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Need-Based & First-Generation · filtered view · compiled July 2026

Need-Based & First-Generation Scholarships

Verified Need-Based & First-Generation scholarship programs for K-12 students — sourced from official sponsor and program websites, July 2026. Research reference only. Always confirm details on the official page before a student invests application time.

Scholarship.Network is an independent directory — not a scholarship provider, not a scholarship guarantee, and not affiliated with any program listed. Appearing here is not an application or an endorsement.

Deadlines change. Award amounts, eligibility requirements, and application dates are sourced from official pages at compile time (July 2026) and may have changed since. Always confirm current details on the official program page before a student invests application time.

Parent/guardian action required. Programs where a parent or guardian must consent, co-sign, provide tax documentation, or accompany the student are flagged individually on each program card.

Arts, Theatre & Music Athletics & Activities Civic, Essay & Service Merit & General STEM & Computing Younger Students (K-8) Show all categories
8programs in this category
52total in directory
7categories total

Start here

What Scholarship.Network is — and what it is not

This is a reference directory. It lists K-12 student scholarship programs, points you at each program’s official page, and gets out of the way. It is a place to look things up — not a place to apply, not a service you sign into, and not an organization that hands out money.

What it is

  • An independent, read-only directory of 52 verified programs across 7 categories.
  • A research starting point for students, families, and school counselors and advisers.
  • A hand-off: every card links straight to the sponsor’s own official page.
  • Compiled and verified from official program pages in July 2026.

What it is not

  • Not an application portal. You never apply here.
  • Not a scholarship provider. This directory awards nothing and funds nothing.
  • Not affiliated with any sponsor, foundation, or program listed.
  • Not a paid service. There is no fee, no payment step, and no upsell.
  • Not a data collector. Browsing collects nothing and sets no cookies.

Workflow

Browse, learn, then apply on the program’s own site

Three steps — and the application always happens somewhere else.

  1. Browse. Filter by one of the 7 categories, or scroll the full list of 52 programs. No account, no sign-in, nothing to fill out.
  2. Learn. Each card shows the sponsor, award amount, eligibility, current deadline, and whether a parent or guardian has to act. Details that could not be fully confirmed carry a Verify details badge so you know to double-check.
  3. Apply on the official site. Follow the Official page link to the sponsor’s own website and apply there, under their rules and their privacy policy. Scholarship.Network never takes an application and never touches a fee.

Because award amounts, eligibility, and deadlines change between cycles, always confirm the current details on the official page before a student invests application time.

Scope

What the directory does today — and what is still on the way

Everything under “Available now” is live on this page. Everything under “Planned” is honestly not built yet. And a few things we will never build, because they would mean collecting data.

Available now

  • 52 programs verified against official pages (July 2026).
  • 7 browsable categories, each with its own crawlable /scholarship/<category> page.
  • Per-card parent/guardian action flags for minor applicants.
  • Verify-details badges on programs with an unconfirmed detail.
  • Cross-listing: multi-category programs show an “Also in” badge.
  • A direct official-page link on every single card.

Planned — not yet live

  • Additional categories (trade and vocational awards, state-specific programs) as they are verified.
  • A printable one-page summary a counselor can hand out.
  • A scheduled re-verification pass between application cycles.

Deliberately not built: no accounts, no saved lists, and no email alerts. Each of those would require collecting something about you, and this directory collects nothing.

Who it is for

Built for students, families, and the counselors who guide them

Students

Browse on your own, with no account and nothing to fill out. See at a glance which programs fit your grade, what they award, when they close, and which ones need a parent or guardian to sign off before you can accept.

Counselors & advisers

Scan a whole category in one pass. Parent/guardian action flags and verify-details badges surface the caveats you would otherwise chase one program at a time, so you can point a student at the right official page with the right warnings attached.

Families

Every program that needs a parent or guardian to consent, co-sign, supply tax documents, or travel with a minor winner is flagged on its own card — so you know exactly where your involvement is required before your student starts.

Category 1 of 1

Need-Based & First-Generation

8 programs in this category

Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans · National Scholarship $25,000; 105 National awards. (Association also runs separate state scholarships $10,000 with their own criteria; combined programs award 600+ annually.)

Horatio Alger Association National Scholarship

Grade level: High school senior (juniors eligible via separate junior deadline)

Eligibility: High school seniors (juniors eligible via a separate junior deadline); critical financial need with household adjusted gross income of $100,000 or lower; integrity and perseverance in overcoming adversity; plan to enroll full-time at a U.S. college; awarded across all 50 states, DC, and Puerto Rico

Deadline: Seniors: application open December 1, 2025 through February 15, 2026 (annual; 2026 senior cycle has passed). Confirm current dates on the official page.

Parent/guardian action required. Student self-applies; requires household income documentation; parental-data consent applies

Also in: Need-Based & First-Generation Official page →

Jack Kent Cooke Foundation · Up to $55,000 per year (last-dollar funding after institutional aid), renewable up to 4 years; includes advising and a graduate-school funding pathway

Jack Kent Cooke Foundation College Scholarship Program

Grade level: High school senior

Eligibility: High school seniors; min 3.75 cumulative unweighted GPA; must submit SAT/ACT/AP/IB scores; max household gross income $95,000/year; intend to enroll at an accredited 4-year college beginning fall 2027

Deadline: Application open August 19 - November 11, 2026 (Class of 2027)

Parent/guardian action required. Student self-applies; parental income documentation required; parental-data consent applies

Also in: Need-Based & First-Generation Official page →

QuestBridge · Full four-year scholarship (full cost of attendance: tuition, room, board, and fees) at one of 50+ partner colleges; value varies by institution

QuestBridge National College Match

Grade level: High school senior

Eligibility: High school seniors from low-income backgrounds; households typically earning under $65,000/year (family of 4) with minimal assets, reviewed holistically with no absolute cutoff; U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or DACA students

Deadline: Application due September 30, 2026 (11:59 p.m. PT); Match Rankings/Match Agreement Forms due October 16, 2026; Match notifications December 1, 2026.

Parent/guardian action required. Student self-applies; requires parental income/tax documentation; parental-consent handling of a minor’s financial data applies

Also in: Need-Based & First-Generation Official page →

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation · Last-dollar full cost of attendance not covered by other aid (tuition, fees, room, board, books, transportation, personal expenses); ~300 scholars/year

The Gates Scholarship

Grade level: High school senior

Eligibility: High school seniors; U.S. citizen/national/permanent resident; Pell-eligible; min 3.3 GPA; must be African American, Hispanic American, American Indian/Alaska Native (tribal-enrollment proof), or Asian & Pacific Islander American; plan to enroll full-time at accredited U.S. institution

Deadline: Opens July 15, 2026; closes September 15, 2026

Parent/guardian action required. Student self-applies; requires parental financial data; parental-consent handling applies

Also in: Need-Based & First-Generation Official page →

Michael & Susan Dell Foundation · $20,000 (paid over time, roughly $5,000/year), plus a laptop, textbook credits, and ongoing support; ~500 awards/year.

Dell Scholars Program

Grade level: HS senior (grade 12)

Eligibility: Minimum 2.4 GPA; U.S. citizen or permanent resident; demonstrate financial need and be Pell-eligible in first year; participate in an approved college-readiness/college-access program in grades 11 and 12; plan to enroll in a bachelor’s program the fall immediately after HS graduation.

Deadline: February 15, 2026 (annual cycle; 2026 deadline has passed; program recurs annually).

Parent/guardian action required. Applicants typically 17-18 (some minors). Requires FAFSA/financial documentation; parental-data consent applies.

Official page →

Ron Brown Scholar Program · $40,000 total ($10,000/year for 4 years); 20 scholars selected annually.

Ron Brown Scholar Program (Signature Scholarship)

Grade level: HS senior (grade 12)

Eligibility: Black/African American; U.S. citizen or permanent resident; current high school senior at time of application; assessed on academics, leadership, writing, community service, and financial need.

Deadline: 2026 application window is open; deadline January 9, 2027.

Parent/guardian action required. Applicants typically 17-18 (some minors). Financial-need review involves family income; parental-data consent applies.

Official page →

The Sallie Mae Fund (administered by Thurgood Marshall College Fund) · Up to $10,000 each; 30 awards per cycle (total up to $300,000). Funds paid to the school in equal disbursements for up to two semesters.

Sallie Mae Fund — Bridging the Dream Scholarship for High School Seniors

Grade level: HS senior (grade 12)

Eligibility: Pell-Grant-eligible high school seniors planning to attend an accredited two- or four-year college or an eligible certificate/technical program.

Deadline: 2026 cycle deadline was April 24, 2026 (CLOSED as of the July 2026 verification date); program recurs annually.

Parent/guardian action required. Applicants typically 17-18 (some minors). Pell eligibility uses FAFSA/parental income; parental-data consent applies.

Official page →

The Posse Foundation · Full-tuition scholarship at a Posse partner college/university (value varies by partner institution).

The Posse Foundation Scholarship

Grade level: HS senior (grade 12)

Eligibility: U.S. high school seniors nominated by their high school or a partner community-based organization (no self-application; no minimum GPA/test score). Recruitment is geographically restricted to Posse’s 20+ cities.

Deadline: Nominations open as early as second semester of junior year; accepted in spring/summer before senior year; exact dates vary by city — contact local Posse office.

Parent/guardian: Applicants typically 17-18 (some minors). Nomination is initiated by a school or community-based organization, not the family.

Verify details Official page →

Privacy

Browsing this directory collects nothing

Scholarship.Network is a read-only reference directory. Browsing it collects no names, email addresses, grades, test scores, or any other personal information. No cookies are set on the directory pages. No tracking pixels are used. No data is sold or shared. Students can browse this directory without creating an account or providing any information.

There is nothing to log into, no saved list tied to your identity, and no alert that would need an email address. The directory looks the same for everyone who opens it, and nothing you do here is recorded. “Collects nothing” is meant literally, not as a marketing line.

If you choose to reach us through the contact or demo form, you provide only what you type there (such as an email address so we can reply). That is a message to our team — never a scholarship application — and it is never sold or shared.

Scholarship programs listed here have their own privacy policies and data practices. Always review the official program’s privacy terms before a student submits an application.

About this directory

Reference only — not a scholarship provider

Every program listed here is sourced from the official sponsor or program website at compile time (July 2026). Award amounts, eligibility requirements, and deadlines change — always confirm the current details on the official page before a student invests application time. Appearing in this directory is not an application, an endorsement, or a guarantee of any award outcome.

Programs marked Verify details had a key detail — amount, deadline, or eligibility — that could not be fully confirmed at compile time. Programs where a parent or guardian must take required action (consent, co-signature, tax documentation, or accompanying the student) are flagged on every affected card.

Scholarship.Network is an independent directory. We are not affiliated with any sponsor, foundation, association, or program listed here. We have no commercial relationship with any program shown. We do not award scholarships, collect applications, or charge fees.

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Status

Directory status — a July 2026 snapshot

This directory is a point-in-time snapshot, not a live feed. Every program was checked against its official page in July 2026. Programs whose current-cycle deadline had already passed are still listed with that status noted, because most of them recur on an annual cycle and the eligibility and format carry over.

  • Published: 52 programs across 7 categories, each with an official-page link.
  • Snapshot date: verified July 2026 from official sponsor and program pages.
  • Honest-off: no accounts, no fees, no payment step, no notifications, and no application intake. None of those exist here, by design.
  • Between cycles: deadlines and amounts move; the official page is always the source of truth.

Where the 52 programs sit

The chart below is drawn from the same list the directory renders — not a summary someone typed next to it. If a program is added, re-categorised or dropped, the bar moves in the same edit.

Programs listed per category: Merit & General 12; Younger Students (K-8) 11; Arts, Theatre & Music 9; Civic, Essay & Service 9; Need-Based & First-Generation 8; STEM & Computing 7; Athletics & Activities 5.CATEGORYPROGRAMS LISTEDMerit & General12Younger Students (K-8)11Arts, Theatre & Music9Civic, Essay & Service9Need-Based & First-Generation8STEM & Computing7Athletics & Activities5
Figure 1 Programs listed per category, July 2026. The bars total 61 rather than 52 because 9 programs belong to more than one category and are listed in each. A student browsing by category should find it either way.

What “verified” means here, as a proportion

Verification here is not a badge this directory hands itself. It is a check against the sponsor’s own page, and where a check came back inconclusive the card says so. These are the proportions as of the snapshot date.

None of these figures are outcomes, and none of them are ours. They describe the state of this reference list — how much of it was confirmable in July 2026 — and nothing about a student’s chance of an award.

FAQ

Common questions

Does it cost anything to use this directory?

No. There is no fee to browse, no subscription, and no payment step anywhere on this site. Some individual programs charge their own application fees (and many offer fee waivers) — that is set by the sponsor and paid on the sponsor’s site, never here.

Do you collect my information?

No. Browsing the directory collects nothing and sets no cookies. There is no account to create and no form standing between you and a listing. If you separately message our team through a contact form, you share only what you type, and it is never a scholarship application.

Are you affiliated with these scholarship programs?

No. Scholarship.Network is independent and has no commercial relationship with any sponsor, foundation, association, or program listed. Appearing here is not an endorsement in either direction.

Can I apply for a scholarship here?

No. You apply on the sponsor’s own official website, under their rules. Every card links there directly. This directory never accepts an application.

Why are some deadlines shown as already passed?

Because the directory is a July 2026 snapshot and most programs recur annually. A closed cycle is still useful: it tells a student what to expect and roughly when the next window is likely to open. Always confirm the current dates on the official page.

How do I know a listing is accurate?

Each program was verified against its official page in July 2026. Where a detail could not be fully confirmed, the card carries a Verify details badge. Details change; the official page is always the source of truth.

In plain terms

What this page is and is not claiming

It is claiming: that these 52 programs existed and read as described on their official pages in July 2026, and that this is an honest, independent starting point for a student’s own research.

It is not claiming: that any student will receive an award, that the listed details are still current, that Scholarship.Network is affiliated with or endorsed by any program, or that browsing here does anything on a student’s behalf. This directory awards nothing, collects nothing, and charges nothing. The official program page is always the final word.

Browse all 7 categories Start with need-based & first-generation