African American high
school students who plan to attend college have a number of scholarship opportunities. Many organizations have a specific allotment of funding they distribute each year to a set number of students. Doing your homework prior to applying, and then applying for as many scholarship opportunities as you can, increases your chances of winning a scholarship.
The Jackie Robinson Foundation
Since it was founded in 1986 by Rachel Robinson, the Jackie Robinson Foundation has awarded over $22 million in direct scholarship funding to African American students. To qualify for the Jackie Robinson Foundation scholarship you must be a graduating high school senior; have a minimum SAT score of 1,000; demonstrate leadership and community service; provide evidence of financial need; and include a letter of recommendation and your official high school transcript. Potential candidates must be U.S. citizens and have plans to attend a university located in the United States.
Ron Brown Scholarship Program
Every year, the Ron Brown Scholarship Program awards 10 to 20 $40,000 college scholarships to outstanding African American high school seniors the administrators believe will make a significant and positive impact on society. Each year the program receives more than 10,000 applications, which makes the competition very stiff for entrants. In order to qualify for selection, you must prove financial need, demonstrate strong leadership capabilities and be dedicated to community service. When putting together your application packet, you will be required to write two 500-word essays and send two letters of recommendation, your SAT or ACT scores and your high school transcript.
National Association of Black Journalists
If you are a high school senior with experience working on your school newspaper or yearbook, or if you've interned at the local newspaper, you may be eligible for one of the five National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) scholarships. In order to become eligible for the scholarship, you must be a member of the NABJ. The cost for a student membership is $35 as of January 2011. In your application packet, you will be required to include a one-page resume, a 500- to 800-word essay detailing your experience in journalism and your career goals, three references and five samples of your work.
Engineering Students
There is a variety of scholarships for minority students who plan to pursue a career in science and engineering. The National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) has a program that allows students to apply for multiple scholarship programs within their affiliation if you are a paid member of the society. The cost for annual precollege student membership is $5 per year. This allows members access to scholarship information, as well as programs that expose students to science, technology and mathematics information in the constantly-growing field of engineering.
Tags: high school, African American, Jackie Robinson, Jackie Robinson Foundation, Robinson Foundation, African American high, American high