Scholarships, Fellowships, and Grants for International Students

A scholarship is an award of financial aid given to a student with the intent of furthering their education. They are awarded on criteria specific to the donor of the award and generally reflect their values and purposes.

Specific scholarships, funding, and/or grants may be limited due to certain eligibility requirements based on the funding source; these eligibility requirements are in no way discriminatory, but rather to protect the interests of the funding sources.

“Some scholarship databases charge fees to users, and other databases provide their services at no cost. In general, the same information is available from both types of database services, so it is not necessary to pay any fee. Ask in advance, and choose the database service that is free of charge. Be especially aware of dishonest scholarship offers: do not send money, bank account numbers, or credit card numbers to any organization that promises a scholarship in return.” - NAFSA

• Grants 
• Loans 
• Scholarships 
• Work-Study 

Abroad Planet Scholarship Resources

• Free online community of international students studying in the United States.

Big Future

• Free online financial aid source for scholarships, grants, and loans for all college-bound students, including permanent residents and international students wishing to study in the United States.

Edupass

• Free online scholarship search service.

International Education Financial Aid

• Free online scholarship search service designed for international students.

International Scholarships

• Free online scholarship database for international students wishing to study worldwide.

Lists of Scholarships 

• Free online scholarship search service. 

Niche Scholarships 

• Free online scholarship search service. 

Sallie Mae College Planning 

• Free online financial aid source for scholarships, grants, and loans for all college-bound students. 

Scholarships.com 

• Free online scholarship search service. 

Scholarship Experts

• Free online scholarship search service.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

• Free online searchable database for scholarships to international students.

USA Study Guide

• Free online reference website and guide for international students on studying in the United States.

US Journal of Academics

• Free website with information for educators and students.

• The BSA funds a number of fellowships to promote inquiry and research in books and other textual artifacts in both traditional and emerging formats. Bibliographical projects related to books and manuscripts in any field and of any period are eligible for consideration as long as they include analysis of the physical object – that is, the handwritten, printed, or other textual artifact – as historical evidence.

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Junior Fellow Program

• Each year, through the James C. Gaither Junior Fellows program, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace offers approximately 14 one-year fellowships to uniquely qualified graduating seniors and individuals who have graduated during the past academic year. They are selected from a pool of nominees nominated by several hundred participating universities and colleges. James C. Gaither Junior Fellows work as research assistants to Carnegie’s senior scholars. In UC San Diego, the International Studies Program acts as the Academic Advisor and Program Coordinator for this fellowship.

Christine Mirzayan Science & Technology Policy Graduate Fellowship Program

• Program is a full-time hands-on training and educational program that provides early career individuals. This Mirzayan Fellowship offers a unique opportunity to obtain the essential skills and knowledge needed to work in science policy at the federal, state, or local levels.

Davis-Putter Scholarships

• The Davis-Putter Scholarship Fund aids people active in movements for social and economic justice. These need-based scholarships are awarded to students who are able to do academic work at the college or university level or are enrolled in a trade or technical program and who are active in the progressive movement. Grants are disbursed to cover each separate semester, quarter or term during which the grantee is attending school. Grants must be used in the year they are awarded and cannot be deferred or carried over. Recipients must reapply each year support is sought.

Echoing Green Public Service Fellowships

• A comprehensive, self-paced program to work towards building leadership skills and developing the structures and strategies needed for ideas to thrive. Issues: Climate Change, Education, Health, Human Rights, Poverty, and Racial Justice. 

Environmental Research and Education Foundation

• Scholarships are awarded by EREF to recognize excellence in master’s and doctoral waste management research and education. Applications from students outside the United States or studying abroad will receive equal consideration. Awards based on:
  • Academic performance.
  • Relevance of one’s work to the advancement of solid waste management science.
  • Potential for success.

Exploration Fund of the Explorers Club

• The Exploration Fund Grant is one of the longest standing grant programs at The Explorers Club. It aims to support graduate/post-graduate students and early career field scientists across a variety of disciplines. 

Fulbright

• Applicants for study/research awards design their own projects and will typically work with advisers at foreign universities or other institutes of higher education. The study/research awards are available in approximately 140 countries. Program requirements vary by country, so the applicants' first step is to familiarize themselves with the program summary for the host country.

Humane Studies Grants & Fellowships

• IHS offers more than two million dollars in highly competitive grants for projects within their areas of focus. Additionally, HSF provides fellowships for graduate students.

International Dissertation Field Research Fellowships (IDRF)

• IDRF supports the next generation of scholars in the humanities and humanistic social sciences pursuing research that advances knowledge about non-US cultures and societies. Since its inception in 1997, the IDRF program has funded more than eleven hundred projects, with research spanning the globe. The IDRF program is funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Sixty fellowships are awarded annually.

J. W. Saxe Memorial Fund

• The award is meant to enable the student to gain practical experience in public service by taking a no-pay or low-pay job or internship during a summer or other term. Preference will be given applicants who have already found such a position, but who require additional funds.

Jack Kent Cooke Graduate Scholarships

• The Cooke Graduate Scholarship is awarded to outstanding Cooke Scholars and recent Alumni to support them to complete graduate degrees at top institutions. It is a competitive scholarship. The number of scholarships awarded is variable depending on the number of competitive applications we receive for the award. Scholars compete against their own record, not against fellow scholars. That said, putting forward your best application possible is essential to help the committee as it selects from a large group of qualified, talented scholars.

Josephine de Karman Fellowship

• The purpose of this Fellowship program is to recognize and assist students whose scholastic achievements reflect Professor Von Karman’s high standards.

Leakey Foundation

• The Leakey Foundation exclusively funds research related to human origins. Priority of funding is commonly given to exploratory phases of promising new research projects that meet the stated purpose of the Foundation.

Microsoft Scholarships

• Microsoft awards tuition and conference scholarships each year to encourage students to further their learnings in Computer Science and related STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) disciplines. Recipients for the scholarship will be awarded in recognition of their demonstrated passion for technology, academic excellence, and leadership while working to push the software industry forward.

Peace Scholar Dissertation Fellowship

• USIP's Peace Scholar Fellowship program awards non-residential fellowships to PhD candidates enrolled in U.S. universities who are writing doctoral dissertations on topics broadly related to conflict management, peacebuilding and relevant security studies.

The Roothbert Fund Scholarship Program

• The principal focus of The Fund is its Scholarships Program, through which it makes grants for undergraduate or graduate study at accredited colleges or universities. Scholarships may only be applied to study at an accredited institution based in the United States. The Fund seeks candidates who are "motivated by spiritual values," and works to foster fellowship among them.

• The Dissertation Fellowship program is committed to supporting the research training of promising doctoral students from a wide range of disciplines and professional fields to undertake research relevant to the improvement of education.
  

NAEd/Spencer Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship

• The National Academy of Education/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship Program supports 25 early career scholars working in critical areas of education research. These fellowships support non-residential postdoctoral proposals that make significant scholarly contributions to the field of education. The program also develops the careers of its recipients through professional development activities involving National Academy of Education members.

• The Western Union Global Scholars Program, in collaboration with IIE (Institute of International Education), has announced a scholarship opportunity for undergraduate international students from developing countries struggling to complete their final years of college due to financial constraints.
  • To be considered for an award, nominated students must:
    • Be an international student (non-citizen or permanent resident of the country in which they are studying) in their second to last or final year of studies.
    • Be enrolled as a full-time undergraduate student.
      

Quad Fellowship Opportunity for STEM Graduate Students

• The Quad Fellowship is an initiative of the governments of Australia, India, Japan, and the United States. The Quad Fellowship in collaboration with IIE  (Institute of International Education), sponsors STEM graduate students from the four Quad countries – Australia, India, Japan, and the ASEAN countries. The Fellowship offers an unparalleled blend of financial support, cross-cultural exchange, and networking.

Amelia Earhart Fellowships (Zonta International Foundation)

• Women of any nationality pursuing a PhD/doctoral degree who demonstrate a superior academic record in the field of aerospace-related sciences and aerospace-related engineering are eligible. Fellowship is awarded annually to up to 30 women pursuing Ph.D./doctoral degrees in aerospace engineering and space sciences.

American Association for University Women - International Fellowships

• Full-time graduate or postdoctoral study in the United States to women who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents, and who intend to return to their home country to pursue a professional career. Both graduate and postgraduate studies at accredited U.S. institutions are supported. 

Association for Women in Science Educational Foundation

• Awards are spread among the STEM fields, and will be weighted in favor of those disciplines where women are still significantly underrepresented (Computer Sciences, Engineering, Mathematics, and Physical Sciences). The awards are available to female undergraduate and pre-doctoral students.

Asia

Asian Cultural Council

• Individual fellowship grants to artists, scholars, students, and specialists from Asia for study, research, travel and creative work in the United States.

Edmund S. Muskie Ph.D. Fellowship 

• The Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program provides opportunities for students on Fulbright from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan for interning in the United States.

Global Undergraduate Exchange Program (UGRAD)

• The Global UGRAD Program provides opportunities for outstanding students to study at U.S. universities and colleges. Over the past twelve years, more than 2,000 students from Eurasia and Central Asia have taken part in this program.

J Yang Scholarship Awards

• The J. Yang Scholarship Program at  UC San Diego funds undergraduate and graduate scholarships and research programs for the purpose of recruiting and retaining highly promising future scholars from Taiwan high schools and universities.

Japan-IMF Scholarship Program for Advanced Studies 

• The Japan-IMF Scholarship Program for Advanced Studies (JISP) is a two-year program intended to help Japanese nationals obtaining Ph.D. degrees in macroeconomics and preparing them to work as economists at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship Regular Program

• (JJ/WBGSP) is open to citizens of certain developing countries with relevant professional experience and a history of supporting their countries’ development efforts who are applying to a master degree program in a development-related topic. 

United States Timor-Leste Scholarship Program (USTL)

• Funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State, USTL full scholarships to outstanding students from Timor-Leste for two to four years of study at high-quality undergraduate degree institutions in the United States. 

USABCI Myanmar Scholarship Fund

• The US-ASEAN Business Council Institute (USABCI) created the USABCI Myanmar Scholarship Fund to alleviate financial hardships currently confronted by Myanmar students enrolled in accredited US universities due to the current economic crisis in Myanmar.

South Pacific

United States South Pacific Scholarship Program (USSP)

• Funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State, USSP is a competitive, merit-based scholarship program that provides opportunities for Master’s and Bachelor’s degree study at the University of Hawai‘i in fields that are directly relevant to the development needs of Pacific Island countries. 

Europe

American Scandinavian Foundation 

• Citizens from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway or Sweden for study or research programs (usually at the graduate level) in the United States for up to one year.  Awards are made in all fields.

Latin America 

Miguel Velez Scholarship

• The Miguel Velez Scholarship provides generous funding to subsidize the educational and living costs of UC San Diego international degree-seeking undergraduate students from the Latin American and Caribbean regions. Several awards will be given based upon individual financial circumstances, academic merit, and ability. Consideration will also be given to the applicant's length of study at UC San Diego and their individual efforts to internationalize and diversify UC San Diego's campus community. Availability of resources to fund the scholarship will vary from year to year.
• Access the application form here. Submission deadline is SUNDAY MARCH 3, 2024, at 11:59 PM PST.

Interest-Free Loans

• The Rowe Fund is an educational loan program of the Organization of American States (OAS) that helps citizens from Latin America and Caribbean OAS Member States finance their studies or research in accredited universities across the United States by awarding interest-free loans of up to US$15,000 dollars.  

Note: Not all listed are applicable to study at UC San Diego, your field of study, or nationality.

Grants and Fellowships are funds that are given to individuals based on merit and/or need that do not require repayment.  They can be given by both public and private institutions.  Some grants or fellowships may come with requirements that must be met; such as sustaining a GPA above a specific level, or following the guidelines of the gifting institution.

• American Geophysical Union Awards 
• American Heart Association Funding Opportunities 
• American Institute of Indian Research Fellowships 
• American Musicological Society Alvin H. Johnson Fellowship 
• American Musicological Society Holmes/D'Accone Fellowship 
• American Musicological Society Howard Mayer Brown AMS Fellowship 
• American Statistical Association Internships and Fellowships 

• California Sea Grant Funding Opportunities 
• Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship 
• Getty Foundation Grants and Fellowships 
• Google Scholarships 
• Harry Frank Guggenheim Research Grants and Fellowships  
• HHMI International Student Research Fellowships 
• NASA Learning and Funding Opportunities for Different Academic Levels 
• NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System 

• National Science Foundation (NSF) Funding Search 
• Medieval Academy of America Grants and Awards 
• Population Council Fellowships 
• Smithsonian Institution Fellowships & Internships 
• Social Science Research Council Fellowships & Opportunities  
• Space Telescope Science Institute Fellowships 
• Spencer Dissertation Fellowships for Research Related to Education 
• TIAA-Grants for Research Proposals

• UC fellowships (note: most UC fellowships carry no citizenship restrictions) 
  
  • Humanities Research Institute Residential Grants
  • Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation Graduate Grants & Fellowships
  • Institute of Arts And Humanities Funding Opportunities
  • UC Santa Cruz the Arts Research Institute
  • Natural Reserve System (NRS), Mildred E. Mathias Graduate Student Research Grant
  • Tobacco-Related Disease-Research Program
  • UC ACCORD Dissertation Fellowships

• U.S. Department of Transportation Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship Program 
• Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research, Grants and Fellowships 
• Woodrow Wilson Dissertation Fellowships in Women’s Studies