Are you a current high school student starting to look at college next year, but wondering how to financially pull it off while living with health crud? Do you know one?
Here’s a great collection of financial resources for chronically fabulous students looking at or attending college.
General
Of course, FastWeb is one of the largest sites talking about college funding. Visit their page around illness and disability scholarships.
The College Grants Database has a large selection of grants and scholarships for disabled students. They even have some for graduate school.
Iowa Compass: Center for Disabilities and Development has a comprehensive list of scholarships for both general disability/illness and specific conditions.
Of all places, Needy Meds has a large list of scholarships for various college and graduate levels.
Gabriel’s Foundation of Hope gives out several $500 scholarships each year.
The Patient Advocate Foundation has a scholarship for students who are patients or have patients in their family.
Specific
If you live with a mental illness, make sure to check out these 25 Great College Scholarships for Students Living with Mental Illness.
Have an inflammatory disease like Still’s Disease or Colitis? Check out the Abbvie Immunology Scholarship. They give away 45 scholarships each year of $15,000. (I wish I had this in college!)
You can snag a $500 scholarship from Lupus Inspiration Foundation for Excellence (L.I.F.E.) if you have lupus.
The Michael Yasick ADHD Scholarship is awarded each year to undergraduate students living with ADHD.
If you have ADHD or a learning disability, make sure to check out the scholarships available from the National Center for Learning Disabilities.
Do you have diabetes? Check out the Diabetes Scholars Foundation’s college scholarship.
If you currently have cancer or have survived it, you should definitely check out the scholarship from the Cancer Survivors’ Fund.
Cancer for College has a number of scholarships for cancer patients and survivors.
Regardless of if you’re a cancer patient/survivor or have lost a parent to cancer, the National Collegiate Cancer Foundation has a scholarship for you.
The National Children’s Cancer Society has an Ambassador Scholarship Program which gives 40 scholarships of $3500 each out.
The Michael A. Hunter Memorial Scholarship is offered to patients who live with leukemia/lymphoma or have a parent who does.
Legally blind? Make sure to visit the Lighthouse Guild to learn more about their $10,000 scholarships.
The Elaine Chapin Fund gives out scholarships to students affected by Multiple Sclerosis (MS), either personally or in their family.
The National MS Society has scholarships for first-time college students affected by MS, whether it affects the student themselves or a family member.
The PDSA (Platelet Disorder Support Association), which focuses on people with ITP, gives out $1500 scholarships in addition to free passes to their yearly conference.
You can find a list of scholarships for bleeding disorders at the National Hemophilia Foundation’s site.
Have a Primary Immune Deficiency Disease? Check out this scholarship from the Immune Deficiency Foundation.
Shire offers two scholarships – one for ADHD patients ($2000 and coaching) and another for rare disease patients ($5000).
Have alopecia? Check out the “This Is Me” scholarship.
The Aplastic Anemia and MDS International Foundation offers a couple of scholarships.
Location-based
If you live in Washington or Oregon, visit Incight to learn more about their scholarship.
Live in or around Washington DC? Project Ascend is a non-profit that provides community support and scholarships for students that are marginalized, disadvantaged, and disabled.
If you have lupus and live in Florida, check out the Michael Jon Barlin Scholarship.
Have T1D and live in Ohio? Check out the Thomas J. Seefred Trust Scholarship.
The Diabetes Hope Foundation provides scholarships for Canadian students.
Tips
Make sure to apply for as many scholarships as you’re able to.
Always check with your intended college(s) on what funding opportunities they may have as well as what requirements you must meet to receive and maintain funding.
Talk to your campus’ disability representatives as well on what accommodations they’ll be able to provide for you. Don’t forget that this might include housing, meal plans, moving courses to more accessible/centralized buildings, and more.
Check with your guidance counselor at school as well as on sites like FastWeb for scholarships in your community.
If you need to write an essay for an application, ask others to look at it and review/edit. (You can always reach out to me as well!)
Good luck!!
Applying is always the right decision. I applied several years ago and out of the blue was awarded $10,000 from UCB. It was amazing. I was so excited. After almost 15 years of college I was finally awarded a scholarship. Hey who knew? There is only one sure outcome in seeking scholarships. If you do not apply you will not be approved.