10 Scholarships for International Students Every High Schooler Should Be Applying To
If you are an academically motivated student who is looking at top universities to pursue your undergraduate degree, chances are that you may want to find scholarships to cover the cost of university. Attending university is definitely an investment and can rarely be affordable for all. Therefore, we have curated a helpful list of 10 scholarships that are offered to international students to help with funding your college/research dreams!
Each of these scholarships will offer some support in your college process, either from applying to mentoring or providing monetary support.
Google offers a number of scholarships for international students that were created to increase diversity in the fields of computer science, technology, engineering, and other similar disciplines. Some of the scholarships are:
Google Lime Scholarship - A scholarship of $10,000 offered to students with disabilities who intend to pursue computer science in either a US or Canadian university.
Generation Google Scholarship - These scholarships are offered in multiple locations and are intended to financially support communities who have historically been under-represented in the fields of computer science, engineering, operation research, and supply chain management.
Scholarship Amount: Varies based on scholarship; amounts tend to start from $2,500
Location: N/A
Application Deadline (2024): Varies based on scholarship (from past deadlines, expect the deadline to be in the month of May)
Eligibility: Varies based on the scholarship chosen, but ideally, you should be from an underrepresented community.
Reach Cambridge offers students from around the world a college-like experience in the city of Cambridge, complete with academic subject courses, group activities, lectures and excursions. For motivated, high-achieving students who wish to attend but are unable to because of financial constraints, they offer a scholarship. To apply for this scholarship, students must enter an essay competition.
For the program, students must select one of the many subject choices offered – spanning architecture, computer science, journalism, psychology, engineering and more. The program is 2-weeks long, and will include a number of activities.
Scholarship: Fully funded 2-week summer program at Reach CambridgeLocation: N/A
Application Deadline: Applications for the 2024 session have closed. Applications for 2025 will open in Fall 2024.
Eligibility: High school students aged 14-18 can apply.
The National College Match is for academically gifted students from low-income backgrounds. Through this college and scholarship application process, you can apply to multiple top universities completely free of cost! Additionally, if you apply for early admission, you can be considered for a full-4-year scholarship under the Match Scholarship.
The Match Scholarship is offered as part of a financial aid package provided by the college that covers the cost of attendance, including tuition/fees, housing/food, books/supplies, and even travel expenses. Questbridge partners with over 45+ colleges, including MIT, UPenn, UChicago, Duke, Princeton, and more. So this scholarship is an opportunity to apply to the top colleges without any financial burden.
Scholarship Amount: Varies based on university acceptance/terms.
Location: N/A
Application Deadline (2024): September 26, 2023
Eligibility:
Must be a high school senior at the time of applying (must enter university in the fall of 2024 to be eligible for the 2024 scholarship).
Any high school senior, regardless of citizenship, currently attending high school in the U.S. is eligible for the National College Match. Additionally, U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents living abroad are eligible.
Must typically earn less than $65,000 annually (for a household of four) and have minimal assets.
Must be in good academic standing (Note. While there are no specific cutoffs, you can look here for the profiles of past applicants.)
GeneTex, a biotechnology company, offers scholarships of $2,000 to students pursuing a STEM undergraduate or graduate degree. This scholarship is highly selective – only one student is awarded twice a year.
To apply, you will have to write a personal statement about why you wish to pursue a STEM degree. Each application will be reviewed by a committee of 3-5 GeneTex employees. Selection is based on the committee's determination of the application that best aligns with GeneTex's values and mission statement and your academic standing. However, GeneTex has not mentioned any particular cut-off GPA, so everyone is welcome to apply.
Scholarship Amount: $2,000
Location: N/A
Application Deadline (2024): December 2023. Since this has already passed, watch out for the Spring and Fall 2025 scholarships.
Eligibility:
Student in good academic standing, enrolled at an accredited college/university.
Declared STEM major.
Open to U.S Citizens and International Students.
The Lumiere Research Inclusion Foundation is a non-profit research program for talented, low-income students. Born out of the Lumiere Research Scholar Program (one of the largest 1-on-1 research initiatives for high school students), the foundation offers the same independent research opportunities at no cost.
The Lumiere Breakthrough Scholar Program is the equivalent of the Individual Research Scholar Program at Lumiere Education. In this flagship program, talented high-school students are paired with world-class Ph.D. mentors to work 1-on-1 on an independent research project. At the end of the 12-week program, you’ll learn about the cutting edge of your field and develop an independent research paper.
You can choose topics from subjects such as psychology, physics, economics, data science, computer science, engineering, chemistry, international relations, and more.
Scholarship Amount: Fully-funded research program
Location: Remote - you can participate in this program from anywhere in the world!
Application Deadline: There are 4 cohorts (You can apply here!)
Fall cohort: August
Winter: November
Spring: January
Summer: May
Eligibility:
You must be currently enrolled in high school or plan to enroll as a freshman in college in the fall of 2023.
Students must demonstrate a high level of academic achievement. (Note. Students have an unweighted GPA of 3.3 out of 4)
No previous knowledge of your field of interest is required!
Note: While there is no cut-off for income, past scholars have typically come from households earning less than $50,000 annually (for a typical household of 4) with minimum assets.
Immerse Education is an educational institute based in the UK that provides young students with academic programs. The essay competition directs participants to write a response to a pre-set question in a specific category (while a wide range of categories are available, English Literature and Creative Writing are generally included). Topics are split by age, with one section for 13-15 year olds and another for 16-18 year olds. The scholarship can be redeemed against summer schools in New York, Cambridge, London, Sydney and more, making it ideal for students specifically looking for summer experience.
Scholarship amount: Top 10 winners get a 100% scholarship to study at an affiliated university and runners-up get partial scholarships to study with Immerse
Location: N/A
Application deadline: Applications typically close in January.
Eligibility: Students aged 13 – 18 can apply (including international students!)
7. RISE
An initiative of Schmidt Futures and the Rhodes Trust, Rise is a program that looks promising young people and provides them with opportunities that allow them to work together to serve others over their lifetimes. The program supports young people aged 15-17, which may include need-based scholarships, mentorship, networking, access to career development opportunities, and the potential for additional funding as Rise Global Winners work toward solving humanity’s most pressing problems. Every year, Rise invites 15-17 year old's from around the world to participate in the Rise Challenge. Rise uses videos, projects, and group interviews so applicants have multiple opportunities to showcase their potential. There’s an alternate path for applicants without access to technology as well.
Scholarship Amount: Varies
Location: N/A
Application Deadline: Applications for 2024 have closed. Check here for 2025 updates.
Eligibility: Students aged 15-17, from anywhere in the world
Microsoft, one of the world’s leading technology companies, offers high school students (those who identify as girls or non-binary) who want to pursue a career in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) up to $5,000. The scholarship is renewable every year for up to four years, meaning you can receive up to $20,000. Microsoft values applicants who show leadership skills and have a habit of active participation in their community.
Scholarship Amount: Up to $5,000; renewable for up to four years.
Location: Any US university.
Application Deadline: The applications will open between January 2024 and March 2024 (tentatively).
Eligibility: Students who are high school seniors set to graduate, i.e. rising college freshmen, with a minimum GPA of 3.0 can apply. The program is open to international students. Those applying must identify as women or non-binary individuals and intend to pursue a career in a STEM field.
This program, which offers both mentorship and a scholarship, is open to 14-20 year olds across the world. The fellowship enables talented young people to take on crucial social issues. Once selected, you'll join an 8-week online program, with expert guidance to get you making a difference right away. You will receive 1-on-1 guidance to help you face your biggest challenges, learn key concepts you need to work out how you can make the biggest difference. You will also be part of a dedicated community, receive a $500 scholarship and be eligible for $30,000 in funding.
Scholarship Amount: $500, with the possibility of $30,000 funding
Location: N/A
Application Deadline: June 9, 2024
Eligibility: Students aged 14-20 who haven’t started university by the start of the fellowship (July 8, 2024). You can apply no matter where you are in the world.
The BHW Group, a Texas-based company that builds custom web and mobile apps for its clients, offers up to two women a $3,000 scholarship. To apply, students have to write a 500-800 word essay using one of these prompts:
Tell us about your favorite app and what you like about it.
Tell us about a time an app played a significant role in improving your day.
Past winners include Arisa Chue, who is pursuing a Computer Science degree at Stanford University, and Allison Towey, who is studying Computational Social Science at The University of Chicago.
Scholarship amount: $3,000
Location: Any US university
Application deadline: April 15, 2024.
Eligibility: The program is open to US and international high school, undergraduate, graduate, and doctorate students who are pursuing or intend to pursue a STEM program.
Bonus - Lumiere Research Scholar Program
If you are passionate about research, you could also consider applying to the Lumiere Research Scholar Program, a selective online high school program for students I founded with researchers at Harvard and Oxford. Last year, we had over 4000 students apply for 500 spots in the program! You can find the application form here.
Stephen is one of the founders of Lumiere and a Harvard College graduate. He founded Lumiere as a Ph.D. student at Harvard Business School. Lumiere is a selective research program where students work 1-1 with a research mentor to develop an independent research paper.
Image Source: Google logo