myUface Blog

A variety of private organizations in the United States offer a limited amount of support to international students for study at U.S. universities.  Generally speaking, there are two kinds of organizations that you might want to look for:

1. Private foundations will often offer scholarship support to students working to fulfill the foundation’s mission.  Some examples:the American Association of University Women offers master’s-level and doctorate fellowships to “women who are not United States citizens or permanent residents.”  The Ford Foundation offers International Fellowships to professionals from a variety of countries for master’s-level or doctoral study in the U.S.
2. Independent, non-profit organizations will administer scholarship or fellowship programs for other funders. Many governments, foundations or international organizations prefer to have independent organizations administer the scholarships or fellowships they fund.  Therefore, these organizations are a good source of information about potential scholarship opportunities.  Generally speaking, organizations of this kind will have expertise in a particular region (example:  Eurasia), and their scholarship programs will be limited to countries in that region.  Examples: The East-West Center administers a number of scholarship and fellowship opportunities, both with their own funds and with support from the U.S. government, the Ford Foundation, and the Asian Development Bank.

We’ll cover how to research these (and other) opportunities in a later post.  For now, I want to mention a few quick points:

1. Most of the support private organizations in the U.S. offer is in the form of graduate fellowships for master’s-level study.  If you’re looking for an undergraduate degree, there’s not as much available from these sources.
2. The number of private organizations that offer support of this kind is very small, and as a result competition for their awards is very intense.  Be prepared.

Posts in this Series

1. Your Education is an Investment - 08 Jul
2. Researching Scholarship Opportunities - 07 Jul
3. How to Ask Questions About Financial Aid - 28 Jun
4. Ninth Option for Financial Aid: Loans - 27 Jun
5. The Difference Between Scholarships and Fellowships - 26 Jun
6. Eigth Option for Financial Aid: U.S. Universities - 25 Jun
7. Seventh Option for Financial Aid: Ethnic Communities in the United States - 24 Jun
8. Sixth Option for Financial Aid: Private Organizations in the U.S. (This post)
9. Fifth Option for Financial Aid: U.S. Government Programs - 22 Jun
10. Fourth Option for Financial Aid: Scholarships from International Organizations - 20 Jun
11. How to Ask for Support - 18 Jun
12. Looking for Support in Your Country: Why it Makes Sense - 17 Jun
13. Third Option for Financial Aid: Individuals in Your Country - 16 Jun
14. Second Option for Financial Aid: Private Businesses or Foundations in Your Country - 15 Jun
15. First Option for Financial Aid: Government Programs in Your Country - 14 Jun
16. The Third Step in Financial Aid: Find What's Available - 11 Jun
17. The Second Step In Financial Aid: Identify Your Assets - 10 Jun
18. The First Step In Financial Aid: Identify Your Needs - 09 Jun
19. Finding Financial Aid for your U.S. Education - 08 Jun