How Do I Get Scholarships for Children of Veterans?
If you are the child or grandchild of a veteran, many college scholarships are set aside for you. Scholarships for children of veterans often honor the fallen and their service.
Many awards come from the branch of the military in which the veteran served. As such, you may find unique scholarship opportunities from the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force or Coast Guard.
Scholarships for children of veterans come with criteria for eligibility. One aspect relates to your parent. Another, to you and your education.
Some scholarships for children of veterans support students pursuing a specific undergraduate major. While others (e.g. AMVETs) may be available to a more general pool of applicants who meet their criteria.
With respect to your parent, you may need to be the son or daughter of one of these groups.
Regular active duty
Active duty Reserve National Guard active duty
U.S. Army members in good standing
Former U.S. Army members who received an honorable or medical discharge
Your parent was killed while serving in the U.S. Army
Apart from your family status, other criteria streamline the pool of applicants. So, you may need to be a high school senior, high school graduate, or registered as an undergrad.
You may also need to show you enrolled at an accredited college, post high school trade or technical school. Here are a few other common criteria you might need to meet.
Have a specific GPA (E.g. 2.0)
Be a U.S. citizen and / or show proof of residency
Meet an age rule (E.g. you are before your 24th birthday)
Not have earned a bachelor’s degree from a college or university
How Do I Apply to a College Scholarship?
You can expect to complete an application form and support it with other documents. You may have to submit an essay, photo, and certificate of good service (or a parents’ DD214).
Merit based awards may ask for other material too. Things like a resume of your community service and school transcripts.
Need based awards usually rely on info from your FAFSA. So, they may ask for a completed SAR (Student Aid Report). Though some forms want to see tax forms instead.
Are There Government Scholarships and Aid for Children of Veterans?
As the child of a service member, your parent may transfer post 9/11 benefits to you. You must request this while serving as an active member of the Armed Forces.
You are not usually allowed to receive both awards. That’s unless your parent died before August 1, 2011. Then you might have to use one benefit at a time. Also, the combined benefits reach a cap at a total of 81 months of full time training.
The Fry Scholarship is also called the Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry Scholarship. It provides Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits to the children service members. You may be eligible if the service member died in the line of duty after September 10, 2001.
DEA is the Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance program. It offers education and training opportunities to eligible dependents of Veterans. To be eligible, the veteran must be disabled due to a service related condition. Also you may be the child of veterans who died while on active duty or as a result of a service related condition.
Why Should Children of Veterans Apply for Scholarships?
Scholarships for children of veterans may help pay for your college and continuing education. There are various scholarship awards if you qualify.
As the child of an American soldier or of a fallen hero, you may face many challenges. Some of these issues relate to deployment like moving often and separation from loved ones.
About 46 % of veterans have children. Many (12%) are also members of Disabled American Veterans (DAV). About 67% have a parent(s) with some college who did not earn a degree.
Many college scholarships are competitive. Ones that are open to both military and non military applicants, they may be harder to get. Try to find local scholarships which you may be able to easily win.
Military scholarships are one of the support systems in place to help. They may also bridge the gap between shrinking state funding and the price of college.
Also, a public college’s average tuition, fees and housing cost about $17,237. However, it’s more expensive at private colleges.
Scholarships for sons, daughters and grandchildren of veterans are only for you. Since they are not loans, you also don’t need to worry about repaying the money.
There are many sources of scholarships to look into. Colleges, nonprofits and the military community may offer scholarships for children of veterans. Make sure to look into these valuable resources. They may help make your dream of a college degree come true.
List of Scholarships for Children of Veterans
There are awards worth below. Apply now to our list of scholarships for children of veterans.
This award is available for U.S students who are members of the U.S. Armed Forces or commissioned officers in the U.S. Public Health Service, and their spouse or child. Applicants must be attending a public college or university in Texas as a non-resident student.
This award is avialable to Massachusetts undergraduate students who are planning to enroll full-time at a Massachusetts college or university. Students must have a parent and or spouse who is killed or missing in the line of public service duty in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
This award is available to Ohio residents who are children of deceased or severely disabled veterans that served during a time of declared war or conflict. Students must be under the age of 25 and be enrolled full-time at an eligible postsecondary institution in Ohio.
This award is available for U.S. high school seniors or older students planning to enroll full time in an undergraduate program of study. Students must have a grade point average of 2.0 or higher and be the son, daughter, spouse, or surviving spouse of an Air Force member. Learn more and apply today!
This award is available for U.S. undergraduate students who are the dependent child of a U.S. soldier, sailor, airman, Marine, or guardsman who was killed or permanently disabled (100 percent rating) as a result of an operational mission or training accident, OR a dependent child of a soldier, sailor, airman, Marine, or guardsman who is currently classified as a POW or MIA. Students must be 26 years of age or younger.
U.S. high school students in grades nine through twelve who are 19 years of age or younger are eligible for this scholarship. To apply, the applicant must write an essay on the theme listed on the Veterans of Foreign Wars website and record the reading of that essay; submit both essay and CD/flash drive to be considered for this scholarship.
This award is available to Texas resident undergradaute students who are children of persons listed as Missing in Action or Prisoners of War by the U.S. Department of Defense. The applicant must be 21 years of age or younger at the time of application.
The Seabee Memorial Scholarship is given to children and grandchildren of regular, reserve, retired, or deceased officers or enlisted members who have served or who are now serving with the Naval Construction Force. Scholarship awards are based on financial need, character, good citizenship, leadership, and scholastic record.
At Kopfler & Hermann, we are pleased to continue our annual scholarship for 2023! This $1,000 award will be given to a student who has overcome adversity and emerged stronger.
With over 40 years of legal experience, Kopfler & Hermann law firm has served the Gulf Coast since 1992. As personal injury attorneys, we are committed to serving justice and ensuring injured workers and accident victims receive full compensation for their injuries and damages. Following this mission, the attorneys at Kopfler & Hermann established the Overcoming Adversity Scholarship and are offering it for the fifth year in a row.
Kopfler & Hermann, a personal injury law firm based in Houma, Louisiana, is excited to bring back to announce our annual scholarship for 2024. This $1,000 award will be given to a student who has overcome adversity and emerged stronger. With over 40 years of legal experience, Kopfler & Hermann law firm has served the Gulf Coast since 1992. As personal injury attorneys, we are committed to serving justice and ensuring injured workers and accident victims receive full compensation for their injuries and damages. Following this mission, attorneys Kopfler & Hermann established the Overcoming Adversity Scholarship and offered it for the sixth year!
