Universities That Offer Scholarships to the International Students in USA

full scholarships for international students in usa universities

Scholarships for International Students in USA

Before planning to leave your home or country for USA education it is necessary to check how to finance it. Because we all know that Education/study in USA are expensive. As some of us known that many Universities, colleges as well as consultancy of USA provide scholarships to international students for their education. We need scholarships to finance our study and so scholarships for international students in USA is a great way to gain financial aid for foreign students. As per the Fulbright Commission more than 600 USA universities give scholarship to international students. The international students are assessed on the basis of their extracurricular contribution/merit list or financial requirements.

Types of Scholarships for International Students in USA:

  • University scholarships– Your choice of college / school should be based on your funding and after considering scholarship programs.
  • Financial Scholarship – These scholarships are based on financial need of the students. Only few universities provide need based scholarships.
  • Privately Funded Scholarship – Scholarships or funds provided by Private Businesses or Fund Providers.
  • Merit Scholarship – These are provided based on your high merits like on Academics, Sports or excellence in other fields.
  • Country based Scholarship – These are funds based on students from developing countries.
  • Government Funded Scholarship – Scholarships or funds offered or provided by US government based on international students programs.

We describe the various types of Scholarships for International Students in USA in above points. As per their type they give you various kinds of scholarships for study. Some of them are only gives you living expense, some of them are only gives you tuition fee while some provide the partial cash grant for only those courses which include tuition fee and living expense and also insurance, book allowance, travel cost, etc. Before we discuss about the fully funded and under graduate scholarship let’s have look about some famous scholarships in USA.

  • AVVO Scholarship Program
  • Annual CGTRADER Scholarship
  • BERKELEY College International Student Scholarship
  • College Week LIVE
  • CAPPEX American Scholarships
  • Federal Student AID Types
  • collegescholarships.org
  • FULBRIGHT FOREIGN Student Program
  • GOTCHOSEN
  • GLOBAL Scholarships for International Students
  • Organization of American State –the Leo S. Rown Pan American Fund
  • MINDSumo
  • Sport-scholarships.com
  • Scholars4DEV
  • The Brokerfish Scholarship for University Students
  • The Ultimate Scholarship Guide

The fully funded scholarship gives most of your study expense. So let’s take brief idea about Fully Funded Scholarships for International Students in USA.

Universities That Offer Scholarships to the International Students in USA

American University – Their AU Emerging Global Leader Scholarship Program awards merit based scholarships to international students with on continued satisfactory academic performance, leadership development, and global engagement. They also offers partial merit scholarships to international students based on academically excellence and community service. For the 2016-2017, scholarships ranged from U.S. $6,000 to U.S. $25,000 per academic year. The scholarships are renewable for a total of four years of undergraduate study.  No need-based financial aid is available to international students (non-U.S.).

University of Arkansas – They offer different types of funding opportunities for international students of varying backgrounds and nationalities.

Amherst College – Amherst College currently runs a need-based financial aid program that provides assistance to financially needy international students.  The funding can be called an “aid package” because it may include both self-help (employment) and gift aid (scholarships and grants). They grant assistance and also offers $2,200 in an employment opportunity

Brandeis University – They provide the “full demonstrated financial need of each recipient” of its international scholarship, including one round-trip air ticket each year. Their popular scholarship program is WIEN INTERNATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM. Wien Scholars are identified by their academic achievement, their contributions inside and outside of the classroom during, and after their years at Brandeis.

Berea College – They are the only school in USA that provides 100% funding to every enrolled international students for the first year of enrollment. After that, students are expected to save $1,000 per year to contribute to their expenses. The college also provides summer jobs for international students to help meet this target.

Clark University – They provide merit based scholarships for international students applying to your first year of undergraduate study. They have merit based scholarships and In addition to this, they have many other scholarships to go for.

Colby-Sawyer College – Colby-Sawyer College offers merit-based financial aid for International. The scholarship value increases based on academic ability (measured in GPA). They also provide different scholarship options.

Columbia College – Columbia College offers merit based scholarships and awards to outstanding international students calculated on GPA. Every year Columbia College hosts a Scholarship Day competition for students to compete for one of ten Presidential Scholarships, each worth full tuition.

Concordia College – Concordia offers the partial financial assistance to international students who contributes to enhance education on campus. The International Student Scholarship is based on academic ability and family need, amounting up to $25,000 per year.

Dartmouth College – They has scholarships and loans for international students, including their travel to the US. International applicants must apply and demonstrate financial need at the time of application.

East Tennessee State University – ETSU offers the International Students Academic Merit Scholarship for new international students seeking a graduate or undergraduate degree. The scholarship covers 50 percent of the total of in and out-of-state tuition and maintenance fees only. No additional fees or costs are covered. The scholarship award can only be used for study at ETSU. Some other scholarship funding are also available.

Emory University – Emory College offers need-based financial aid awards to a select group of international students each year.

Harvard University – They offers a range of scholarships for international students from all over the globe. Britons undertaking graduate study or research. Fellows receive free tuition and health insurance, as well as a contribution towards living costs.

Illinois Wesleyan University – They offers tuition waivers, merit awards and graduate assistantships to incoming international students.  They offer scholarships to qualified international applicants with outstanding academics and test scores on the entrance exams.

Illinois State University International Awards – Illinois State offers tuition waivers, merit awards and graduate assistantships to incoming international students.

Iowa State University – They offers limited number of merit scholarships for international students and selection is competitive based on a holistic review of SAT or ACT scores or GPA.  The awards range from $2,000 to $10,000 per year and are renewable.

Michigan State University – They have various grants and scholarships for international students to study in the US at MSU such as Global Spartan Leadership programme for incoming international freshmen at MSU.

University of Minnesota – They offer $5,000 and $10,000 each year for up to 4 years per year based on specific criteria and also have a undergraduate research scholarship for up to $1700 for international students.

University of Nebraska – Lincoln offers tuition waivers to international students that have outstanding academic performance and contribute to extra-curricular activities.

New York University – NYU WAGNER MERIT SCHOLARSHIPS offers a number of competitive, merit-based scholarships to help students finance your degree.  The scholarships involve partial to full tuition scholarships ranging from $25,000 to $47,000.

University of Oregon – University of Oregon, offers financial aid for international students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.  They have a range of scholarships including ICSP scholarship which awards 30–40 competitive scholarships to international students each year applying to tuition only and range from $7,500–$30,000 per year. International Dean’s Excellence Award (IDEA) is a merit-based, partial-tuition scholarship awarded to new international undergraduate applicants.

University of Wisconsin – They offers hefty discounts on tuition fees through its Non-Resident Tuition Waiver (NTW) programme for most international students studying on the University of Wisconsin.

Wesleyan University Scholarships – Financial aid for foreign students, however, is extremely limited and is awarded on the basis of both exceptional qualifications and demonstrated need. The Freeman Asian Scholars Program, provides full tuition scholarships for a four-year course of study at Wesleyan toward a bachelor’s degree for 11 exceptionally able Asian students. In addition to the 11 Freeman Asian Scholars, the University is expected to offer financial assistance to approximately 30 foreign students from a pool of approximately 600 such applicants.

University of the West Scholarships – The University of the West offers scholarships to new international students who achieve high academic standards and demonstrate a financial need such as the President’s and Dean’s scholarships. Scholarship recipients will have the full cost of tuition waived for 7.5-15 undergraduate or 6-12 graduate units per semester.

Berkeley College – Berkeley College international student scholarships are awarded based on both financial need and past academic history. Scholarship awards are non-transferable, and must be used for the quarter and for the location for which you are accepted. Scholarship recipients must maintain a minimum Grade Point Average of 3.0 and full-time degree seeking status.

This is not the only list of the scholarships available in the US for international students, but you can consider these while applying. Always check you institution of choice for the aid available for international students.

USA Government Scholarships for International Students 

Fulbright Foreign Students Program

The Fulbright Foreign Students Program is important scholarships for international students who want get their PhD or Master degree in USA. The scholarships can also be awarded for non-degree postgraduate studies. Generally in this type of scholarship the government gives health insurance, airfare, tuition fee, living expense, etc. The Fully Funded scholarship/Fulbright program gives you funding for the duration of the study. The Fulbright Foreign Student Program is administered by binational Fulbright Commissions/Foundations or U.S. Embassies.

Humphrey Fellowship Program

The Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Program provides a year of non-degree graduate-level study, leadership development, and professional collaboration with U.S. counterparts for mid –career or experienced professionals selected from designated countries throughout the world to  the United States. The fellowships are full grants covering all related expenses.

Under Graduate Scholarships for International Students in USA:

The UG level scholarships are available for those students who completed their schooling and now looking for their degree. The various colleges and universities in USA provide various courses like, Commerce to science, engineering to arts, Social Studies to humanity etc. The Under Graduate Scholarships for International Students in USA is valid for only those students who meets the eligibility criteria of Scholarship as well as successfully fill up the application form for particular course.

Before applying for study you think about visa. Without VISA students cannot go to USA for international study and part-time work. For this students need F1 Visa. The F1 Visa is a non-immigration visa for those who study in USA. Before applying for study in USA students must have F1 visa. So students who want to study or stay in USA must have immigration or temporary visa by US department state. Students who have F-1 visa allowed to work in the USA only some conditions.

So, till now we saw the Scholarships for International Students in USA. Now after getting scholarship what about job assurance. For International Students who study in USA have very good job opportunities. Job finding after graduation is not easy task for all students. There are many type of job opportunities available to you in USA.

Job opportunities for International Students in USA

  • On Campus employment
  • Off-Campus employment
  • Search job location wise
  • You can take advantage of your school’s resources
  • You can apply for the optional Practical training
  • Networking power
  • OPT (Optional Practical Training)
  • CPT (Curricular Practical Training)
  • And last but not least your resume says it all

So, these are job opportunities to all international students. Let’s have talk about the most famous training which OPT and CPT.

OPT (Optional Practical Training):

Students who have F1 immigration are valid for work off campus in OPT Jobs for international Students in USA both during and after completion of their degree. Students can apply for OPT after being enroll for at least 9 months. You cannot begin employment until you get the EAD from US government. Below we give some general requirements for OPT.

  • Must maintain lawful F1 status by students
  • OPT is directly related to student’s major
  • Students who have appointed in 12 months or more are not allowed for CPT

CPT (Curricular Practical Training):

The Curricular Practical Training is an off campus employment options for those students who have F1.It is also known as alternative work/study, internship, cooperative education for international students in USA. Only those students have CPT internship opportunities who have work experience for the degree or academic credit.