Engineering Scholarships

Engineering is a complex and growing field. There are many types of engineers including: aerospace engineering, agricultural engineering, architectural engineering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, environmental engineering, industrial engineering, manufacturing engineering, mechanical engineering and more. Studying to be an engineer can be costly, but fortunately there are a lot of scholarship and grant opportunities for interested students.

Here are just a few to choose from:

1. BMW/SAE Engineering Scholarship - This annual scholarship is provided by BMW AG in recognition of its commitment to excellence in engineering. BMW is world famous for designing and building luxury, high-performance passenger cars and motorcycles. This scholarship is in support of the SAE Foundation to ensure an adequate supply of well-trained engineers for the future. One $6,000 scholarship will be awarded at $1,500 per year for four years. A 3.0 grade point average must be maintained to renew the scholarship.

2. Edward D. Hendrickson/SAE Engineering Scholarship - Hendrickson International, a Boler Company, established an endowment to underwrite the scholarship in memory of the late Edward D. Hendrickson. One $4,000 scholarship will be awarded at $1,000 per year for four years. A 3.0 grade point average and continued engineering enrollment must be maintained to renew the scholarship.

3. SAE/Ford Partnership for Advanced Studies Scholarship - The Ford Partnership for Advanced Studies (Ford PAS) Scholarship was developed by the Ford Motor Company Fund. This annual scholarship is provided by Ford Motor Company to high school seniors who are a past or present student of a Ford PAS program at their high school or in a Ford PAS after-school/weekend/summer/college program. This scholarship is in support of the SAE Foundation to ensure an adequate supply of well-trained engineers for the future. One $5,000 scholarship will be awarded in the freshman year only.

4. SAE Women Engineers Committee Scholarship - The SAE Women Engineers Committee established this scholarship to encourage young women graduating from high school to enter the field of engineering. They are committed to increasing the diversity of SAE membership, especially by promoting the participation and leadership of women. Applicants must be female, have a 3.0 grade point average and be accepted into an ABET accredited engineering program. One $2,000 scholarship will be awarded for the freshman year only.

5. Tau Beta Pi/SAE Engineering Scholarship - The Tau Beta Pi Association, the engineering honor society, is the world's largest engineering society. Founding in 1885 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Tau Beta Pi has initiated more than 492,000 members in 122 years.
Six scholarships valued at $1,000 each will be awarded for the freshman year only.

6. TMC/SAE Donald D. Dawson Technical Scholarship - SAE and The Maintenance Council of American Trucking Association have established this technical education scholarship to honor the leadership of Donald D. Dawson. One scholarship will be awarded each year. The student will receive $1,500 a year for up to four years as long as a 3.0 grade point average and continuing engineering enrollment is maintained.

7. Fred M. Young Sr./SAE Engineering Scholarship - The Young Radiator Company established this scholarship in memory of the company's founder, Fred M. Young, Sr. Mr. Young started the company in 1927 and saw it grow to become a major force in the field of Heat Transfer. One $4,000 scholarship will be awarded at $1,000 per year for four years. A 3.0 grade point average and continued engineering enrollment must be maintained to renew the scholarship.

8. Detroit Section SAE Technical Scholarship - Established in 2001, this scholarship is sponsored by the SAE Detroit Section to encourage children and grandchildren of current Detroit Section members to pursue careers in engineering or the sciences. The Section recognizes that there is a need for more student candidates in these fields, as a shortage of qualified graduates is expected in future years.

Two $3,500 renewable freshman scholarship will be awarded. Student must maintain a 2.5 grade point average and remain in good standing at the college or university in order to qualify for scholarship renewal. A student having completed a two-year program may continue for an additional consecutive two years at a second school offering a complete engineering or science baccalaureate degree program.

Evelyn Saunders, a retired teacher, is the editor for student-loans.net, a provider of private student loans and information on student loans and consolidation. For more information, please visit http://www.student-loans.net

Minimize the Impact of Student Loan Debt

Most students graduate from college with some kind of debt, with many carrying both student loan and credit card debt. Student loans are widely considered to be “good” debt because they reflect an investment in your ability to make more money in the future. Although being $20,000 in student loan debt may be considered “better” than being $20,000 in credit card debt, both represent a huge responsibility, the magnitude of which most students in their late teens and early twenties do not have the life experience to understand. Even if student loans are necessary to help cover the ever rising cost of a college education, as in many cases they are, the availability of other means of financial aid can help reduce the debt a student incurs from student loans.

Earning a scholarship for college can alleviate some or the entire burden associated with college expenses. Even a small scholarship award will save you money in the long run and is worth exploring. Scholarships are usually awarded to students who qualify based on academic, athletic or artistic achievements, though they can also be awarded for other reasons. Scholarships are sponsored and do not have to be repaid by the recipient, making them a great way to minimize or prevent student loan debt.

Scholarships are extremely competitive. In order to be eligible for a scholarship, a student must maintain consistently outstanding performance throughout high school. It is a good idea not to base your college financial planning solely on the expectation of a scholarship for one talent, for instance, athletic ability. Even if you are an MVP likely to be awarded an athletic scholarship, you still need acceptable grades and performance on standardized tests in order to qualify, not to mention a safety net in the event that you become injured and cannot participate in your sport. Involvement in clubs and organizations is also important for many scholarships.

Another way you may be able to reduce the amount you borrow for student loans is determining whether you qualify for financial aids or grants, which unlike student loans, do not have to be repaid. Federal Student Aid, an office of the U.S. Department of Education, distributes financial aid totaling over $80 billion per year, according to http://federalstudentaid.ed.gov. To find out if you qualify, fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at the Federal Student Aid website within the designated timeframe.

While student loans can be an excellent means of propelling your education and future career prospects, you are ultimately responsible for repaying the amounts you borrow. Exploring every avenue for reducing those amounts is effort for which you will thank yourself later.

About the Author: Evelyn Saunders, a retired teacher, is the editor for student-loans.net, a provider of private student loans and information on student loans and consolidation. For more information, please visit http://www.student-loans.net

Taking your education abroad – check out these scholarships

If you have always wanted to go to college in another country, study other cultures and practice a foreign langue, there are two outstanding scholarships available for just that.

The first is the David L. Boren Undergraduate Scholarships. The National Security Education Program (NSEP) David L. Boren Scholarships is for undergraduates from the United States so that they can study abroad. The award is for the sudy of world regions critical to U.S. interests (including Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin American & the Caribbean, and the Middle East). The countries of Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand are excluded.

NSEP focuses on fields of study deemed critical to U.S. national security. It draws on a broad definition of national security, recognizing that the scope of national security has expanded to include not only the traditional concerns of protecting and promoting American well-being, but also the challenges of global society, including: sustainable development, environmental degradation, global disease and hunger, population growth and migration, and economic competitiveness.
International Focus

NSEP also emphasizes the importance of language study as a major component of your study abroad program. Study of a foreign language appropriate to the identified country is an integral part of each proposal. In addition, students must meet any language requirements of the study abroad experience proposed.

Since NSEP encourages students to study in countries whose languages are less commonly taught at U.S. institutions, it is anticipated that many students will not be familiar with the language of their chosen country. Prior study of another language will serve as an indication of interest and aptitude.

If you have an advanced-level proficiency in Chinese or Russian, you are eligible for support under the Boren Scholarship to participate in the Chinese or Russian Language Flagship Overseas Program.


The second scholarship opportunity is the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program. The Gilman International Scholarship Program offers a competition for awards for undergraduate study abroad and was established by the International Academic Opportunity Act of 2000. This scholarship provides awards for U.S. undergraduate students who are receiving federal Pell Grant funding at a 2-year or 4-year college or university to participate in study abroad programs worldwide.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, this congressionally funded program is administered by the Institute of International Education through its Southern Regional Center in Houston, TX.

International experience is critically important in the educational and career development of American students, but it can also require a substantial financial investment. The Gilman Scholarship Program broadens the student population that studies abroad by supporting undergraduates who might not otherwise participate due to financial constraints. The program aims to encourage students to choose non-traditional study abroad destinations, especially those outside of Western Europe and Australia. The Gilman scholarship aims to support students who have been traditionally under-represented in study abroad. The program seeks to assist students from a diverse range and type of public and private institutions from all 50 states.

820 scholarships of up to $5,000 will be awarded this academic year for U.S. citizen undergraduates to study abroad. Award amounts will vary depending on the length of study and student need with the average award being $4,000. Undergraduate students who are receiving federal Pell Grant funding at 2-year or 4-year colleges or universities are eligible to apply.

Students who apply for and receive the Gilman Scholarship to study abroad are now eligible to receive an additional $3,000 Critical Need Language Supplement from the Gilman Program for a total possible award of up to $8,000. 25 Critical Need Language Supplements will be offered to Gilman Scholarship recipients during the 2007-2008 academic year.

Critical Need Languages include:

* Arabic (all dialects)
* Chinese (all dialects)
* Turkic (Azerbaijani, Kazakh, Kyrgz, Turkish, Turkmen, Uzbek)
* Persian (Farsi, Dari, Kurdish, Pashto, Tajiki)
* Indic (Hindi, Urdu, Nepali, Sinhala, Bengali, Punjabi, Marathi, Gujarati, Sindhi)
* Korean
* Russian

Evelyn Saunders, a retired teacher, is the editor for student-loans.net, a provider of private student loans and information on student loans and consolidation. For more information, please visit http://www.student-loans.net