A student who is of foreign nationality and has come into the United States without proper documents or false papers may remain as an illegal immigrant. But colleges are not considering them foreign or strange but instead supporting them in various ways. New York especially is more open to any foreigner in studies or any other walk of life. The number of students depending on loans is increasing at an alarming rate than the previous decade.
The commendable cost of higher education is making students take a longer time to graduate. So various measures are put across by community groups of a vivid kind to go for an investment to support the students of the state, especially the undocumented ones, to come over their financial barriers, outshine at college, and help make New York better’s economy. Most U.S. colleges and universities take up such students as a way to support them in their pursuit of continuing higher education. In addition to scholarships by universities, there are positive minds that work to support undocumented groups. Some of such scholarships are listed here.
1. MALDEF Law School Scholarship Program
Students who pursue law are supported by MALDEF to advance their mission of making progress about the civil rights of the Latino community in the United States. In the past years, MALDEF has taken the initiative to provide about 5-15 scholarships to law students who are commendable in their performance from the whole of the nation. The applicants have to be enrolled for a full-time law course at an accredited United States law school. The academic excellence and extracurricular accomplishments, together with their backdrop and financial requirement, are scrutinized before providing them with the scholarship.
Provided by: Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
Amount: $2000
Eligibility: Law students
Deadline: February 4, 2022
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2. Pre-Law Fund
The immigrants who are backward and disadvantaged in family income are considered for the scholarship. Students need to be attending law school. The amount is made available for covering LSAT preparation that includes courses, tutoring, self-study materials, and other educational needs. Along with being awarded the amount, the students also become part of the Immigrants Rising’s network of legal professionals group. The applicants also have to take part in the 4 days Pre-Law Bootcamp conducted by Immigrants Rising, be foreign-born, have considerable financial need, do not possess a permanent residency or U.S. citizenship, and should be presently attending or just graduated from a college or university. They should also maintain a GPA of 3.0 minimum.
Provided by: Immigrants Rising
Amount: Varies
Eligibility: Law students
Deadline: Applications open in February 2022
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3. SEED Grant
Residents from California who are entrepreneurs are offered an immense amount of more than $4.06 million through the SEED initiative. The applicants should be planning to start or grow a business or a nonprofit organization in California that would be a support for the community or solve a common social issue. Those applying for the grant should be non-citizen or Lawful Permanent Residents. Individuals who are lawfully not present in the United States, those been granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) or Temporary Protected Status (TPS), are included under the category. They prefer to have limited proficiency in English. There are two types of grants mainly being made possible; Developing Business/Nonprofit Owner Grants and Mature Business/Nonprofit Owner Grants. The amount varies for both of the grants.
Provided by: Immigrants Rising
Amount: $5,000/ $10,000
Eligibility: Entrepreneurs
Deadline: June 30, 2022
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4. Golden Door Scholar Program
To make oneself powerful, education is mandatory and financial support makes the person strong to acquire a degree and fulfill a dream job. The students who are high school seniors, recent high school graduates, or currently enrolled in college pursuing an undergraduate degree can apply. They should have DACA, TPS, or be undocumented. The GPA should be high enough, be at least 3.0, should be ready to take challenging high school classes, and should be involved in community activities. Most students who apply for the scholarship will be attending Golden Door partner schools, but the funding people also support others from accredited four-year institutions on a case-by-case basis.
Provided by: Golden Door Scholars
Amount: Varies
Eligibility: Undergraduate
Deadline: Yet to be decided
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5. The Excelsior Scholarship
The students who are found eligible and attending New York State’s public colleges and universities are selected for the scholarship. The financial aid is so managed that the students need not pay any of the money for tuition while attending a SUNY college. Other costs of the college have to be undertaken by the student. The applicants have to be a resident of NYS and have resided in NYS for 12 continuous months before the beginning of the term, be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen, and have graduated from high school in the United States. It would be better if they have earned a high school equivalency diploma or passed a federally approved “Ability to Benefit” test, as per the guidelines by the Commissioner of the State Education Department. The applicants should have a substantial need for the scholarship and be pursuing an undergraduate degree at a SUNY or CUNY college.
Provided by: SUNY (State University of New York)
Amount: Varies
Eligibility: Undergraduate
Deadline: Varies
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6. The National Scholarship Award
Students pursuing their associate or bachelor’s degree at Partner Colleges are eligible for the scholarship. Certain Scholars become eligible for an additional stipend of up to $4,000 for books, supplies, and transportation. This amount is disbursed as $1000 every year. The scholarship can be renewed yearly. The criteria include; the student should be an undocumented but motivated person to the highest level with the commendable and unmet financial requirement. They should also possess a clear commitment to community service and the ability to overcome the barriers and challenges that undocumented students face on a daily basis.
Provided by: The Dream.Us
Amount: $16,500-$33,000
Eligibility: Varies
Deadline: The application is now open
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7. Opportunity Scholarship
Undocumented students who live in the United States and have no access to college due to any reason are supported to overcome their difficulties. It might be paying out-of-state tuition or because the state does not admit them into its universities. The funding facilities offered by the Opportunity Scholarship during such situations help cover the tuition, fees, and on-campus housing and meals at one of our Partner Colleges if enrolled for a bachelor’s degree. The award amount gets renewed yearly, and the student has to maintain continuous enrollment.
Provided by: The Dream.Us
Amount: $80,000
Eligibility: Bachelor’s
Deadline: Jan 31, 2022
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8. The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans Program
The scholarship program is meant to honor those immigrants and their children to aid in pursuing higher education who have contributed to the United States. The funding is done to promote graduate education of 30 New Americans (immigrants and children of immigrants) who have exceeded their academics. The amount is made available for two years, and they tend to join with New American Fellows who form a community.
Provided by: Soros Fellowship Fund
Amount: $90,000
Eligibility: Varies
Deadline: NA
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9. College Opportunity and Resource Expansion (CORE) Campaign
The debt created by student loans in New York is far beyond any other consumer debt. The financial burden it creates is extremely serious in the case of graduates and depreciating the growth of the economy. Every New Yorker is supported to increase affordability to colleges by elevating rewards for current recipients, expanding income thresholds, and creating a $50 million zero-interest student loan fund. The CORE coalition is influencing New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo and the Legislature to surpass legislation called College Opportunity and Resource Expansion (CORE). It helps augment the TAP (Tuition Assistance Program) awards, elevating eligibility to include undocumented New York high school graduates, and initiating a new zero-interest loan program. The household income threshold is raised from $80,000 to $125,000. The maximum TAP funding award for full-time students was also improvised from $5,165 to $6,500. Those undocumented youth who reached the U.S before the age of 16 and underwent graduation from a New York high school or passed a New York accredited high school equivalency program also get to enjoy the goods obtained through the TAP award.
Provided by: New York Immigration Coalition
Amount: $5,165 to $6,500
Eligibility: Graduated from a New York high school
Deadline: varies
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10. Chicano Organizing and Research in Education
The Que Llueva Café Scholarship has reached its 12th year and is awarded annually. Several undocumented students from around the country have been awarded the scholarship, and it accounts for about $94,000. There are significant areas of evaluation in three main regions; the personal story, which takes into an explanation about the financial need and other persuasive dares the applicant had to undergo, extra-curricular participation, comprising of anything done outside the class like community involvement, work, and clubs, and finally the academic guarantee not limited to GPA or test scores but, looking into the academic potential for the future prospects. The scholarship is open to all states in the U.S., including Puerto Rico. Applicants have to be a high school/GED graduate planning to enroll for the first time in an accredited college or university in the U.S. or Puerto Rico.
Provided by: CORE (College Opportunity and Resource Expansion)
Amount: Varies
Eligibility: High school/GED graduate
Deadline: Application yet to be opened
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