Chafee Education and Training Voucher (ETV)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (administered by each state's child-welfare agency)
Apply any timeRenews each year
Up to $5,000 a year toward college or training for current and former foster youth
- How much
- up to $5,000 per year (or the cost of attendance, if less)
- Who qualifies
- Current or former foster youth (eligible from age 14; or adopted / kinship guardianship from foster care after age 16)
- States may extend eligibility to age 26 while enrolled with satisfactory progress; 5-year maximum. Each state sets its own application process.
- For students starting college, undergrads, trade school students
- When to apply
- Apply any time Set by each state's ETV administrator; most accept applications year-round per term.
- How to apply
- Apply through your state's foster-care / child-welfare agency or its ETV program administrator
- Several states' versions are listed separately here with their own application steps
- What you'll need
- FAFSA only
- Last checked
- October 5, 2026, against the official page (govinfo.gov)
The details
A federal voucher that every state runs for youth who were in foster care. It pays toward the cost of attendance at a college or training program: up to $5,000 a year or the cost of attendance, whichever is less. States may keep youth eligible until age 26 while they are enrolled and making satisfactory progress, for at most 5 years in total. Youth adopted from foster care, or placed in kinship guardianship, after age 16 can also qualify.
More federal and national aid
- QuestBridge National College Matchfull four-year scholarship to a partner college (worth $360,000+; tuition, room/board, no loans)
- Jack Kent Cooke College Scholarship Programup to $55,000/yr for up to 4 years (last-dollar after institutional aid)
- Davidson Fellows Scholarship$100,000, $50,000, or $25,000 (one-time)
- Burger King Scholars Program$1,000 to $60,000 (most general-track awards $1,000 or $5,000; up to three $60,000 James W. McLamore WHOPPER Scholarships)
- NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)$37,000/yr stipend + $16,000/yr cost-of-education allowance to the school, for 3 years
Keep looking
We list programs; we don't decide who gets them. Always check the official page before you apply. Spot something wrong? Tell us.