If you dream in binary, count electric sheep, can't sleep without the hum of at least a dozen cooling fans and regularly grapple with the urge to overclock everything in sight, computer science might be the right major for you. With a lot of work and a bit of luck, who knows, maybe you’ll be responsible for the next big leap in computer technology. Whether you plan to work for or compete with the giants of the computer industry, you’re going to need to take some steps to build your skills, not to mention an impressive resume.
To be a professional computer genius, you will need training and have at least some amount of formal education. Those who plan to embark on a career in technology should seriously consider a degree in computer science. While a college dropout succeeded in founding Microsoft in 1975, that doesn't necessarily mean that a college dropout will succeed in getting a job coding for Microsoft today. A college education, and likely some additional certification, is necessary to succeed in the computer industry today.
Of course the need to go to school brings about the problem of finding a way to pay for school. And in order to pay for school, chances are, you will need to find scholarships or other financial aid. Luckily, computer science majors are highly desirable, and as a result, have many scholarship opportunities available to them. To encourage the popularity and growth of the field, numerous scholarship providers have created computer science scholarships for students with an interest in technology. Major companies like Google, Microsoft, and Intel offer scholarships for the technology-minded student. Many smaller providers and individual colleges have also created funds that award computer science scholarships to students working towards a postsecondary degree.
Below are just a few examples of computer science scholarships. To find more computer science scholarships, students can conduct a free college scholarship search at Scholarships.com. At Scholarships.com, students will have access to information about more than 2.7 million scholarships and grants. By using their major as a search criterion, students can find awards created to help those interested in computer science and computer engineering obtain a postsecondary education.
The (ISC)² Graduate Scholarship program offers from $1,000 to $5,000 per graduate student who is pursuing a degree with a focus on cybersecurity or information assurance. Applicants must be eligible to begin the first or second year of a master's degree program or pursue doctoral studies and have a minimum 3.5 GPA. For more information or to apply, please visit the scholarship provider's website. [...] More
The (ISC)² Undergraduate Scholarship offers students scholarships from $1,000 to $5,000 per recipient. Applicants must be pursuing or plan to pursue a degree with a focus on cybersecurity, information assurance or related field, and be a high school senior or undergraduate student. A minimum 3.3 GPA is required.
Applicants must be pursuing or planning to pursue a degree with a focus on [...] More
The AAAS Mass Media Science & Engineering Fellowship seeks to increase communication skills in student scientists. From grant writing to interaction with their community, these skills will benefit a student's career path and increase public understanding of science and technology. Students must be enrolled as a college or university student (graduate, doctoral, or upper-level undergraduates) or [...] More
This fund was established in 1993 by Albuquerque businessman C.E. (Woody) Woodcock and his wife, Dixie, to support students of exceptional promise in the fields of science and math. Scholarships will be awarded to Albuquerque metro area high school graduating seniors (includes Bernalillo, Sandoval, Valencia and Torrance Counties). Scholarships are payable over four years. Applicants must possess [...] More
In order to apply for the AFCEA Washington, DC Chapter Scholarship, you must be a resident within the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments. Acceptable majors include computer science, engineering, mathematics, physics, chemistry, cybersecurity, and management information systems; and command, control, communications, computers and Intelligence (C4I)-related fields of study including [...] More
The Banatao Family Filipino American Education Fund will award five scholarships of $5,000 to qualified incoming freshmen enrolled at four-year colleges or universities. Each scholarship is renewable for a total of four years on the basis of satisfactory academic performance in a full-time undergraduate program. Awards are for undergraduate study only. Applicants must be incoming freshman [...] More
The Foundation currently provides scholarship funds or assists in the scholarship award process for the following programs. The Betty Stevens-Frecknall Scholarship, a national scholarship that is awarded annually, supports university students seeking an education in an accredited degree program related to information technology.
Applicants be an active AITP student member, a declared computer [...] More
Blacks at Microsoft (BAM) is a company-sponsored employee network dedicated to supporting the continued growth and development of black employees at Microsoft Corporation. Applicants for the Blacks at Microsoft Scholarship must be high-school seniors of African descent (for example, African-American, African, or Ethiopian); must plan to attend a four-year college or university in the fall of the [...] More
This annual scholarship is provided by BMW AG in recognition of its commitment to excellence in engineering. This scholarship is in support of the SAE Foundation to ensure an adequate supply of well-trained engineers for the future. One scholarship will be awarded each year for $1,500 per year. Scholarships may be renewed at $1,500 a year for three (3) additional years. Applicants must be U.S. [...] More
The Davidson Fellows Scholarship awards $50,000, $25,000 and $10,000 scholarships to extraordinary young people, 18 and under, who have completed a significant piece of work. Application categories are Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Literature, Music, Philosophy and Outside the Box. Davidson Fellows are honored every year in Washington, D.C. with Congressional meetings and a [...] More
Alta Associates is a premier executive recruitment firm specializing in Information Security, IT Audit, Risk Management and Privacy. In 2003, Alta Associates organized the first ever Executive Women's Forum on Information Security for leaders in information security, privacy and risk management, and it has been holding annual forums since that time. The EWF is a group of over 200 of the most [...] More
The Fukunaga Scholarship Foundation offers scholarships to Hawaii residents pursuing degrees in Business Administration, or other business-related fields, at any accredited four-year college or university.
Four-year scholarships are awarded to students just entering college in increments of $5,000 annually. Assuming eligibility is maintained, a total of $20,000 will be awarded over four [...] More
The GMiS Scholarahip is intended to support Hispanic graduating high school seniors, undergraduate, and graduate students pursuing a science, technology, engineering, math or health-related degree at an accredited college/university in the U.S. or Puerto Rico. These merit-based scholarships range from $500 to $10,000. For more information or to apply, please visit the scholarship provider's [...] More
It is anticipated that South Korean scholars will utilize their knowledge to enhance the viability of the South Korean economy through the expansion of educational technology in the fields of international business, international banking, computer science, information technology, research and development, and related fields. The program is also designed to interest American scholars in Korea and [...] More
Applicants must be a US citizen living and studying within a 150-mile radius of Pittsburgh, PA with an overall GPA of 3.0 or above. Current/intended field of study must be in technology, engineering, math, or metals and you must not have completed more than 5 years of undergraduate or trade school education. You must be registered or plan to be registered as a full-time student in your [...] More
CCSD male seniors who are of European descent may apply for the Josef Princ Memorial Scholarship. Applicants must also have a minimum 3.5 GPA, demonstrate financial need and planning to attend an accredited post-secondary college or university majoring in engineering, mathematics or science. Up to four scholarships in the amount of $2,000 each will be awarded. Must write a 400-500 essay on [...] More
The Material Handling Education Foundation, Inc. is an independent charitable organization that was established in 1976 with a mission to attract students to the material handling, logistics and supply chain industry by providing financial support. We offer scholarship award opportunities to students who possess a commitment to the material handling, logistics and/or supply chain industry. [...] More
Through the NACME Scholars Program, NACME provides block grants to colleges and universities that, in turn, award the money to talented African American, American Indian, and Latino students enrolled in engineering programs as part of their financial aid packages.
The NACME’s Scholars (Block Grant) Program provides minority college scholarship support in the form of a lump sum grant to partner [...] More
GEM offers MS and Ph.D. level students an outstanding opportunity and access to dozens of the top engineering and science firms and Universities in the nation. The GEM Fellowship was designed to focus on promoting opportunities for individuals to enter the industry at the graduate level in areas such as research and development, product development, and other high-level technical careers. GEM [...] More
The Oregon NASA Space Grant Consortium (OSGC) is pleased to provide students attending our member colleges and universities opportunities to apply for scholarship and fellowship awards that support their academic goals and recognize their achievements. Opportunities are open to new and continuing students in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), and STEM [...] More
The PMI Educational Foundation Scholarship Program is pleased that you are interested in pursuing a career in project management. The Foundation has established a tuition scholarship program to assist qualified students in obtaining degrees from accredited academic institutions of higher learning in the field of project management. Scholarships are sponsored by PMI, PMI Components, corporations, [...] More
Scarlett Family Foundation Scholarships are open to high school seniors and college freshmen, sophomores, and juniors who will graduate or have graduated from high school in one of the following Middle Tennessee counties: Bedford, Cannon, Cheatham, Clay, Coffee, Cumberland, Davidson, Dekalb, Dickson, Fentress, Franklin, Giles, Hickman, Houston, Humphreys, Jackson, Lawrence, Lewis, Lincoln, Macon, [...] More
SHPE will provide $2,000 to applicants who are employed full-time in the U.S. or Puerto Rico in a technical career field and enrolled at least half-time (6 hours) in a science, technology, engineering, or math (STEM) degree program and maintain a 3.0 GPA throughout the academic year. Applicant must be pursuing a first master's or doctoral degree. Applicant must be a paid SHPE member in good [...] More
This scholarship may be used for tuition, fees, books or on-campus housing/meals. Automatic approval for up to a maximum of four academic years is at the discretion of the Scholarship Committee. In order to be eligible for consideration under this award program, the scholarship applicant must be an enrolled member of a Pueblo or Tribe, a high school graduate by June who has been accepted by an [...] More
Women who are returning to school to pursue a career in engineering might be able to receive a scholarship from the Society of Women Engineers (SWE). They offer various scholarships for women with two just for non-traditional students who are returning to college after at least two years of being out of school and the workforce. To qualify, women must be working toward a degree in engineering and [...] More
Dr. Anita Borg devoted her adult life to revolutionizing the way we think about technology and dismantling barriers that keep women and minorities from entering computing and technology fields. Recipients of The Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship will each receive a $10,000 award for the upcoming academic year. A group of female undergraduate and graduate students will be chosen from the [...] More
HSF/ General College Scholarships are designed to assist students of Hispanic heritage in obtaining a college degree. Scholarships are available on a competitive basis to graduating high school seniors, community college transfer students, undergraduate students and graduate students. Applicants must be of Hispanic heritage and have a minimum of 3.0 GPA for high school students. A minimum of 2.5 [...] More
The Robert Noyce Scholarship program, authorized under the National Science Foundation Authorization Act, seeks to encourage talented science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors to become elementary, middle, and high school teachers by offering tuition scholarships of $15,000 per year for up to two years. The scholarship will be awarded annually to qualified Trinity seniors [...] More
The USDA/1890 National Scholars Program is a partnership between of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and 1890 Historically Black Land-Grant Universities. The program awards scholarships to students attending one of 1890 Historically Black Land-Grant Universities, pursuing a bachelor degree in agriculture, natural resources, food science, nutrition, or related academic [...] More
The Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship program recruits and trains the nation's best and brightest recent graduates and career changers with STEM backgrounds to teach in high-needs middle and high school science and math classrooms.
The Teaching Fellowship includes admission to a master's degree program at a well-established partner university teacher certification in science, mathematics or [...] More
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's engineering school will soon be called the "Grainger College of Engineering" after receiving another $100 million gift from The Grainger Foundation. The Grainger donation is the largest amount ever gifted to a public university to rename a college. [...]
Thirteen parents and one coach charged in the "Operation Varsity Blues" college cheating scandal will plead guilty in accordance with plea agreements. While elite parents implicated in the admissions scandal cheated to help their children get into college, there is a growing concern about how students, in general, may be cheating their way through college; specifically by buying ghostwritten essays online. [...]
Why not have schools auction off college seats to the highest bidder? The question was posed by a senior vice president at the Harvard Management Company on his public LinkedIn page amid the recent national college admissions cheating scandal. According to Michael Cappucci, it is simply "an honest question." He goes on to ask, "Why do we have a system where wealthy parents have to make shady payments to even more shady intermediaries to get their kids into college?" The post, which has since been removed but still drew much online anger was authored by Cappucci who is "not a top official" at the company; many people still presumed Harvard is connected to his idea, according to Inside Higher Ed, but Harvard was quick to distance itself from the LinkedIn post. [...]
