Scholarships

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SCHOLARSHIPS FOR UNIFORMED PERSONNEL AND THEIR DEPENDENTS

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For Coast Guard Personnel

Coast Guard Foundation Scholarships

Scholarships in varying amounts to eligible personnel to support higher education for Coast Guard active duty enlistees and their dependents. Eligibility requirements, deadlines, and application procedures are announced by ALCOAST every year.

NERA/USAA Scholarships

The National Enlisted Reserve Association (NERA) and United Services Automobile Association (USAA) sponsor higher-education scholarships for enlisted Coast Guard Reservists and their dependents who are pursuing their first associate's, bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree or technical/vocational certificate.

In addition to information on NERA's web site, look for the ALCOAST published each year. The application deadline is in June.

Office of Work-Life Scholarships

Work-Life’s scholarship programs provide information and resources on financial assistance to all members of Team Coast Guard: regular and Reserve military, their dependents, and civilian employees (civil service, CGES, and MWR).

Scholarships for Women In or Veterans of the Military

The Women’s Memorial Foundation administers the two programs each of which awards scholarships of up to $5,000 for women working toward bachelor’s or master’s degrees.

The Foundation also administers another program which awards a $1,000 scholarship to be used toward an undergraduate nursing degree.

Fleet Reserve Association Education Foundation

The FRA Education Foundation offers many different scholarships to eligible full-time students who are U.S. citizens attending accredited colleges and universities in the United States. The deadline for submitting applications is 15 April 2012.

For Dependents

Military Officers Association of America (MOAA)

MOAA offers scholarships of $1,000 each to twenty-five dependent children of military personnel. At least one of these awards is made to a college bound son or daughter of a United States Coast Guard member. The deadline is usually in April each year.

National Naval Officer's Association (NNOA)

Once a year, the various chapters of the NNOA award scholarships to qualified students entering their freshmen year of college. Each chapter's requirements may differ slightly, but to be eligible (generally) you must:

be a high school senior (usually in the state in which the chapter is located)
hold a grade point average of 3.0 or better
have been accepted to attend a four-year degree program at an accredited college or university
complete an application with all required attachments, including letters of recommendation from school officials (teachers, guidance counselors, principals/assistant principals)
complete an essay.

For more information, including application deadlines, go to the NNOA's web site.

Coast Guard Chief Warrant Officers & Warrant Officers Association Scholarships

These two scholarships for the sons and daughters of Coast Guard enlisted personnel (deadline: 01 June) and the sons and daughters of deceased members of the CWOA at the time of their deaths (deadline: 01 March).

Scholarships for Military Children and Spouses Programs

The Defense Commissary Agency and the Fisher House Foundation have teamed up again to offer educational scholarships to military spouses and the children of military families and retirees.

Military Spouse Scholarship Program

The National Military Family Association is sponsoring a scholarship program that awards grants from between $500 and $1,000 (to be used for tuition, fees, and school room and board) by civilian spouses of uniformed servicemembers (Regular, Reserve, National Guard, retirees, and survivors) of any branch or rank.

For more information about the NMFA Joanne Holbrook Patton Military Spouse Scholarship Program (including the application deadline) or to sign-up to receive education updates, visit the NMFA web site.

Military Commanders' Scholarship Fund

The New York Chapter of the American Logistics Association (ALA) has established a scholarship program to assist children of select active duty, reserve, National Guard or retired members of the United States military who plan to continue their education in college. Scholarships are offered each year for full-time study at an accredited institution of the student's choice.

Coast Guard Spouse College Grant

“Could you use up to $6,000 in additional financial assistance to help pay for your advanced education? Through Columbia College’s new Coast Guard Spouse Grant, you can receive a 50 percent tuition discount for online and on-campus courses.” These grants can be used for on-campus and on-line courses, up to $6,000 per spouse.

Spouses must be degree-seeking and fully admitted to Columbia College.

Other Resources

Ms. Sueann Walter, full-time ESO at the Coast Guard Academy, put together a spreadsheet showing many scholarships aimed solely at military personnel (and, in some cases, their dependents.

But don’t limit yourself to those you'll find on the spreadsheet or elsewhere above. The easier scholarships are to find and apply for (and the more money they hand out), the more people apply for them and the stiffer the competition is. Look for the obscure and small-amount scholarships that few people find or bother to apply for.

Remember: all money from scholarships is free money – not requiring pay-back. And it all adds up. If it takes you or your dependent an hour to complete the application for a $100 scholarship, the return is $100/hour. Not bad.