Financing Study Abroad—Scholarships

The past several years have seen an increase in scholarships and loans designed specifically for study abroad. We strongly encourage you to consider applying. UR students have won these scholarships or used this aid in the past. Even if you can easily afford to pay for your semester or year overseas, you should still consider these scholarships, as some of them are merit-based, and represent an academic honor that would serve you well on your resume.

Below is a list of the most important scholarships and financial resources for study abroad. To find out how to apply, check with a study abroad adviser. Application deadlines vary and some may be up to a year in advance of your study abroad semester(s). Also, be sure to check with a financial aid counselor to discuss how these scholarships would affect your aid package.

Scholarships

The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship enables students who have limited financial means to participate in study abroad opportunities worldwide. To be eligible, students must be receiving a Federal Pell Grant at the time of application and cannot be studying abroad in a country currently under a U.S. Department of State Travel Warning, or in Cuba. http://www.iie.org/gilman/

View Fall 2010 Scholarship information for STEM fields »»

To see a list of previous UR students who have won Gilman Awards click here.

For a guide to writing your essay, click here.

The National Security Education Program is a U.S. Government program to promote study in certain non-western countries. The program involves a national competition, and UR students have won scholarships in recent years. http://www.borenawards.org

To see a list of previous UR students who have won NSEP Scholarships click here.

The Institute for International Education. In addition to the Gilman Scholarships and the National Security Education Program, the Institute for International Education sponsors a variety of other scholarship programs. http://www.iie.org/pgms/

The Danish Institute for Study Abroad offers four different types of scholarships for students to study with DIS in Denmark. 

The Association of Teachers of Japanese Bridging Project offers scholarships to American students participating in study-abroad programs in Japan. Undergraduate students majoring in any field of study are eligible to apply for these scholarships. Japanese language study is not a prerequisite. Applicants must be U.S citizens or permanent residents and be enrolled in a college or university in the United States. www.colorado.edu/ealc/atj/Bridging/scholarships.html

Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholarship is a long-standing scholarship program for study abroad. Students apply through the local Rotary club. Application deadlines are extremely early, so this requires advanced planning. http://www.rotary.org/foundation/educational/amb_scho/index.html

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) offers scholarships for students who are interested in studying in Germany. http://www.daad.org/?p=47220

The Burton Fellowship, which is offered by the Department of Modern Languages and Cultures, applies specifically to students who are interested in summer study abroad to study language. http://www.rochester.edu/College/MLC/burton.html

The Council on International Educational Exchange offers scholarships and grants, including the Bowman Scholarship, which is for minority students. These are only for students who are applying to participate in a study abroad program sponsored by CIEE. http://www.ciee.org

The Institute for the International Education of Students (IES) also offers scholarships for students who are applying to IES programs. Among its other scholarships, IES recently announced a new diversity scholarship. Named in honor of David Porter, a member of the IES Board of Directors since 1995, this scholarship will award up to $5000 towards an IES semester or academic year program and is open to students who have been traditionally under-represented on study abroad programs. This includes, but is not limited to, students of color, the GLBT population, students from under-represented religious and ethnic groups, students from low income families, first-generation college students, students with physical disabilities, and students with a demonstrated history of overcoming adversity. https://www.iesabroad.org/IES/Scholarships_and_Aid/financialAid.html

Scholarships for students of color are available to encourage minority students to pursue overseas study opportunities. Check the following web site, maintained by Michigan State University. http://studyabroad.msu.edu/people/studentsofcolor/scholarships.html

The Institute for International Public Policy is a national scholarship competition to encourage underrepresented minorities to pursue careers in international diplomacy. It includes funding for study abroad during the junior year. www.ed.gov/programs/iegpsiipp/index.html

The U.S Department of State and the Council of American Overseas Research Centers sponsor Critical Language Scholarships for intensive summer study of certain "critical need" languages, such as Arabic, Hindi, Punjabi, Turkish, and Urdu. No prior study of the language is required. www.caorc.org

Students who are members of the Golden Key International Honor Society may apply for a study abroad scholarship offered by the society. http://www.goldenkey.org/GKIHS/MemberBenefits/ScholarshipsandAwards/

Students who are members of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars may apply for special scholarships through that organization. http://www.nscs.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=51&Itemid=1112

Hebrew University offers a variety of need and merti-based scholarships for students who plan to study abroad at their Rothberg International School. Scholarships are up the full amount of tuition. Visit http://overseas.huji.ac.il/?CategoryID=492&ArticleID=237 for more details. 

FEA scholarships were designed by professionals in the field of Education Abroad to meet the growing need for financial resources to enable more students to go abroad.  Scholarships will be up to $5,000 per semester and are not limited to specific programs, destinations, or fields of study. www.fundforeducationabroad.org/applicants/

Some other general web sites for study abroad scholarships are: http://www.fastweb.com/ , http:// www.iefa.org/ , studyabroad.msu.edu/shared/afford.html , www.studyabroadfunding.org and http://www.diversityabroad.com/financial-aid

 

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Scholarships for Underrepresented Minorities

 

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Federal Scholarships and Aid Gateways

 

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