Dance scholarships

About dance scholarships

In the 2019-2020 academic year, 3.4 thousand dance degrees were awarded. There are many different styles of dance that students can study including jazz, ballet, hip hop, modern, tap, ethnic, folk dance, and more.

The United States has 343 different schools where you can get a degree in dance. 20.2% of workers in a dance-related career get a master's degree. It is the most common level of education achieved by dancers, but it is not required in order to find a career in dance.

A quarter of the dance-related jobs are in choreography—an area that is expected to grow by 3 percent from 2016 to 2026. Choreographers find work at dance studios, with professional companies, on Broadway, or at a variety of smaller entertainment companies. Dance and choreography are found in many areas of entertainment, making it a career path with the potential to be very lucrative.

Dance graduates also work for a variety of performing arts studios around the world. Some dance majors become members of companies while others pursue careers as cruise ship, theme park, or casino performers.

Overall, dance careers are expected to grow 10.8% between 2016 and 2026. Despite this growth in the need for dance, many dancers do not pursue dance in college because of the cost and the fear that they may not be able to pay off their student debt. Dance students earned an average of $20,940 in 2017-2018, making it extremely difficult to pay off their loans. While this may be the case, if you are passionate about dance, scholarships are available that can help to lessen your student debt and help with tuition.

What is a dance scholarship?

A dance scholarship is an award for those who are in an undergraduate or graduate dance program. The student should be enrolled in an accredited college and exhibit artistic excellence or a passion for dance. Scholarship awards will also be available for you even if you are not a dance major but still have a talent for dance.

While some scholarships may require that you study modern dance, ballet, or other performance techniques, there are also general dance scholarships that are available.

Are there scholarships for dance?

Yes, there are plenty of scholarships for those who study dance as well as opportunities for those pursuing other career fields. There are also plenty of art scholarships and performing arts scholarships that dance majors can apply to as well.

On Bold.org, you can find many different types of scholarships that can help undergraduate and graduate students in public health programs.

Can you get a scholarship for dance?

There are plenty of scholarships available exclusively to students who dance. While there are no guarantees that you will win every scholarship you apply for, applying for scholarships on Bold.org is easy and simple, meaning that you can apply for plenty of scholarships with the click of a button.

How to get a dance scholarship

To begin applying for scholarships, click on any of the scholarships listed above. If you have not yet created your free Bold.org profile, the listed scholarships will redirect you, so that you can create an account and begin applying to Bold.org's exclusive scholarships.

The scholarship search features provided on Bold.org can help you find the most relevant scholarships based on your experiences, goals, and skills. You can also use filters to pull up scholarships based on education level, scholarship amount, deadline, and category to help you narrow your search. The bookmark tool can help you save scholarships you are interested in, so you can return later.

Once you've decided on scholarships that fit you best, you can begin applying. The application process is set up to be easy, so all you have to focus on is writing a great essay or submitting other materials like videos or images.

What does it take to get a dance scholarship?

Different scholarships have different requirements for dancers when they apply for their scholarships. Some require dancers to study a specific discipline while others require students to be from a certain identity. Some scholarships also require students to submit a portfolio of their work. While scholarships may have certain requirements, dancers with outstanding talent can find many different scholarships on Bold.org.

Scholarships for dancers in high school

High school is a great time to get started on applying for scholarships. By applying early, high school students can maximize their higher education funding. The earlier you start, the more time you'll have to find and win scholarships. To start applying, click on any of the below scholarships for high school students.

1. Moriah Janae Dance Grant
2. Creative Arts Scholarship
3. Alexis Potts Passion Project Scholarship

Dance scholarships for college students

While many students begin their scholarship search in high school, there are also plenty of scholarships for college students. Whether you're pursuing an undergraduate or graduate program, there are many scholarships that you'll be able to apply for. You can get started with the list below!

1. Creative Arts Scholarship
2. "A Bold Life" No-Essay Scholarship
3. @ESPDaniella Debt Grant
4. Alexis Potts Passion Project Scholarship

Dance scholarships for females

Women make up 79.6% of the dance workforce and are often the target audience for dance scholarships as a result. To help women in dance fund their education, here are a few scholarships that can help.

1. Moriah Janae Dance Grant
2. Ida Nicholson 104 Memorial Scholarship
3. Creative Arts Scholarship

Dance scholarships for males

Even though men make up a smaller portion of the dance workforce, there are many male dancers who need financial assistance to reach their goals. In order to help men who would like to study dance, scholarships are essential. Male dancers can get started with the scholarships below.

1. Moriah Janae Dance Grant
2. Creative Arts Scholarship

Frequently asked questions about dance scholarships

What colleges offer dance scholarships?

In order to win a dance scholarship, you must be enrolled full-time in the school's dance program. Many colleges offer scholarships for those in their dance programs, including Wake Forest University, which offers the Presidential Scholarships for Distinguished Achievement. These scholarships are twenty renewable awards of $16,000.

Other colleges include the University of Maine, which has a Dance Performance Scholarship for students with a dance minor, and Alma College, which has a Performance Scholarship offering $1,500 per year to those studying dance or those on a dance team.

Many schools also offer grants to dancers. Hofstra University offers a Grant in Aid Dance Scholarship which gives students $500 to $5,000 per year.

There are plenty of other schools that have great scholarships and financial aid for dance education, but if you cannot find options in your school, private scholarships like the ones on Bold.org are a great option.

How hard is it to get a dance scholarship?

Like any scholarship, there is a large audience that applies to win dance scholarship awards. This means that it can be difficult to win a dance scholarship, especially when donors are only looking for the most talented dancers. Despite this, there are plenty of scholarships that you can apply to in order to increase your chance of winning.

Can you get a full scholarship for dance?

A full-ride scholarship for dance is available to very few dance students because the scholarships for dance are so competitive. Dancers can also pay large amounts of their tuition by applying to many scholarship programs.

When can I start applying?

It's never too early for dancers to begin applying for scholarships! As soon as you're at least fourteen years old and in high school, you'll start qualifying for scholarships. The sooner you begin applying, the more scholarships you will be able to apply for, boosting your chances of covering all of your financial need.

It's also never too late to apply for scholarships! High school seniors can and should submit scholarship applications, even if it's their last month of high school. Undergraduate and graduate students can continue applying for scholarships throughout their degrees. Recent graduates who have student loans are even eligible to apply for certain scholarships!

How do I know if I'm eligible for a scholarship?

Every scholarship will include a list of eligibility requirements in the description. Eligible students must meet all of the criteria to qualify and apply, so read carefully! Some scholarships have a wide range of eligibility requirements and are less competitive as a result. The fewer eligible applicants a scholarship has, the better your chances of winning will be. 

Eligibility requirements can be anything from race or gender to location or field of study. Students who display academic excellence, leadership, or other positive traits can even qualify for additional scholarships. Additionally, students who demonstrate financial need can unlock scholarships exclusively open to low-income students. 

To make sure you're taking advantage of all of your opportunities, make sure your Bold.org profile is completely filled out. Since Bold.org may block ineligible students from applying for certain scholarships, it's important that your profile accurately reflects your information so you don't miss out on any scholarships.

Before applying, read through all requirements to ensure that you're eligible to apply. Since scholarships often take time and effort to apply for, you want to be sure that you're not wasting time on a scholarship that you're not eligible to receive.

Are scholarships counted as income?

Generally, scholarship money is not counted as income, as long as the money goes to qualified expenses and doesn't exceed your total costs.

The scholarship award must be used for school-related expenses, like tuition and fees, books, and school supplies. Scholarship money is taxable if it is used for other college-related costs like room and board, food, or travel.

Scholarships from Bold.org are sent directly to the school of the winner and applied towards qualifying educational costs, so you don't need to worry about reporting it as income or paying taxes on it.