10 Scholarships Available for DACA-Eligible Students

Check out these 10 great scholarships that students can apply to regardless of US citizenship, meaning all undocumented students are eligible. Start applying now!

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is an immigration policy that was established in 2012. The policy allows individuals who were brought to the United States as children to be protected under a renewable deferred action plan from deportation. DACA students can become eligible to work in the United States but unfortunately aren’t eligible for federal student aid. Although some state or college aid may be available to assist DACA students, the cost of college can still be a burden for families. However, DACA students can be eligible for private scholarships from companies, organizations, and foundations, which can significantly reduce the cost of pursuing higher education. When searching for scholarships as a DACA student, use search terms or phrases such as:

  • DACA scholarship
  • International scholarship
  • Worldwide scholarship

To get you started, here’s a list of 10 scholarships that are open to DACA students.

1. Hispanic Scholarship Fund

The Hispanic Scholarship Fund is open to high school seniors as well as community college, undergraduate, and graduate students of Hispanic heritage, and DACA students are eligible. High school students must have a minimum 3.0 GPA, and college students must have a minimum 2.5 GPA. All majors and career fields being pursued are accepted; however, they do promote an emphasis on STEM majors. The deadline to submit your application is February 15, and awards are up to $5,000.

Related: List: Private Four-Year Hispanic-Serving Institutions

2. Becca’s Closet Scholarships

The organization Becca’s Closet offers need-based community service scholarships for high school seniors. US citizens, legal residents, and DACA students are eligible to win these awards, of which there are three for students to apply to. Students must have a minimum GPA of 2.0 The award amount varies, and the deadline is May 8.

3. Elena Bathrick Scholarship

This scholarship from the Marie Maxey Foundation is open to Hispanic and Latin American students who have been accepted or are currently attending a two-year or four-year college in the United States. The award is $500, which may not seem like a lot in comparison to other awards, but every little bit helps! The deadline for applications is December 15.

4. Dulce Deinken Scholarship

Also offered from the Marie Maxey Foundation, this scholarship follows the same parameters as its sister-scholarship, accepting applications from Hispanic and Latin American students who will be or are already attending a two-year or four-year college. To apply, students must write an essay on the most important Hispanic women in their life. The award is also $500, but the deadline for this one is December 31.

Related: How to Expand Your Reach and Find Scholarships in Hidden Places

5. Golden Door Scholarship

The Golden Door Scholarship is for DACA undocumented students who are high school seniors and current undergraduates. Applicants must have a high GPA and have demonstrated both leadership skills and community service commitment. The award is up to $40,000, and the deadline is October 23.

6. Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards

Multiple Hispanic Heritage Youth Award scholarships are open to high school seniors of Hispanic heritage—including Spain, Brazil, and the Philippines—who are US citizens or DACA eligible. Students must have at least a 3.0 GPA. Awards up to $15,000 are awarded in the categories of business and finance, education, engineering, entrepreneurship, health care and science, media and entertainment, social justice, and technology. The deadline to apply is December 6. 

7. The Entertainment Technology Scholarship

The Entertainment Technology Scholarship is open to all college students enrolled full-time at a US college or university, including online university applicants. There’s no GPA minimum, and all career majors are encouraged to apply. This scholarship is open to students worldwide, including undocumented students. The award is $1,000, and the deadline for students to apply is September 1.

Related: The Best Scholarships to Apply for as an Online Student 

8. We Mount TVs Scholarship

Open to all students enrolled full-time at a US college or university, the Supporting Local Business Scholarship from We Mount TVs is open to domestic, international, and undocumented applicants. This scholarship aims to bring attention to supporting local business in your community. There’s no minimum GPA, and all majors are welcome to apply. The award is $1,000 with a deadline of September 5. 

9. Democrats for Life of America

The Democrats for Life of America Essay Contest is open to US citizens and DACA-eligible students heading to or already in college, age range 17–26. For the 2020 award, students had to write an essay in response to a question a citizen once posed to former mayor Pete Buttigieg regarding pro-life vs. pro-choice. The award is up to $2,500, and the deadline is June 7.

10. Opportunity Scholarship

TheDream.US offers this scholarship opportunity to DACA-eligible students from Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, West Virginia, and Wisconsin with a minimum GPA of 2.8. The award is up to $80,000, and the deadline is January 30. This scholarship is only open to students planning to attend a college or university within the Opportunity Scholarship network. 

Related: Ultimate Scholarship Guide: Searching for Scholarships

Hopefully, this list will help DACA students get closer to their college dreams financially. Being excluded from typical financial aid opportunities can be frustrating—but that doesn’t mean there are no opportunities out there for you. Keep searching for more scholarships that DACA students are eligible for. Trust us—your hard work will pay off. 

Need an extra hand in continuing your scholarship search? Look no further than our Scholarship Search tool! 

Like what you’re reading?

Join the CollegeXpress community! Create a free account and we’ll notify you about new articles, scholarship deadlines, and more.

Join Now

Tags:

About Jean O'Toole

Jean O’Toole is an educational consultant and author of the bestselling book Scholarship Strategies: Finding and Winning the Money You Need. Over the past 15 years, she has helped tens of thousands of students in the United States. Individuals collectively have been awarded millions of dollars by applying Jean’s scholarship strategies. In 2008, Jean co-founded Connections101, a company specializing in providing motivational tools for scholarship searching. It is her goal to empower students to design their paths to their future without college debt. Visit Connections101.com for more information, and follow Jean on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

 

Join our community of
over 5 million students!

CollegeXpress has everything you need to simplify your college search, get connected to schools, and find your perfect fit.

Join CollegeXpress
Amari Toussaint

Amari Toussaint

High School Class of 2022

CollegeXpress helped me narrow my school choices down from 10 schools to four and then two. It also gave me information on a school I had never heard about or thought about attending until now, which is the school I will be attending in the fall. I am thankful for CollegeXpress and its helpful tools.

Ida Akoto-Wiafe

Ida Akoto-Wiafe

High School Class of 2022

I wanted a school that wasn't too far away from home and could provide me with a full-ride scholarship. CollegeXpress helped me put into perspective the money I had to pay to attend those schools, which ultimately drove me to choose to attend a community college first to get used to being in college before transferring to the University of Michigan–Ann Arbor, one of the colleges I was able to research further on CollegeXpress.

Samantha Fils-Aime

Samantha Fils-Aime

High School Class of 2019

I love that CollegeXpress has helped me find some scholarships to apply for but also helped me succeed in school with lots of tips. I also really like how they consistently email me about webinars that teach me a lot of things from the comfort of my home!

Nikole Dixon

Nikole Dixon

$500 Refer-a-Friend Scholarship Winner

Toward the beginning of last year, I was searching for scholarships to apply to through my school, town, websites online, and anything else I could find. I asked tons of questions [online] about scholarships and the best places to find them because I was desperate and needed as many as I could find. I came across a ton of bogus websites, but as soon as I found CollegeXpress, I knew I had to tell other people about it. It was definitely the most helpful site I came across, so I told my friends about it. CollegeXpress is definitely a website worth giving as a source.

Hailey Riddile

Hailey Riddile

High School Class of 2021

CollegeXpress has helped me find scholarships to apply for and look into more colleges. While there are many websites similar to CollegeXpress, every website is different, and I've found a lot of good insight on this website. Receiving emails from CollegeXpress about scholarships is extremely useful, and getting insight about colleges near, far, and anywhere in between helps me narrow down my choices to what I want, which is also super helpful. The articles are always really good reads, and I can't stress enough how helpful this website has been to me. Anything related to college is beneficial to me as a senior, and I have learned lots of useful things to help me on my college journey this year.

College Matches
X

Colleges You May Be Interested In

University of Cincinnati

Cincinnati, OH

Methodist University

Fayetteville, NC

University of Portland

Portland, OR