Scholarships

As mentioned in Methods Of Funding, scholarships are one of the best and most commonly known sources of funding, since they are plentiful in number and do not need to be repaid, unlike loans or other forms of financial aid.

First, we'll look at why you should apply for them anyway, and then, you'll get a list of scholarships with their most up-to-date links for application.

Writing this option off with the assumption that you won't be able to win one anyway is wrong, for a couple of reasons:

1. First, there are literally thousands of scholarships - the amount of scholarships available are plentiful, and it would be wrong to assume you wouldn't fit any of them.

2. Not all scholarships get superb applicants - A lot of people are put off by scholarships, with the popular assumption being they don't stand a chance, since scholarships only get the best applicants. This is simply not true. If you match the basic eligibility criteria, you should apply anyway - regardless of what you think your chances are of winning it, even if you feel unconfident.

3. Some scholarships don't even get applicants - That is correct, and this relates to both the first and second points mentioned above. There are simply so many scholarships available that not all of them end up getting applicants in the first place, students either don't research them or end up going for the most popular scholarships that give the highest amount. This leads to a lot of smaller scholarships simply having few or no applicants at all - and these must be utilized to your benefit. While their amount may seem small, any funds you can get from them can be applied to your training and reduce the overall cost. The more of them you apply to, the better your chances of winning (so long as you are within the application requirements).

Now, a list of scholarships that you can apply to:

Disclaimer: Before you look through the list, understand that some scholarships will have requirements based on:

1. Citizenship

2. Residency

3. Grades/GPA

4. Gender

5. Race

6. Current Program being pursued (i.e. Current Program you're enrolled in)

7. Religion

8. Membership (if they have one, it's usually inexpensive/affordable)

Does this mean all scholarships have these requirements? No, as we will see, however, it is your duty to carefully check if the scholarship you're applying to has any of the above requirements, as not doing so could result in a denial of your application.

When applying for a scholarship, always use the official website and check the eligibility criteria beforehand - reading carefully is key.

A "Global" tag at the end of each scholarship in the list signifies that it's open worldwide with no citizenship requirements.

1. Women In Aviation International (Global*)

   Link: https://www.wai.org/scholarships

   *: While the scholarship organization itself is international, WAI Scholarships contain both - scholarships with and without citizenship requirements. You can apply up to 4 scholarships annually, from their list. Make sure to read carefully so you can pick the ones that fit you best, and that you are eligible for.

2. Experimental Aircraft Association Foundation (Global*)

   Link: https://www.eaa.org/eaa/learn-to-fly/scholarships

   *: EAA Foundation scholarships are entirely international in the sense that you can apply from anywhere, however, the funds awarded must be used towards a flight school based either in the United States or Canada.

3. Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association

   a) Flight Training Scholarship:

   Link: https://www.aopa.org/training-and-safety/students/aopa-flight-training-scholarships

   b) Aviation Scholarship:

   Link: https://www.aopa.org/training-and-safety/learn-to-fly/aviation-scholarships

4. The Honourable Company of Air Pilots

   Link: https://www.airpilots.org/scholarships/flying-scholarships/current-scholarships/

5. Sheltair & Avfuel

   Link: https://www.avfuel.com/AVTRIP/Maximize-AVTRIP/Scholarship-Opportunities

6. Ninety-Nines, Inc

   Link: https://www.ninety-nines.org/scholarships.htm

7. Epic Flight Academy

   Link: https://epicflightacademy.com/aviation-scholarship/

For additional scholarships, click the button on the left expand the list:

1. Airline Dispatchers Federation

   Link: https://dispatcher.org/scholarship/2025-scholarship-information

2. Aeroclub Of New England

   Link: https://www.acone.org/scholarships

3. Air Traffic Control Association

   Link: https://www.atca.org/atca-scholarships

4. Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA)

   Link: https://aea.net/educationalfoundation/scholarships.asp

5. University Aviation Association

   Link: https://www.uaa.aero/uaa_scholarships.php
   

These are the places to look for scholarships first, however, these lists are by no means exhaustive, and more scholarship sources are available on the web and other places (such as the UAA (University Aviation Association), which has an extensive catalogue of scholarships - available here). As always, do your research and make sure to read everything carefully.