Historically, African-American students have been the largest minority group in the US, but recently, their numbers have been surpassed by another group - Hispanic American students. Yet, despite the decrease, there continue to be many black student scholarship opportunities available, particularly in the fields of Engineering, Business, Mathematics and Medicine – areas that have been traditionally dominated by white males. While their has been an increase in the number African American students who complete high school, there continues to be a large number who either cannot afford the costs of attending college or lack resources and the guidance to help lead them into professional careers.
Creating Access to Black Student Scholarships
Access to a college education is very important for both individuals and the society as a whole. A college education opens up unlimited possibilities, as it helps students discover and hone their talents. Enrolling in college shows commitment to investment in ones future. Unfortunately, many individuals cannot make this type of investment because they are unable to afford the rising cost of college tuition. Fortunately, there are many institutions that exist to help African Americans economically, thereby making black student scholarship opportunities possible. One such institution is the United Negro College Fund (UNCF).
For many decades, the United Negro College Fund has been on the forefront of such issues as education for African Americans. Their key motto, "A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste," is familiar to many generations of Americans. As the nation’s oldest and most successful education assistance organization, the UNCF’s mission to provide financial support to its 39 member institutions to help increase the number of minority students receiving a college degree, has been highly effective. UNCF institutions, along with other Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU’s) have been responsible for awarding 25% of African American Baccalaureate degrees. The UNCF administers more than 300 programs which include scholarships, internships, fellowships, mentoring, summer enrichment, curriculum and faculty development programs. Today, the UNCF supports more than 65,000 students at over 900 colleges and universities across the nation.
Funding Black Student Scholarships
Since 1985, the UNCF Scholarships and Grants Administration office has awarded over $105 million in scholarship assistance to students enrolled in its member colleges and universities and other HBCUs and majority institutions in the United States. Their funding dollars come from a wide range of corporations and organizations which include:
Bank of America – donated one million dollars to the UNCF in March 2006. Read more here
Gates Millennium Scholarship Fund - a program managed by the UNCF and funded by The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Part of its mission is to increase the number of African Americans, American Indians/Alaska Natives, Asian Pacific Americans, and Hispanic Americans completing undergraduate and graduate degree programs. The goal is to promote academic excellence by providing opportunities for thousands of outstanding students to reach their fullest potential.
Because of these types of support from donors through UNCF, member institutions are able to keep tuition approximately 52% lower than tuition at other comparable schools. This is very important because over 90% of students attending UNCF member institutions require some form of financial aid, which include black student scholarships.
Note: On Thursday, October 25, 2001, UNCF and its 39 member colleges and universities announced in New York the establishment of the UNCF Liberty Scholarship. This scholarship would be for children of victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks. Any child, regardless of age, race, creed or color, will be provided full scholarships for enrollment at any of the 39 member colleges and universities.
In addition to Black Student Scholarships, there are numerous other types of scholarships available to fund your education, but the process of searching online can be tedious task often ending in frustration for many people. Read more information about resources designed to can make the process of finding scholarships, including additional black student scholarships not administered by the UNCF, simple for you.
