23 Scholarships Just for Women

About scholarships for women

Even today, women face a unique set of struggles in both academia and the workforce. While female college students have recently begun to outnumber their male peers, making up more than 56% of current college students, they are still underrepresented in many fields. STEM jobs, for example, are often male-dominated, especially when it comes to high-paying jobs in engineering or computer science.

Additionally, female students owe a disproportionate amount of the national student loan debt, collectively owing $929 billion, which is nearly two-thirds of the total student debt in the US.

This uneven distribution of student loans places even more of a burden on female students when considering the wage gap. On average, women make significantly less money than their male counterparts, for women with a college education make an average of about only 74 cents for every even dollar that men with a college education earn. In high-paying fields, the wage gap is even more prominent, with men sometimes earning up to 43% more than women. 

Many factors contribute to the persisting wage gap, including the fact that women are underrepresented in leadership positions, which are often high-paying roles. For every 100 men promoted to manager positions, only 79 women are. Gender bias plays a large role in this discrepancy, and men are more likely to be hired for entry-level work, resulting in fewer women being considered for promotions.

Fortunately, scholarships for women can help close the gap in both employment and wages, encouraging women to pursue male-dominated fields, such as STEM, and supporting women as they seek high-paying jobs. Scholarships can help reduce or eliminate the need for student loans, making it easier for female students to complete their degrees. Furthermore, women scholarships help make it more feasible for female graduate students to partake and excel in their college education, helping them break into high-paying, male-dominated fields. 

To make your search for scholarship funds easier, we’ve created this list of scholarships for women at all levels of education. You can start applying by clicking one of the opportunities above! This list is a great place to start if you’re looking for scholarships, but you can find even more exclusive scholarships on bold.org.

Why is there still a wage gap?

While women are becoming increasingly educated, they often make less money due to a continuation of underrepresentation in high-paying jobs and leadership positions. Only 79 women are promoted to manager positions for every 100 men that are, partially because women are less likely to be hired for entry-level work, which results in fewer women for an organization to promote when the time comes. 

Additionally, many jobs are still gendered, and female-dominated jobs are much more likely to be low-paying. Out of the 30 lowest-paying jobs in the United States, 23 are female-dominated. In comparison, of the 30 highest-paying jobs, 26 are male-dominated. It can be difficult for women to break into male-dominated fields, which perpetuates the gender gap further through generations.

How important are scholarships for women in closing the gender gap?

The gender gap persists in both employment and wages, but scholarships can be part of the solution for these students. Scholarships for women will provide opportunities for female students looking to get the most out of their education by pursuing careers in male-dominated fields, such as STEM, and helping women strive for high-paying jobs. Though women are becoming even more educated than men, many jobs are more out of reach due to the lack of female representation in these industries. 

Our exclusive scholarships for women are designed to support you and other women toward their goals in and out of the classroom and past oppressive societal gender barriers.

How to qualify for scholarships for women

To begin applying for Bold.org's scholarships for women, simply create your free profile on Bold.org by clicking on any of the many scholarships above. From there, you can filter different categories to find scholarships that you are eligible for.

The main qualification for female scholarships is to identify as a woman. There are many different scholarships for women that only have the gender requirement. With that being said, different scholarships have different requirements that take race, education level, career path, and whether you demonstrate financial aid into account. Make sure that in applying for scholarships, you pay attention to the requirements outside of being a female student.

Types of scholarships available for female students

Some scholarships are specialized to encourage women who are pursuing different careers. Female students are being encouraged to go into fields that are generally male-dominated, such as STEM fields. Women engineers and computer science majors are in high demand.

There are other specific scholarships for female students, including scholarships for women interested in or currently in medical school, those interested in different arts, etc. At the same time, there are scholarships tailored to women of different educational levels. Some scholarships are open to high schoolers, undergraduate and graduate students, while others are specifically for female high school seniors, graduate students, or women enrolled in an undergraduate program at an accredited university.

How to find scholarships for women

Once you have created your free Bold.org profile, you can start to find scholarships that you are eligible for. By choosing the "Women" category, you will be provided with a list of scholarships specifically created to help women pursue a college degree.

Check the eligibility requirements and descriptions of the scholarship you are looking to apply for to see if you are among the eligible applicants. You can start searching for scholarship opportunities in the above list of scholarships for women.

When to start applying for scholarships

It is never too early for high school students and college students alike to begin applying for scholarships since Bold.org provides many scholarships for female students at every level of education. Many students start the search in high school, as you don't need to wait until college to begin looking for financial assistance through scholarships or elsewhere. Scholarships aren't reserved for high school seniors, so you can begin applying to scholarships for women at any point in high school.

At the same time, it’s never too late for students enrolled in college to apply for women scholarships. Whether you’re pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree, there are college scholarships open specifically for women. There are plenty of scholarships to apply to in college, so go to Bold.org for even more scholarship opportunities and send any further questions to contact@bold.org. The sooner you apply, the more money you can win to help avoid student loans when pursuing your college degree.

What to consider when applying for scholarships

You won't win every scholarship you apply for, but that's okay! The more you apply for scholarships, the more likely you are to win. It can seem difficult to win scholarships when there are many other students applying for the same opportunities, but don't be discouraged. There are ways to improve your chances of winning scholarships for women.

As you seek to increase your chances of winning scholarships for women, remember that there are many scholarship opportunities on Bold.org. To help your chances of winning women scholarships, continue down to read our tips for winning scholarships.

How to apply for women scholarships

Applying for scholarships on Bold.org takes only a few simple steps. Start by creating your free Bold.org profile. Clicking on any of the listed scholarships will lead you to where you can create an account and begin accessing Bold.org's hundreds of scholarships for women.

From there, you can begin to browse the scholarship opportunities on Bold.org. Use features such as filters to help you sort through scholarships for women that apply to your interests and future career paths. The bookmark feature helps you set aside scholarships you are interested in to come back to later.

Once you've found scholarships that work for you, begin applying. The scholarship application processes are set up specifically to make applying as easy as possible so that you can apply for many scholarships.

Tips for winning scholarships for women

Some students choose not to apply for as many scholarships as they could because they don't believe they have a good chance of winning. However, if you use these tips while applying for scholarships, you can increase your odds of earning a scholarship.

Apply for scholarships for women as early as possible

Bold.org is posting new scholarships consistently, giving countless opportunities that come and go within a few months. Therefore, the sooner you begin applying, the more scholarships would be available for you over time. This way, you can apply for as many scholarships as you want without worrying about submitting applications all at one time of the year.

Apply to as many scholarships as you can

Many of the scholarships for women don't require any application materials, such as no-essay scholarships that just require a few clicks to apply. Therefore, many students apply for these scholarships. It can be hard to stand out in every application, making it important for you to apply to plenty of scholarships. The more scholarship opportunities you apply for, the more likely you are to win one. Applying to many scholarships increases your probability of acquiring scholarship money.

Apply to scholarships with more eligibility requirements

An additional way to increase your chances of winning a scholarship is to apply to scholarships that have more eligibility requirements. For example, scholarships specifically for women in computer science, scholarships that require community service experience, or scholarships specifically for young women in an undergraduate program.

These scholarships are therefore open to fewer female students. The fewer eligible applicants there are, the less competition there is for the scholarship, increasing your odds of being selected.

Put effort into your essays

There are many scholarships for female students that require short essays. In order to make your application stand out, eligible applicants are advised to put time into their answers. Take time to think about what you are going to write, and once you write your essay, proofread what you've written to eliminate spelling and grammar errors. Whether you are a female high school student or a student at an accredited college, it is important you put effort into your essay, for a good essay can make the difference between winning and being overlooked.

Increase the strength of your Bold.org profile

Another way to increase your chances of winning scholarships for women is to make your profile on Bold.org strong. Donors look for profiles that are fully filled out, with detailed descriptions. The more thoroughly you fill in your Bold profile and the more Bold Points you have, the more likely you are to attract the attention of those deciding on scholarship winners.