There are more minority scholarships than most people realize. In academia, the term “minority” applies to a racial, gender, cultural, or social minority group within a particular field of study or population of students. Here are just a few of the groups that qualify for minority scholarships.

• Gender minority in a field of study (female engineers, male nurses)
• African Americans
• Asian & Pacific Islanders
• Latino & Hispanic Americans
• Native Americans
• Gay Lesbian Bisexual, & Transgender (GLBT)
• Multiracial
• International
• Learning or Physically Disabled

The good news is that there are many many scholarships available if you fall into one of these groups. The Gates Millennium Scholars Program , a $1 billion grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is exclusively targeted to racial minorities in education, engineering, library science, mathematics, public health and the sciences, where these groups are severely underrepresented.

Similar scholarships, offered by professional organizations in your field of interest, exist for underrepresented genders, like male elementary school teachers. If you fall into one of those categories, make sure to explore all your options.

Remember, the best places to look for scholarships are the schools themselves!

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