Scholarships

Point Foundation Scholarships

The Point Foundation provides scholarships to undergraduate and graduate LGBTQA students enrolled in universities in the U.S.

Pine Tree Scholarship

The Pine Tree Scholarship was created in 1994. It is a need-based scholarship that is awarded with a preference to otherwise qualified undergraduate individuals who "identify themselves as being gay or lesbian or express an interest in gay and lesbian studies." Interested students must apply in writing by April 1st to the Office of Scholarships and Student Aid. The amount of the scholarship varies, and award amounts depend on how much money is available on an annual basis, the number of recipients, and the level of financial need. Students who have completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and who meet the criteria should send a personal statement to:

The deadline for 2018-19 awards is April 1, 2018. The awards are made on a first-come, first-served basis, and are only for full-time undergraduate students at UNC-CH.

The criteria are the following:

You must be a full-time, degree-seeking undergraduate student at UNC-CH; You must demonstrate financial need according to the FAFSA (FAFSA and CSS Profile for first-time enrollment at UNC) OR have independent student status, as determined by the Office of Scholarships and Student Aid; You must self-identify as Gay or Lesbian, or be enrolled in the curriculum in Sexuality Studies.

If you meet these criteria, please email a letter of interest (include your PID) to: Torie Davis-Forte at torie_davis-forte@unc.edu. Again, please remember that the letter of interest must be received by April 1, 2018 for scholarship consideration.

Graduate & Professional Student Federation (GPSF) Travel Awards

Travel Awards are offered by the Graduate and Professional Student Federation to assist with conference and research travel expenses for graduate and professional students, intended especially for those without other financial support.

Internships and Fellowships

Law

National Gay and Lesbian Task Force: Holley Law Fellowship

Task Force Holley Law Fellowships are available part- or full-time each semester and full-time each summer in the Washington, DC. Holley Law Fellows work in the Task Force Public Policy and Government Affairs Department, which has four lawyers working on local, state, and federal policy. 1Ls, 2Ls, 3Ls, and LL.M. candidates are eligible.

Skadden Fellowship Program

The Skadden Fellowship provides support for law school graduates and outgoing judicial law clerks who want to work in the public interest in providing legal services to the poor, elderly, homeless and disabled, and those deprived of their civil or human rights. Fellows create their own projects at public interest organizations and fellowships are awarded for two years.

Williams Institute Summer Law Fellowships

The Williams Institute Summer Fellowship program provides a stipend to allow a current law student or recent law school graduate to work for a national lesbian and gay rights organization. Examples of eligible placements include the summer internship programs of Lambda Legal, ACLU Lesbian and Gay Rights Project, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), the Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law and Public Policy, and similar national and local organizations. During the fellowship, students work on research projects and assist with on-going lesbian and gay civil rights cases.

LGBT Health

Fenway Institute Center for Population Research in LGBT Health: Summer Institute in LGBT Population Health

The Summer Institute in LGBT Population Health offers graduate students and early career scholars an opportunity to train in LGBT health research. The Summer Institute, held at Fenway Health and Boston University over four weeks in July and August, provides participants with foundational training in interdisciplinary theory, knowledge and methods for conducting population research in sexual and gender minority health. There is no cost for tuition and slots are available for free housing in Boston University dormitories during the Institute.

Other

National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) Internships

The National Center for Transgender Equality offers year-round unpaid internships for academic credit for undergraduate and graduate students in the areas of policy and communications, and also offers year-round internships for law students. Internships take place at the Washington, D.C. office.

Williams Institute Public Policy Research Fellowship

The Williams Institute will offer a Public Policy Research Fellowship to a recent graduate school graduate who is interested in public policy research and writing on sexual orientation and gender identity issues. The program lasts up to two years and the Public Policy Research Fellow works on a variety of research projects and reports. Research tasks may include public policy research; collecting, checking and analyzing data; gathering information; and preparing reports and report graphics. Attendance at relevant legislative briefings, policy seminars and meetings is also an integral part of the fellowship program.

Out to Innovate Scholarships

These scholarships will be awarded for the Fall 2014 academic year, and will be funded by the Motorola Solutions Foundation. Students currently enrolled at any US-based college or university that meet the eligibility requirements are encouraged to apply. The scholarships are intended for undergraduate and graduate students pursuing degrees in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) programs who are either lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBTQ) or are an active ally of the LGBTQ community. These scholarships are designed to promote academic excellence and increased visibility of talented LGBT students in STEM career tracks. They are funded at a minimum of $5,000 each. For more information and on-line application, please visit the NOGLSTP website (www.noglstp.org). The deadline for submission of applications is June 7th, 2014.

Research Grants, Fellowships, and Postdoctoral Programs

LGBT Health

HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies at the New York State Psychiatric Institute / Columbia University Department of Psychiatry: NRSA Institutional Training Grant (Postdoctoral Training Program)

This program is a postdoctoral research training program that provides intensive training in human sexuality research as applied to HIV prevention and HIV-related health interventions. The major components of are academic course work, the development of research and professional skills, and the conduct of independent research.

National Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Grants on LGBTI Health

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released a set of three program announcements inviting grant applications for Research on the Health of LGBTI Populations. These funding opportunity announcements call for research describing the biological, clinical, behavioral, and social processes that affect the health and development among LGBTI populations and among their families, and that leads to the development of effective supportive, preventive and treatment interventions and health service delivery methods that will enhance the health and development of these populations. Research conducted must focus on clearly defined health outcomes, rather than on general measures of “well-being” or “adjustment.” This announcement encourages researchers to investigate new research questions related to the health and development of LGBTI individuals and their families and to develop and/or apply innovative methodologies to improve understanding of mechanisms affecting the health and development of these populations. This funding opportunity open through May 8, 2015.

R01 Grants (regular grants)

R03 Grants (small grants)

R21 Grants (exploratory/developmental grants)

University of California-San Francisco Center for AIDS Prevention Studies: Traineeship in AIDS Prevention Studies (Postdoctoral Fellowship)

The Traineeships in AIDS Prevention Studies (TAPS) program trains scientists for academic and public health careers. Candidates must hold a PhD, MD, or equivalent doctorate degree. The program is suitable for those who are currently completing their doctoral, residency, or clinical fellowship programs as well as for those who have recently completed their doctoral degrees and seek careers as independent researchers. CAPS offers fellows supplementary academic preparation in research methods, public health, AIDS, and other specific learning objectives and gives closely supervised experiences in AIDS prevention research. Fellows who already have a master of public health (MPH) degree or its equivalent may complete the program in two years; those who do not will be required to complete the MPH degree at UC Berkeley in the first year, followed by two years of research training.

Psychology

American Psychological Association: Bisexual Foundation Scholarship Award

The Bisexual Foundation Scholarship is an annual fund awarding up to $1000 per award to selected graduate students to advance research on the psychology of bisexuality. This new award recognizes the growing importance of research on bisexuality to the field of LGBT issues in psychology and offers concrete support and encouragement to emerging scholars in this field. Applicants must be currently enrolled full-time in a Department of Psychology at the graduate level.

American Psychological Association: Diversity Dissertation Scholarship

The Diversity Dissertation Scholarship was established to encourage excellence in research within the field of psychology concerning issues of diversity such as varied ethnic backgrounds, women's issues, ageism, sexual orientation and disability. Funds for this $1,500 grant must be used to support proposed research, rather than to reward a completed, or nearly completed dissertation.

American Psychological Association: Maylon Smith Scholarship Research Award

The Maylon Smith Award of $1000 honors graduate students in psychology for research into psychological issues of importance to gay, lesbian, or bisexual individuals, groups, or communities. Applicants must be currently enrolled full-time in a Department of Psychology at the graduate level.

American Psychological Association: Predoctoral Fellowship in Gender, Sexuality, and Health

The Department of Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health will offer at least one and possibly two Predoctoral Fellowships in Gender, Sexuality and Health to PhD applicants entering in the fall of 2014. Fellowships cover tuition and stipend and include monies for professional meeting travel and academic supplies. Funding is guaranteed up to five years (although students will be encouraged to seek outside funding for their dissertation research).

American Psychological Association: Roy Scrivner Memorial Research Grants

The Roy Scrivner Research Grants provide graduate student grants (preference given to dissertation candidates) for empirical or applied research that encourages the study of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) family psychology and LGBT family therapy. Researchers from all fields of the behavioral and social sciences are encouraged to apply. One grant of up to $12,000 is available.

American Psychological Foundation: Wayne F. Placek Grants

The Wayne F. Placek Grants support scientific research to increase the general public's understanding of homosexuality and to alleviate the stress that gay men and lesbians experience in this and future civilizations. One $15,000 grant is available in research support.

Sociology

American Sociological Association: Fund for the Advancement of the Discipline

The goal of the Fund for the Advancement of the Discipline is to nurture the development of scientific knowledge by funding small, groundbreaking research initiatives and other important scientific research activities such as conferences. FAD awards provide scholars with “seed money" for innovative research that has the potential for challenging the discipline, stimulating new lines of research, and creating new networks of scientific collaboration. The award is intended to provide opportunities for substantive and methodological breakthroughs, broaden the dissemination of scientific knowledge, and provide leverage for acquisition of additional research funds.

Other/General LGBT Studies

Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies: Joan Heller-Diane Bernard Fellowship in Lesbian and Gay Studies

This fellowship supports research by a junior scholar (graduate student, untenured university professor or independent researcher) and a senior scholar (tenured university professor or advanced independent scholar) into the impact of lesbians and/or gay men on U.S.society and culture. Scholars conducting research on lesbians are especially encouraged to apply. It is open to researchers both inside and outside the academy. Each award is $6,250.

Kinsey Institute: John Money Fellowship for Scholars of Sexology

The John Money Fellowship for Scholars of Sexology was established in 2002 by Dr. John Money. The fellowship is to support graduate students whose scholarly work would benefit from the use of library and archival materials at The Kinsey Institute for Sex, Gender, and Reproduction. Applications are encouraged from all students enrolled in a graduate program in the United States and whose interests concern the anthropology, biology, psychology, sociology, history, politics, and methodology of sexology and sexuality studies. Recipients will receive $3,000. One or two fellowships will be awarded. The fellowship must be used to cover travel, lodging, and research expenses associated with the stated purpose.

Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality: Student Research Grants

Each year The Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality awards two grants of $1,000 each to student members who are doing human sexuality research. The purpose of the research can be a master's thesis or doctoral dissertation, but this is not a requirement. Applicants must be enrolled in a degree-granting program and a member (student) of SSSS.

Yale University Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Studies: Sarah Pettit Doctoral Fellowship

This traditionally biennial fellowship provides a year of support to a graduate student, from an institution other than Yale, who is writing a dissertation in LGBT Studies, with lesbian studies as its focus. The winner receives $20,000. Residence in New Haven and participation in LGBTS is required during the tenure of the fellowship.

Awards

American Psychological Association: Lesbian Psychologies Unpublished Manuscript Award

This award will be announced at the American Psychological Association convention in August. The award recipient will be invited to present the manuscript at the Annual AWP conference and will receive up to $250 in transportation expenses. Unpublished manuscripts focusing on any topic relevant to the psychology of lesbians are invited.

National Women’s Studies Association: Lesbian Caucus Award

The purpose of the annual NWSA Lesbian Caucus Award is to provide a $500 research award in recognition of a Master’s Thesis or Doctoral Dissertation research project that resonates with the mission of NWSA and the goals of the Lesbian Caucus.

More Funding

The Queer Mobilization Fund

The Queer Mobilization Fund is a NC-based grassroots community fund prioritizing & supporting queer and trans people of color on the frontlines of struggles for freedom and liberation to build power for and within queer communities.

Affordable Colleges Online Guide to LGBTQ Scholarships

This online resource lists over forty different LGBTQ Scholarships across a variety of regions, degrees, and organizations.