT parents in the San Francisco area. Again, 2-$1,000 scholarships are awarded to students that can prove positive support for alternative families, but who have nevertheless faced significant social or emotional challenges because of it.
Graduate and Post-Graduate Students
- Maylon-Smith Scholarship Award, issued by the Society for the Psychological Study of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Issues, a division of the American Psychological Association awards this scholarship. Up to $1,000 goes to assist graduate students who are researching issues that affect the LGBT community.
- The Lesbian Caucus of the National Women's Studies Association provides $500 scholarships to lesbian students who are doing graduate level or Ph.D. dissertation research in lesbian studies.
- The Society of Lesbian and Gay Anthropologists of the American Anthropological Association offers the Kenneth W. Payne Student Prize to award the scholarly writing of graduate students.
