How to Fund Your College Education with Asian American Scholarships?
College scholarships for Asian Americans may be a great source of financial aid. Asian American students may use the funds at community college or at an accredited four year college or graduate school. Since you typically don’t have to repay the funds, they make higher education easier to afford.
According to the NCES, there were 16.6 million undergraduate students in the academic year 2018 to 2019. Only 647,000 were of Asian heritage. Many colleges and organizations also see the need for diversification. They offer Asian awards to meet the growing demand. Some are for all minority students. But others offer financial assistance specifically to Asians.
Eligible Asian students may qualify based on ethnicity. But many providers expect you to be a U.S. citizen or a legal permanent resident. You may qualify if you identify with one of these Asian ethnic minority groups:
Chinese
Filipino
Indian
Japanese
Korean
Pacific Islander
Taiwanese
Thai
Vietnamese
Also, you may need to file a FAFSA to show unmet financial need. You may need a certain GPA to meet eligibility. When filling out your scholarship application, you may also submit these following items:
Letters of recommendation
List of academic achievements (awards, honors)
SAT or ACT test scores
Extracurricular activities (leadership, community service)
The William Orr Dingwall Foundation offers the Korean Ancestry Grants. Each grant is worth up to $10,000. It is also open to students already pursuing a four year degree. If you’re a high school senior or college freshmen, check out the Taiwanese American Scholarship Fund. You must be Taiwanese descent and have at least a 3.0 GPA. Each award is worth up to $5,000.
10 Scholarships for Asian Students You Should Apply for in 2024
Start applying with these 10 scholarships for Asian students below. Try to submit your application before the deadline.
CAMS Scholarship
Banatao Filipino American Education Fund Scholarships
InspirAsian Scholarship
Asian American Architects and Engineers Foundation Scholarship
Matt Fong Asian Americans in Public Finance Scholarship
Eugene and Thora Chin Scholarship Fund
NAPABA Legal Foundation Scholarship
Pinay Aspire Scholarships
Dr. George Goro and Nettie Muramoto Memorial Scholarship
JACL Law Scholarship Program
What Organizations Help Asian Americans Pay for College?
The Asian American community gets support from several nonprofits. Some of them offer annual scholarship opportunities. So even if you miss a deadline, you could apply again next year.
1. The APIA Scholars, formerly APIASF. They focus on underserved students and the first in their family to go to college. The APIA scholarships range from $2,500 to $20,000 awards.
2. The Asian Pacific Fund. They run about 10 scholarship programs. These could be for graduating high school seniors with one exception. The Hsiao Memorial Social Sciences Scholarship. It is for graduate students.
3. Korean American Scholarship Foundation. KASF offers $500 to $5,000 awards. To qualify, you must be a full time Korean American student at an accredited college. If so, you may apply to one of 4 regional chapters.
What Asian American Scholarships are Available by Major?
Scholarships for Asian Americans help college students earn degrees in a variety of majors. There are also plenty of awards for fields in STEM, healthcare, and business. Are you majoring in architecture, construction, or engineering? Check out the Asian American Architects and Engineers Foundation. The award offers $5,000 to AAAe members.
If you are a minority student studying accounting, AICPA has a scholarship worth $3,000 to $5,000. You must be pursuing an undergrad or graduate accounting degree. You also must have a minimum 3.0 GPA and be a U.S. citizen. Asian students may also find art awards. The Artistic Scholarship is from Against the Grain. It supports Asian and Pacific Islander students with a $1,000 award. To apply you must be a performing or visual arts major.
Are There Scholarships for First Generation Asian Students?
Yes, there are Asian scholarships for students who are the first in their family to go to college. These tend to be for students who may have immigrant parents. The U.S. Department of Education also offers the Pell grant for those who qualify.
For example, Sessions College for Professional Design is one source. They offer four First Generation Student Scholarships. Two awards are for graphic design and another two are for web design. Another option is to look into nonprofits like the Asian Pacific Fund. They offer the Frederick and Demi Seguritan Scholarship. It is a $5,000 award for first generation Asians (i.e. immigrants). You also must live in certain California counties.
List of 2024 Asian American Scholarships
Check out our list of Asian American and Pacific Islander student scholarships worth .
Graduating high school seniors who are minorities or economically disadvantage are eligible for this award. Students must rank in the top 25% of their graduating class and have an ACT/SAT of 25/1150 or higher.
This scholarship is available for current high school seniors and undergraduate students who are applying to admission at Clemson University in South Carolina. To be considered for a Diversity Scholarship, applicants must add to the ethnic, cultural, geographic, or intellectual diversity of the campus.
To be considered for this scholarship, the student must have a demonstrated commitment to the promotion of diversity and inclusion. They must also meet one or more of the following criteria:
Be from a historically underrepresented group;
Be from a low socio-economic background; or
Be a first-generation college student (i.e., neither of your parent(s)/guardian(s) has a bachelor’s degree.
The student’s academic performance and their record of school and community service will also be considered.
Students will be selected by a committee established by the Office of Multicultural Services.
The mission of the Asian Pacific Fund is to strengthen the Asian and Pacific Islander community in the Bay Area by increasing philanthropy and supporting the organizations that serve their most vulnerable community members. Ten scholarships are given to help undergraduate and graduate students achieve their education goals.
This scholarship is open to U.S. undergraduate and graduate students who are majoring in hospitality management at select AH&LEF-affiliated schools and have a grade point average of 2.5 or higher. Preference is given to students of Asian-Indian descent and other minority groups, as well as JHM Hotel employees.
Boston divorce attorney Gabriel Cheong with Infinity Law Group LLC is offering an annual scholarship for high school seniors of Asian heritage in Boston. The $1,000 scholarship will be awarded every fall semester and is intended to encourage more Asian Americans to choose a degree that will help them give back to the Asian community.
The Asian Heritage Scholarship is open to high school seniors in Boston who will be attending an accredited 4 year college/university in the fall of 2019 and meet all needed requirements. Candidates are asked to write a short essay describing their background and experiences in the Asian American community as well as how they plan to use their degree to help give back to their community.
The #LiveLikeLyly Memorial Scholarship is available to high school senior or a college student of asian american descent pursuing a career in fashion and or graphic design. Click to learn more and apply today!
The Wesleyan Freeman Asian Scholarship Program provides full scholarships for a four year course of study toward a bachelor’s degree for up to eleven exceptionally able students annually from several Asian countries
Awarded on the basis of academic excellence, the AEIRF Minorities and Women Education Scholarship offsets the cost of degrees in real estate appraisal or related fields.
The APF Queen-Nellie Evans Scholarship is a $4,000 award that supports minority students going for a master’s or doctorate degree in an accredited program.
