The United Negro College Fund is the nation's largest minority education organization. It provides operating funds for 39 member historically black colleges and universities and provides scholarship opportunities and internships for students at 900 institutions. The UNCF administers and supports scholarships for thousands of students. Since its inception, UNCF has raised more than $3.2 billion and has helped more than 350,000 students pay for a college education. UNCF supports many different scholarship efforts, including some backed by private foundations and corporations.
UNCF General Scholarship
The UNCF recommends that students applying for any of its scholarships apply also for the UNCF General Scholarship. This annual scholarship provides up to $5,000 for undergraduate and graduate college students. The scholarship requires an application to be completed. The applications are available from the UNCF website and from many university and college financial aid departments. Students must have a minimum 2.50 GPA to qualify for the scholarships. For new college students, the GPA requirement is for high school. For students who have already completed one or more college semesters, the GPA requirement is for cumulative collegiate coursework. The scholarship is applicable only to students who are attending one of the UNCF-eligible institutions. There are 39 different UNCF-eligible institutions. Many are historically black colleges.
Gates Millennium Scholars
The Gates Millennium Scholars program is funded by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The foundation's goal is to increase the number of African-American, American Indian, Asian and Hispanic students enrolling in and completing undergraduate and graduate degrees. The foundation awards 1,000 scholarships annually. The scholarships are awarded on basis of need, and actual award amounts vary based on family income, tuition cost and other expenses.
Corporate Scholarships
Many corporations offer scholarships through the UNCF, which administers the scholarships. Corporate-supported scholarships are available from Aldi Foods, AT&T, Frito Lay, Hershey Company, T-Mobile, Oracle and Toyota. Eligibility and award amounts vary. The Toyota UNCF Scholarship awards up to $7,500 to college freshmen who had a 3.0 or higher high school GPA. Only students attending one of six colleges are eligible for the scholarships. The Frito Lay Arts Scholarship awards up to $5,000 to college undergraduate students who have a minimum 2.50 GPA and who are majoring in fine arts, graphic arts, art, theater or visual arts. The scholarship is available to students at any four-year college. Two scholarships are awarded annually. One is from Lay's, and the other is from Doritos. The AT&T Foundation Scholarship awards up to $2,500 to undergraduate students with a 3.0 or higher GPA at any two- or four-year college. Only African-American children or stepchildren of AT&T employees qualify. The Aldi UNCF Corporate Scholars Program awards up to $5,000 to college sophomores and juniors with a 3.0 or higher collegiate GPA. Students must agree to intern at Aldi in Valparaiso, Indiana, or Batavia, Illinois.
NAACP Scholarships
The UNCF administers five different scholarship programs funded by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. The Earl G. Graves Scholarship Program provides up to a $5,000 scholarship to students of any four-year college who major in business or international business. The Agnes Jones Jackson Scholarship awards up to $1,500 to any undergraduate or graduate student at a four-year college who is a current member of the NAACP, shows financial need and has not reached the age of 25 by the application deadline. The Hubertus W.V. Willems scholarship awards male students majoring in chemistry, engineering, math or physics with up to $2,000. The Roy Wilkins Scholarship and the Lillian and Samuel Sutton Scholarship each award $1,000 annually to a student attending a four-year college.
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