Free Money For Security Students - Security Degree Hub

Free money for security students has over fifty scholarships for different security degree and certificate programs grouped by category. Security studies fall into several categories, and security work is essential to us both as individuals and the entire country.

Many of these jobs pay above the national average. So, if you have an interest in one of the many different types of security careers, below are over fifty scholarships for different degree and certificate programs. Some are school-specific, but most are not. We grouped the scholarships for reader convenience.

Free Money For Security Students Notes:

Where possible, we’ve supplied available deadlines and award amounts, although this information is sometimes subject to change. Please double-check scholarship details before applying.
In the case of national or state awards that apply to more than one college or university, when possible, we have tried to provide details for the most general award rather than a school-specific version.
Awards towards a college education that are available only to students of a single high school have been left out, whereas awards available towards multiple high schools in a region or towards a single college or university have not, since the potential recipient pool is larger.
Grants, fellowships, scholarships, and other educational awards that are open for any subject are not included here — only awards for security-related studies.
References to “students” imply college/ university level unless explicitly stated.

Free Money for Homeland and National Security

Al Ponte Graduate Scholarship Award — One award of $1K from AFIO (Association of Former Intelligence Officers) is available to a qualified graduate student pursuing a homeland security-related career with a focus on international relations and/or intelligence. Preference is given to an AFIO member or children/ grandchildren of a member). Deadline: July 1st of each year.
DHS Scholarship Program — Awards from the DHS (U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security) are available (up to $5K each in the past) to qualified undergrad students working towards a bachelor’s degree in homeland security-focused subjects. Deadline: Early January of each year.
Life’s Choices Foundation Graduate Scholarship Awards — Two awards of $3.5K each from AFIO (Association of Former Intelligence Officers) are available to qualify graduate students who either are focused on national security or intelligence students, or plan to serve in the U.S. government. Deadline: July 1st of each year.
National HS-STEM Summer Internship –– Awards of a $5K stipend for a summer internship ($500/week for 10 weeks) from the DHS (U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security) is available for qualified undergrad juniors and seniors, who will get to work with researchers and professionals in the field of homeland security. Deadline: Early January of each year.
Peter Jasin AFIO Endowed Scholarships – Undergraduate and Graduate — Six awards of $4K each from AFIO (Association of Former Intelligence Officers) are available to qualified undergrad or graduate students enrolled in any program but who have taken courses relating to national security, intelligence, and foreign affairs. Deadline: July 1st of each year.
Secure Indiana Scholarship Program — Nine awards in the amount of $1K (part-time students) or $2K (full-time students) from the Indiana state government’s Homeland Security Foundation are available to qualified students attending or will be attending a college in Indiana and pursuing a degree towards public safety needs. Deadline: July 1st of each year.
Terrorism Studies Graduate Scholarship Award — One award of $2K from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice is available for a qualified graduate student at the college who is enrolled in terrorism studies courses either full- or part-time. Deadline: Mid-September of each year.
The Colonel Sully H. De Fontaine Scholarship Award — One award of $1.2K from AFIO (Association of Former Intelligence Officers) is available to a qualified undergrad student planning on a career in national security, particularly in the U.S. intelligence community. Deadline: July 1st of each year.

Lint Center for National Security Studies

Note: Lint Center scholarship applications are first considered for the Jim & Anna Hyonjoo Lint Scholarship, with non-winners still eligible for other center scholarships.

Jim and Anna Hyonjoo Lint Scholarship — At least one award of $1.5K from AFIO (Association of Former Intelligence Officers) is available to a qualified student studying national security, counterintelligence, and international affairs. Applicants who do not win are automatically considered for other Lint Center scholarships. Deadline: July 31st of each year.
Army Staff Sgt. Richard S. Eaton Jr. Scholarship — One award for $1K from Lint Center for National Security Studies, towards tuition and other educational costs, is available to a qualified applicant studying towards “fields related to Alliance Building, Counterintelligence, Cultural Understanding, and National Security studies. Deadline: January 31st and July 31st of each year.
John Joseph McGurk III Memorial Scholarship — An award of $500 from the Lint Center for National Security Studies is available to qualified students. (Eligibility details not provided. Non-winners of the Jim and Anna Hyonjoo Lint Scholarship will be considered.) Deadline: See site for details.
Lint Center’s ‘Quest for Knowledge’ Scholarship: Christopher J. Coffland — An award of $500 from Lint Center for National Security Studies is available to qualified students who either win an essay contest on intelligence analysis, national security, or other acceptable topics. Deadline: See site for details.
Maj. James W. Dennehy Esq. Scholarship — An award of $500 from the Lint Center for National Security Studies is available to qualified students. (Eligibility details not provided. Non-winners of the Jim and Anna Hyonjoo Lint Scholarship will be considered.) Deadline: See site for details.
Mr. Jack McCoy Scholarship — An award of $500 from the Lint Center for National Security Studies is available to qualified students who either win an essay contest about “personal diplomacy outside of normal diplomatic channels” (or on “changes in diplomatic approaches to solve world problems”). Deadline: July 31st of each year.
Ms. Aehee Kim Alliance Building Scholarship — An award of $500 from the Lint Center for National Security Studies is available to a qualified student studying national security, counterintelligence, and international affairs, with eligibility based partially on essay questions about foreign alliances. Deadline: See site for details.
Virginia and Frank Misselhorn Memorial Scholarship ($500) — Awards of $500 from Lint Center for National Security Studies is available to qualified students studying towards careers in national security, counterintelligence or alliance building. Deadline: July 31st of each year.

Information Security/Assurance, Internet/Cyber Security, Electronic Security

(ISC)2 Graduate Scholarship — Eight awards of up to $3K each from (ISC)2 (International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium) are available to qualified graduate students either in a master’s program, pursuing a doctoral degree, or completing an IA (Information Assurance) certificate program. Deadline: Mid-June of each year.
(ISC)2 Undergraduate Scholarship — Awards of up to $5K each from (ISC)2 (International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium) are available to qualified undergrad students enrolled in an information security-related program and who will complete their first year of study by August of the year funding starts. Deadline: Mid-June of each year.
(ISC)2 Women’s Scholarship — Three awards totaling $40K from (ISC)2 (International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium) are available to qualify female associate or bachelor’s students studying information security or assurance. Deadline: End of March each year.
AFIT Information Assurance Scholarship Program (IASP) — Awards are available (up to $5K in the past) from the DoD (Dept. of Defense) to qualified students who are majoring in computer engineering, computer science, or electrical engineering, with specialization in information assurance, at AFIT (Air Force Institute of Technology). Deadline: Varies.
DigiCert Internet Security Scholarship — Awards of $1K from DigiCert is available to qualify, soon-to-be graduating high school/home school seniors or current undergrad or graduate college students whose application includes an essay on Internet security. Deadline: Multiple dates, with Aug 1, 2015 upcoming.
ESA Youth Scholarship Program — Awards of $1K, $2.5K and $7.5K are available from the ESA (Electronic Security Association) to qualified students (15-20 yrs) graduating from high school, accepted into a full-time program at a college/university, child of a public safety employee, and show interest in a career in one of several industries including security. Deadline: Late March of each year.
Federal CyberCorps Scholarship for Service (SFS) — Various awards of tuition and some fees, plus a stipend of $20-30K (up to $20K undergrad, $25K master’s, $30K doctoral) from the NSF (National Science Foundation) are available for qualified students studying cyber security or information assurance at various select American universities and colleges. Award requires work term. See the site for a list of participating institutions. Deadline: Varies.
Harold F. Tipton Memorial Scholarship Fund — Awards of $5K from (ISC)2 (International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium) are available to qualify full-time undergrad students in a bachelor’s degree program of information security or assurance. Deadline: Mid-June each year.
Illinois Cyber Security Scholars Program — Awards of tuition and stipend (amount unspecified) from the Information Trust Institute are available for qualified undergrad and graduate students in any computer science, computer engineering, or law with a focus on cyber security. Deadline: Spring of each year.
ISACA University Scholarships — Multiple awards in amounts of $500-$3K from ISACA (Information Systems Audit and Control Association) are available collectively from thirteen regional chapters in the USA (plus chapters in Canada and other parts of the world) to qualified students majoring in one of several IT subjects including information security. Named scholarships include H. Peet Raap Memorial (New England). See site for details. Deadline: See site for details.
ISSA Education Foundation Scholarships — Multiple awards of $2K each are available from ISSA (Information Systems Security Association) Education Foundation (and San Francisco and Denver chapters) to qualified full-time undergrad or graduate students in an information security and privacy program, or in a related program and planning a career in information security. See site for chapter-specific requirements. Deadline: Mid-June and mid-July each year.
Lowcountry Cyber Security Scholarship — The Rural Technology Fund (RTF) offers two $1K awards to qualified students — one to a high school senior from the Charleston, NC, area and the other award to a college undergrad enrolled in a Charleston-based university, and both of whom are pursuing or already enrolled in, respectively, a computer technology program with a focus in information security. Deadline: Mid-April of each year.
Microsoft Cybersecurity Essay Scholarship — Three awards of $2K, $3K and $5K from Microsoft are available to qualified college students working towards a career in cybersecurity and who participate by completing an essay on the topic. Deadline: Mid-January of each year.
Richard E. Merwin Student Scholarship — Over a dozen scholarships of at least $1K each (total $40k) from IEEE Computer Society are available to qualified students studying in a program in computer or related topics, which includes security-related majors such as cyber security. Deadline: End of April and September each year.
SMART Scholarship for Service Program — Awards for full tuition, a cash stipend ($25-38K), healthcare allowance ($1.2K/calendar year) and miscellaneous supplies ($1K/academic year) from the DoD (Dept. of Defense) and ASEE (American Society for Engineering Education) are available to qualified students studying in any one of several STEM disciplines including information systems security and assurance. Deadline: Mid-December of each year.
SWSIS Scholarship Program — Awards for $5-10K from CRA-W (Committee on the Status of Women in Computing Research) are available for qualified female bachelor’s (3rd or 4th year) or master’s students studying information security or a related program, including software security/ assurance, intrusion detection, network security, database security and several more. Deadline: Mid-February of each year.
U.S.A. Cyber Warrior Scholarship — Awards of $2K from (ISC)2 (International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium) are available to qualified, honorably discharged military veterans planning to transition to an information security or assurance career by first planning to complete one of several certifications. Deadline: Mid-September of each year.

General and Various Free Money

(ISC)2 Scholarships / University of Phoenix — Ten scholarships from (ISC)2 (International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium) and University of Phoenix are available to qualified applicants (students, teachers, general public) that will allow completion of an undergraduate or master’s degree at University of Phoenix (on-campus or online) focused on cyber security and/or information assurance. Deadline: Early June of each year.
AFCEA War Veterans Scholarships — Awards of $2.5K from AFCEA Educational Foundation are available to qualified applicants who are either on active duty in uniformed military services or honorably discharged veterans (Reservists and National Guard included) and are enrolled full- or part-time, as a sophomore or junior, in a degree program that falls into any one of several fields related to the mission of AFCEA, including cyber security and network security. Deadline: Varies; next on Nov 15, 2015.
ASIS Chapter Matching Scholarship — Thirty awards of $500-$1K from ASIS are available to qualified applicants planning a security career, with ASIS chapter member winners (one per chapter) receiving $1K, and undergrad/ graduate student winners receiving $500. Deadline: Mid-November of each year.
ASPIRE Full-Tuition Cybersecurity Scholarship — Awards of three years full tuition (plus $25K stipend in 2nd and 3rd years) from The Center on Law and Security at NYU School of Law is available to eligible students pursuing a Juris Doctor degree and can show strong interest in cyber or information security. Deadline: January 1st of each year.
Captain John and Angie Skinner Scholarship — Awards of $10K ($2.5K/year for 4 years) from the AFCEA Maryland Chapter are available to qualified high school seniors in Central Maryland area towards higher education in science or engineering and a career in a field that supports national defense, including security-related parts of computer science. Deadline: Mid-December of each year.
Colonel Sully H. De Fontaine Scholarship — One award of $1.2K from AFIO (Association of Former Intelligence Officers) is available to a qualified full-time undergrad student studying in one of several security-related fields, including information security or assurance, cyber security, or homeland security. Deadline: July 1st of each year.
David L. Boren Undergraduate Scholarships — Awards of up to $20K ($8k STEM students summer program; $10K semester program; $20K for full academic year), from NSEP (National Security Education Program) and the Boren Awards organization, are available to qualified undergrad students enrolled in a field of study critical to U.S. national security (including languages). Awards go towards time spent outside of the USA in order to study another language and culture. Deadline: Early February of each year.
Executive Women’s Forum INI Fellowship — Awards of full tuition and mentoring are available from the EWF (Executive Women’s Forum) to qualified freshman female graduate students in the INI (Information Networking Institute) MSISTM (Master of Science in Information Security Technology and Management) program at Carnegie Mellon University, working towards a career in one of several industries including security and information security. Deadline: June 30th of each year.
Miranda Bouldin Scholarship Fund — Ten awards of $1.5K and a laptop computer from Inspire & Achieve are available to qualified high school seniors in Madison, Morgan, Lawrence and Limestone countries in Alabama, who have been accepted into a college or university in the state, in a STEM subject “in support of the Defense Industry” (which includes various security topics) and who compete by writing an essay. Deadline: Early April of each year.
Ralph W. Shrader Diversity Scholarship — Awards of $3K each, for tuition, books and mandatory fees, are available from AFCEA (Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association) in partnership with Avaya and American Systems to qualified female and minority graduate students studying one of several STEM subjects including cyber security and network security. Deadline: Early May of each year.
Snort Scholarship — Two awards of $5K each from snort.org are available to qualified undergrad or grad students studying in a computer science discipline in which Snort is covered in course curriculum (including information security, network security, etc.), or at a college/university where Snort is used for network security. Deadline: Mid-May of each year.
STEM Major Diversity Scholarship (Women and Minority students) (Graduate) — Awards of $3K each, for tuition, books and mandatory fees, are available from AFCEA (Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association) in partnership with Avaya and American Systems to qualified female and minority graduate students studying one of several STEM subjects including cyber security and network security. Deadline: Early May of each year.
Stokes Educational Scholarships — Awards of $30K for tuition and mandatory fees are available from the NSA (National Security Agency) to qualified graduating high school seniors planning to study computer science or computer/ electrical engineering, which includes information security, cyber security, network security, etc. Each award requires a work term period of 12 weeks with the NSA in the summer, which will focus on computer security and related projects. Deadline: Mid-November of each year.
Symantec Software Scholarship — Four awards of $10K from Symantec are available to qualified Utah state high school students pursuing a math or science education (which includes security topics). Requirements are that applicants enter one of four science fairs in Utah and advance to the regional science fair level, the latter of which they do not need to win to qualify for the scholarship. Deadline: Varies.
The Charles H. “Sandy” Davidson IV Memorial Scholarship Webster-ASIS Foundation Scholarships — Two awards of full tuition from Webster University are available to qualified ASIS members towards a graduate degree in Business and Organizational Security Management, either through the university’s on-ground campuses, online, or a combination. Deadline: Early May of each year.
University of Phoenix ASIS Foundation Scholarships — Ten awards of full tuition from University of Phoenix are available to qualified security practitioners or students (graduate or undergrad) planning a career in a security profession, with preference given to applicants demonstrating this interest, such as with membership in organizations, or published research, etc. Deadline: Early April of each year.
VADM Samuel L. Gravely Memorial Scholarship — Awards of $5K each, for tuition, books and mandatory fees, are available from AFCEA (Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association) in partnership with Avaya and American Systems to qualified full-time undergrad students (sophomores and juniors only) attending an accredited HBCU (Historically Black College or University), in one of several STEM subjects including cyber security and network security. Deadline: Early May of each year.
Vector Security Loss Prevention Foundation (LPF) Scholarship Program — Multiple awards of $1K from Vector Security are available for qualified security professionals in Loss Prevention with a completed bachelor’s degree or higher and planning for LPQ (LPQualified) or LPC (LPCertified) certifications in Loss Prevention. Deadline: End of March each year.
Women in Defense HORIZONS Scholarships — Multiple awards of at least $3K each (as high as $18+K recently) from Women in Defense (WID) are available for eligible female students who are WID members, can demonstrate financial need, and who are pursuing careers in any one of several areas including cyber security, homeland security, national security. Deadline: Mid-July of each year.

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