There are cancer scholarship programs for those who’ve met this life threatening disease and survived. Cancer takes many forms so there are various kinds of scholarships for cancer survivors.
Many schools and charities have scholarship funds set aside for cancer patients and survivors who suddenly are battling this disease. Family members such as children may also apply for awards. You may be eligible if you’re a college freshmen pursuing a bachelor’s degree. There are also sources that provide graduate school scholarships. Prospective college students should also submit a FAFSA. This helps determine if you are eligible for federal financial aid and show unmet financial need.
If you had a specific type of cancer, there are scholarships for breast cancer survivors, leukemia, brain cancer, and more. When applying, you may need to show financial need, a cancer diagnosis and a certain GPA.
Survivors of cancer may qualify for scholarships if you were diagnosed with either:
Bone cancer
Leukemia
Brain tumor
Mesothelioma
Lymphoma
Pediatric cancer
The Bristol Myers Squibb Scholarship For Cancer Survivors is open to young adults aged 25 or less. There are 25 awards of $10,000 each. To qualify, you must have plans to enroll full time in a two year community college, four year college or career school.
Are you a leukemia patient or the child of a non surviving leukemia patient? If so, check out the Michael A. Hunter Memorial Scholarship. Award amounts range from $2,000 to $5,000. As an eligible applicant, you also need a 3.0 GPA and plan to enroll full time at an accredited college in the United States.
Are There Scholarships for Children and Siblings of Cancer Survivors?
Cancer often takes a financial toll on loved ones and may affect the entire family. So, there are also scholarships for family members of cancer patients and survivors. These may be scholarships for siblings of cancer patients and/or children who may have lost a parent to cancer and in need of financial aid.
These depend not on your own diagnosis, but on your relative’s. So, you may likely to need a letter from a medical person to attest to their illness. The financial assistance may be a one time sum or renewable award. Scholarships for children and siblings of cancer survivor could ease the financial burden of college.
To give you an idea, LI2Day Walk offers the Maria A. Sciara Scholarships. Each year, three awards of $2,000 go to high school seniors who reside in Nassau or Suffolk counties in New York. Eligible applicants must aspire to be teachers. You also must now live with or have lived with a parent/guardian who is a survivor of cancer other than breast cancer.
Are you living with a family member battling leukemia or lymphoma? Jackie Spellman Foundation scholarship offers between $3,000 to $10,000. You may be a survivor, or be related to an individual with the cancer. It’s for high school seniors, current college students and graduate students. This award is in memory of Jackie Spellman who passed away with acute myeloid leukemia.
10 Cancer Survivor Scholarships You Should Apply for in 2021
To help you narrow your search, here’s a list of 10 college scholarships for cancer survivors. If you meet the eligibility rules, apply today before the deadline!
Bristol Myers Squibb Scholarship For Cancer Survivors
Shaundrika Taylor Cancer Foundation, Inc. Scholarship
Bone Marrow & Cancer Foundation Scholarship
Canceling Cancer Scholarship
MESOTHELIOMA.COM SCHOLARSHIP
Cancer Care Betsy Tontini Nursing Scholarship
Cancer Awareness Scholarship
PEDIATRIC CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIP
National Collegiate Cancer Foundation Survivor Scholarship
BEYOND THE CURE AMBASSADOR SCHOLARSHIP
What Organizations Help Survivors of Cancer Pay for College?
Thanks to the advocacy and efforts of cancer organizations, your dreams of higher education and earning a college degree may be achievable for many survivors.
The American Cancer Society is a nonprofit health organization whose mission is to free the world from cancer. To do this, they offer support in many ways. They promote healthy lifestyles, work with lawmakers, research and even offer rides to cancer treatments. While they do not offer scholarships, ACS does offer research grants.
Cancer Survivors’ Fund is a nonprofit known to help survivors pursue a college education through scholarships. Applicants also agree to volunteer with cancer patients in return for funding. You also do not need to receive cancer treatment to qualify.
Patient Advocate Foundation provides direct services to patients with chronic, life threatening and debilitating diseases. They guide patients through health care challenges. They’ve also offered 126 scholarships since 2000. These tend to be for those diagnosed with or treated for a cancer or chronic disease. Both graduate students and undergrads may apply.
The Children’s Cancer Cause provides financial assistance and support to children with cancer. Their scholarship program awards 58 college students. It is for childhood cancer survivors under 25. You also must be diagnosed with cancer before turning 18. In order to qualify, you must have at least 2.5 GPA, be a US citizen, and attend an accredited school.
List of Scholarships for Cancer Survivors
Check out our list of 109 cancer scholarships worth $396K.
PAF’s Scholarship for Survivors Virginia Undergraduate Scholarship is for U.S. citizens/VA students less than 25 years old going for an associate or bachelor’s degree who have been diagnosed with or treated for cancer or chronic illness.
PAF’s Scholarship for Survivors Graduate Scholarship is for U.S. citizens going for a graduate degree who have been diagnosed with or treated for cancer or chronic illness.
PAF’s Scholarship for Survivors Undergraduate Scholarship is for U.S. citizens going for an associate or bachelor’s degree who have been diagnosed with or treated for cancer or chronic illness.
The Children’s Cancer Cause College Scholars Program is a $2,000 scholarship usable at trade school, community college, or certificate programs that also helps students gain cancer advocacy experience.
The Beyond the Cure Ambassador Scholarship program awards need based college scholarships to childhood cancer survivors who’ve overcome their challenges with determination.
Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation Scholarships are for eligible survivors of pediatric cancer who are pursuing higher education at an accredited community college, university, or trade school.
The Jackie Spellman Scholarship Foundation is proud to honor Jackie’s memory by providing scholarships to deserving students whose lives have been impacted by leukemia and lymphoma. You could either be a survivor, current cancer patient or be a family member living with an individual who have or had leukemia or lymphoma.
This award is available for students in California who have been diagnosed or personally affected by a family member’s diagnosis of cancer. Applicants must have a grade point average of 3.0 or higher and demonstrate financial need.
The scholarship is open to any current high school senior, college student or graduate student who is a legal resident of the United States residing in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia and who is enrolled in a two to five-year post-secondary institution for the upcoming semester.
Candidates for this scholarship should have a minimum GPA of 3.0 or higher and be in good overall academic standing.
