Grants for Women

Due to worldwide economic change and difficulties, many people find themselves in the position of completely changing career paths. Employment is increasingly more difficult to find, and this has many job seekers scrambling to find new and different opportunities. Many of those unemployed are choosing to return to school to retrain in a more available field, while others are taking this opportunity to start a new small business in a rising field where they can hope to compete. Women are especially likely to be looking for ways to compete in the changing job market and searching for funding for school or small business creation.

Women are considered the largest minority group by far, and this can be advantageous when looking for funding opportunities for secondary education, small business funding, or personal loans and grants. While many women are aware of the availability of loans for such undertakings, one resource that women entrepreneurs and students overlook is the abundance of grants available to them. Women own more small businesses, by far, than their male counterparts, and grant sponsors recognize that investing in the advancement of women is a smart investment.

The advantages of grants are many. They do not require repayment like loans do, and the number of grants available for women has reached an all time high. There are grants available for personal use, for education, for research and for business use. These grants are obtainable through a number of sources, including organizations, individuals, corporations and government sources.

Federal Grants

The majority of federally funded grants for women are offered to those wishing to further their education. Whether at the undergraduate or graduate level, women are can find grants designed to pay for school and the related expenses involved with attending school as an adult. While federal government generally no long offer grants directly to individuals, aside from the education grants mentioned above, federal funds do go to many agencies and organizations who do offer grants for small businesses and individuals who own them. In the US, grants are posted, along with information regarding applying for grants, at www.grants.gov. This is a useful resource for anyone considering applying for any type of grant.

There are grants available through federal agencies, which women can and should consider when looking for grant opportunities. Most of these are available at grants.gov, but looking for more information from individual agencies can also be helpful. Look for the websites of the Departments or Ministries of Health, Welfare, Social Services, Education, Agriculture, and Small Business Administration.

The most commonly awarded Federal grant in the US is the Pell Grant, which is a need-based program that serves college students of all ages and grade levels. Awards are based solely on financial need of the student. Many schools also have a federally funded pool of grants called Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG), which are similarly available based on financial need. In addition, many universities will also offer the ACG Pell Grant. The Academic Competitiveness Gran is awarded to students who excelled academically in high school while taking a rigorous program of study. This grant is only available to first and second year undergraduate students. Women interested in taking advantage of these grant awards should check out www.fafsa.ed.gov for an application and more information.

Private Grants

There are many foundations and individuals who offer grants to specific causes and opportunities to improve communities and further study, research or instruction in their area of interest. These grants are generally earmarked for specific degree of study, ethnicity, and field of research, socio-economic conditions or minority status. Often these private organizations are set up as a foundation with a board of directors or a committee that handles the grants and awards. Women should not overlook this source of funding. Some of the more well known private individuals and foundations who offer grants as a charitable humanitarian act are The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Bill Cosby, Oprah Winfrey and The Union Pacific Foundation.

Corporate Grants

Developed and administered by companies who wish to fund entrepreneurs and projects that will benefit their company as well as the community, corporate grants are a great opportunity for women. Whether seeking funding for education, to expand or open a small business, women can find many corporations in their field willing to work them to provide funding for their work. In order to maintain federal standards for non-profit work, many corporate grant foundations are required to provide a large percentage of their awards to minorities. As the world’s largest minority group, women can benefit from this requirement.

Many major grants are available from such corporations as Sony, Kellogg, Microsoft, Coca Cola, Ben &Jerry’s, and General Electric. Caution should be taken when searching online for such corporate grants. The huge influx of grant seekers has created a market for poorly written websites offering less than trustworthy information. Look for website that offers genuine information for free, such as BusinessGrants.org, which maintains a database of grant opportunities for small businesses.  Another resource for finding this type of corporate grant can be found at http://www.grantsalert.com.

Professional grants

Grants are often provided by non-profit foundations, organizations and universities for a given profession to advance the status of their profession or the status of an individual member. There are many such professional women’s organizations that offer career advancement grants and professional development awards for use by members of their profession for education or related expenses. Women especially benefit from these organizations when they work together to lend a hand up to other women who are trying to make their way in the same profession. Supporting each other in this way, women can build a strong professional alliance of networking and  collaboration that can only benefit the entire profession as a whole.

Professional grants are available from such organizations as The American Association of University Women, the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Service, and many universities around the world.

Department of Education Grants

Aside from the educational grants offered by the federal government, in the US the Department of Education also offers grants to research that contributes to improved academic achievement for all students, and especially to those whose education prospects are hindered by inadequate services and conditions that are associated with race, ethnicity, poverty, disability, or family circumstances. These include Special Education Research grants, awards for statistical studies and research methodology in education, as well as many other areas involving education. An overview of research and training grant programs can be found at the Institute of Education Sciences’ website.

The opportunities for grant monies for women are growing daily, and enterprising women looking to further their education or business can find numerous opportunities for grants and awards suited to their profession. As the largest minority group in the world, women have the largest number of grants available to them, and the fastest growing category of available grants is for women in business. Women own more small businesses in the US than any other group, and small business employ more workers and bring in more tax revenue than larger corporations, making women business owners a smart investment for governments and corporations alike.

Information is available for women who are willing to take the time and energy to us it. Websites such as the government database, Grants.gov, as well as the federal education website ed.gov, and the Institute of Education Sciences can offer many grant opportunities and information. Once  grants are located, grant application guidelines should be carefully considered. Following the guidelines of the administering authority is absolutely essential to any grant proposal or application process. By double checking eligibility requirements, following all application procedures to the letter, and submitting all required documents on time are crucial, as award committees allow no leeway for late applications or incomplete documents.

Taking advantage of the opportunities available to them, women in business can find grants and awards that will assist their entrepreneurial and educational needs. While grant applications can be tedious and time consuming, the payoff can be worth it when monies are awarded. Working with grant sponsors can greatly benefit women in business as the sponsoring grant foundation often offers advice, education and encouragement as part of the grant program. This type of networking is vital to women as they rise up in their field of education or profession. While complex and time consuming, grants and awards are an important resource for women of any age a stage of their career and when women succeed in business and education the entire community benefits from their success.