The field of psychology has always been popular, but recent trends have seen more and more young people pursue psychology degrees on both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
People are fascinated by the way the mind works, and choose to spend their time studying ways that they can find out more about our collective and individual psyches.
But a college education in any field does not come cheap. Undergraduate education in the United States is getting more and more expensive every year, and students must look to a variety of sources to help fund their education.
If you are one of the students interested in the study of the human mind, you will be able to find a variety of sources that offer scholarships and grants to help you pay for your college education in psychology.
There are two major national organization that offer scholarships for the study of psychology. Psi Chi, the International Honor Society for Psychology, is an excellent resource for scholarships for psychology majors. They offer awards for undergraduate and graduate work, and the amounts vary based on the award. Most awards are based on some kind of research – submission of a published research article is typically the main component of the scholarship application. The Allyn & Bacon Awards is one such scholarship that is designated for undergraduate students. Not only can students win up to $1,000 for their submissions, which can be used to pay for tuition, books or other college expenses, they also have the abstracts of their papers published in the Eye on Psychology publication, which is published by Psi Chi. Undergraduate students who have not yet completed their research can also qualify for up to $17,500 in research funding through the honor society.
Graduate students also have free money for college available through Psi Chi. However, all students who apply for scholarship must already be a member of Psi Chi to qualify for funding. Through the Graduate Research Grants program, students can request up to $1,500 per research project. Graduate students in psychology are also eligible for the Kay Leadership Award, one of the only non-research awards offered by Psi Chi, reserved for students who have demonstrated leadership in their local Psi Chi chapter. In addition to the cash award of $500, students attend the annual Psi Chi convention.
Another great source of scholarship funding for Psychology students is the American Psychology Association. In addition to offering scholarships and grants in conjunction with Psi Chi, the APA offers a number of scholarships and grants. While their own scholarship offerings are limited, they provide a comprehensive listing of scholarships available from local and community groups. A simple search of their website for “scholarships” yields no fewer than 81 results – which does not include grant and research funding.
The listings provided by the APA include regional and community foundations, as well as national awards for students studying psychology.
While Psi Chi and the APA are the major sources for national psychology major scholarships, when looking for more money to fund your college education, you should always check with your college’s psychology department and financial aid office. It is not uncommon for new students to ask about the average merit-based award for students in the psychology program to help them make the decision about whether or not to choose that institution to pursue their higher education. Some psychology departments will simply have access to more funding than others, and available scholarship funding can help you to choose the college or university that helps meet your academic needs, as well as you financial ones.
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