UNCF Scholarships (general program)
UNCF (United Negro College Fund)
hundreds of separate scholarships; amounts vary by program (current examples $2,000 to $10,000); $62M+ awarded each year
- How much
- varies by program (October 2026 examples: one-time $2,000 to $10,000); more than $62 million awarded annually
- Who qualifies
- Only some students qualify. The official page explains who.
- Each program has its own criteria; common UNCF baseline per its 'Applying for Scholarships' page: minimum 2.5 GPA, FAFSA filed, financial need verified by the college's financial aid director. Many programs require attendance at a UNCF member HBCU or other HBCU.
- For high school seniors, undergrads, grad students
- varies by program (not stated as a general rule on the official pages)
- Partly need-based: your FAFSA can affect whether you get it or how much.
- When to apply
- Apply any time rolling umbrella: individual programs open and close throughout the year (UNCF posts a monthly list of closing programs)
- How to apply
- Browse open programs and apply per program through the UNCF portal (opportunities.uncf.org)
- Most programs require a FAFSA, a 2.5+ GPA, an essay, and financial need verified by the college's financial aid director
- What you'll need
- FAFSA + essay + transcript
- Last checked
- October 5, 2026, against the official page (uncf.org), page 2 and page 3
The details
UNCF is an umbrella administrator, not a single scholarship: it runs hundreds of separate scholarship programs, each with its own amount, eligibility and deadline, for students at 600+ schools including its 36 member HBCUs. October 2026 examples on the official site: Ruby L. Bailey ($3,000, need-based), AXA Achievement ($2,000, business majors), Frederick Douglass Bicentennial (two $10,000 awards to HBCU seniors), Etta Gray Memorial ($5,000, upstate South Carolina).
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.