Next week it will be March, the month that has the most scholarship deadlines of the year. Once April rolls around, the options for scholarships and other free money for furthering your education will be considerably more limited, so students pursuing the following three fields should take full advantage of the opportunity to find free money for college — and use the month of March to prepare.
Don’t limit yourself to searching by college major or by a musical instrument or sport you play. Instead, perform a free college scholarship search online to find all of the awards for which you qualify.
[Know what to do before, during and after the scholarship search.]
— Biology: This very popular major has many applications and career possibilities upon graduation. It is a great premedical undergraduate pursuit and will prepare you for anything that involves medical science or practice. It is also great preparation for pursuing an academic career, perhaps in lab science or as a science educator.
And, women majors may find even more biology scholarship opportunities than their male counterparts, since women are generally underrepresented in STEM fields.
Don’t let the April 1 deadline fool you; the AACT John Kitt Scholarship is for real. This is a sweet chance at $5,000 for sophomores, juniors and seniors majoring in just a few areas , including biological science. Candidates must have a minimum 3.0 GPA and be attending an accredited, four-year college or university in the U.S., and have an interest in confectionery — candy — technology.
[Find scholarships to feed a curiosity in STEM subjects.]
— Nursing: This historically critical field has been one where majors have typically easily found employment upon successful completion of their education. Increasingly, nurses provide more of the critical care patients require, and are getting more acknowledgement for the difficult and important job they perform and the purpose they serve in hospitals, private practices and elsewhere.
People who succeed in this field generally possess compassion, but also the mental toughness that allows them to deal with the rigors of the job. By the end of their sophomore year, nursing majors are in clinical rotations in hospitals, so the turnaround is very quick. Those majoring in nursing also have quite a few options for specializations. From pediatrics to geriatrics and everything in between, including oncology and neurology, there are dozens of options awaiting nursing majors upon graduation.
There are also scholarships to help future nurses get to graduation. The Church of the Brethren nursing scholarship, for example, offers up to $2,000 for registered nurse and graduate nurse candidates and up to $1,000 for licensed practical nurse candidates, but just to a limited number of applicants each year. Candidates for the scholarships must be enrolled in an LPN, RN or nursing graduate program, and be members of the Church of the Brethren. The deadline to apply is April 1.
— Education: This popular major is another very traditional and important one. Like nursing, the field requires individuals to possess a high degree of empathy and also a certain mental toughness to succeed. Also, the options are many, depending upon the subject you wish to teach, as well as the level at which you would like to educate students, from grade school to grad school and all things in between. Of course, college-level teaching is going to require further education beyond undergrad.
[Discover scholarships for educators.]
There are scholarships available for education majors, too. The $2,500 “Inspire Our Future” scholarship from Teacher.org is available annually to a deserving student who wishes to pursue a career in education. Applicants must be currently enrolled in college, 18 years of age or older, with a minimum 3.5 GPA and majoring in education. The award may only be used for full-time study at an accredited college in the U.S. A 500-700 word essay is required, and the application deadline is April 1.
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Pay for 3 Popular Majors With Specialized Scholarships originally appeared on usnews.com