Across the blogosphere and in educators’ marketing copy, you’ll see some truly astonishing estimates of the job outlook for data scientists. These aren’t just hot air: according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, data scientists already earn average annual salaries of around $100,000 in the US, well above the typical American’s wages of just $44,000. What’s more, these kinds of high-paying positions are only multiplying: the BLS estimates 36% job growth in the field over the next decade, over 7x labor growth in the US as a whole.
While the data science job market offers an increasing number of opportunities to earn a lucrative salary, for many, financing the education needed to break into the field still presents an almost insurmountable hurdle, more difficult even than coding a deep learning model to extract insights from big data sets. After all, often omitted from marketers’ sunny characterizations of the job outlook for data scientists are the eye-popping start-up costs: the average data science bootcamp in the US cost $11,727 in 2020, while the average bachelor’s and master’s degree will run students $218,004 and $61,200, respectively. Factor in student loans and frequently exorbitant interest rates, and the true cost is often far higher.
The cost of data science education has two undesirable upshots. First, these high costs, even after financial aid, can hinder access for individuals who are already traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields, especially women, minorities, veterans, and first-generation college students, which robs the field of data science of crucial brainpower. Second, a data scientist seeking to quickly realize a return on their investment and pay off loans tends to gravitate to high-paying industries like big tech, leaving talent gaps for lower-paying, but no less essential areas of the public and social sectors that can leverage big data to drive growth.
To combat these, nonprofits, corporations, and governments alike are increasingly offering a wide variety of scholarships and fellowships to defray the cost of education for those interested in data science and other STEM fields. It’s free money, and you’d be foolish not to try to tap in. Below, you’ll find a curated, up-to-date list of great opportunities that can make your data science journey easier — financially at least — plus information on how you can apply to each.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility
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ASA Pride Scholarship
The American Statistical Association’s Pride Scholarship supports the graduate studies of LGBTQ+ aspiring scientists, statisticians, and allies. Students are selected for award by the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Outreach Group and the ASA LGBTQ+ Advocacy Committee.
Eligibility: Students must identify as LGBTQ+ or an ally and have completed a statistics or data science degree within the last five years or be currently pursuing a statistics or data science graduate degree.
Amount: N/A
Great Minds in STEM Scholarship
Great Minds in STEM’s scholarship program aims to support underserved Hispanic communities through merit-based and non-merit based scholarships for those pursuing a degree in science, technology, engineering, or math part- or full-time. Scholarship recipients are invited to attend the annual GMiS conference, with travel provided.
Eligibility: Students must be enrolled in or planning to attend a two- or four-year undergraduate or graduate degree program in the US in STEM or health services and be of Hispanic descent or a leader in the community. For merit-based scholarships, students must hold a 3.0 minimum GPA.
Application Requirements:
Online application
Personal statement
Resume
Letters of recommendation from one peer and one faculty member
Official transcript
Photo
Biography
Amount: $500–$5,000 (merit-based); $500–$1,000 (non-merit based)
Orchard Scholarship for Women of Color in STEM
Orchard’s Scholarship for Women of Color in STEM, established several years ago by the real-estate website, aims to make undergraduate STEM education more accessible for women of color through awards of varying amounts, in line with their “goals as a company to encourage diversity within our industry and to find ways to make difference outside of our organization.”
Eligibility: Applicants must be female high school seniors or college sophomore and juniors of color interested in or currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in STEM. Applicants must also hold a GPA of 3.0 or more.
Application Requirements:
Application form
Two short essays
Amount: Awards of $500, $1000, and $2,500
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AISES Scholarships
AISES (Advancing Indigenous People in STEM) offers a wide variety of over 15 scholarships for American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, and Indigenous people of Canada who are interested in pursuing education in a STEM field such as applied data science or artificial intelligence. Eligibility, application requirements, and award amounts vary for each scholarship.
Eligibility: Varies
Application Requirements: Varies
Amount: Varies
Generation Google Scholarship
The Generation Google Scholarship aims to support North American students studying computer science, with particular emphasis on students identifying as women, Black, Latinx, Native American, and Native Hawaiin/Pacific Islander. Students must demonstrate a commitment to improving representation in the field of technology.
Eligibility: Students must be studying computer science, computer engineering, or a related field and be planning to pursue a bachelor’s, master’s, or Ph.D. in the US or Canada. Students must also demonstrate financial need, a strong academic record, and a passion for improving representation in computer science and technology.
Application Requirements:
General background information
Family and household information
Resume or CV
Academic transcripts
Three short essays
Amount: $10,000 USD (US); $5,000 CAD (Canada)
Google Lime Scholarship
A collaboration between Google and Lime Connect, a nonprofit focused on supporting students with disabilities, the Google Lime Scholarship provides funding for students with disabilities who are currently pursuing or will pursue an undergraduate or graduate degree in computer science.
Eligibility: Students are welcome to apply who self-identify as having a visible or invisible disability and are current or incoming computer science bachelor’s and master’s students in the US or Canada.
Application Requirements:
General background information
Resume or CV
Academic transcripts
Letter of reference
Three short essays
Amount: $10,000 USD (US); $5,000 CAD (Canada)
Google Student Veterans of America Scholarship
Google’s Google Student Veterans of America Scholarship, in partnership with Student Veterans of America, supports student veterans studying computer science in American undergraduate and graduate programs.
Eligibility: Student veterans must be in good standing with or honorably discharged from the US Armed Services and be pursuing or intending to pursue undergraduate or graduate studies in computer science.
Application Requirements:
General background information
Resume or CV
Academic transcripts
Proper documentation of discharge or good standing
Letter of reference
Three short essays
Amount: $10,000
Palantir Women in Technology Scholarship
Founded in 2010, the Palantir Women in Technology Scholarship provides monetary awards and professional opportunities to help women embark on careers in technology. In addition to the $7,000 scholarship award, scholarship recipients participate in professional development workshops and are eligible to interview for internships at Palantir.
Eligibility: Applicants must be current undergraduates at a North American college or university, be majoring or planning to major in computer science or a related field, identify as women, and have not won a Palantir scholarship previously.
Application Requirements:
Two short-essays
Resume or CV
Amount: $7,000
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ACM SIGHPC Computational & Data Science Fellowships
The ACM SIGHPC Computational & Data Science Fellowships, offered by the Association for Computing Machinery in collaboration with Intel, seeks to increase the representation of women and students from traditionally underrepresented racial and ethnic backgrounds in computational and data science by enhancing institutional support for those pursuing master’s and Ph.D. degrees in these fields.
Eligibility: Applicants must be enrolled in or accepted to a graduate program (master’s or Ph.D.) in computational or data science, have completed less than half of this program, and be a woman or member of an underrepresented racial or ethnic group.
Application requirements:
Nomination: applicants must be nominated for the fellowship by their academic advisor
Resume or CV
Candidate statement of purpose
Endorsement from current or former teacher, supervisor, or employer
Amount: $15,000, adjusted depending on which country the degree will take place
National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program
The National Science Foundation’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program seeks to expand the diversity of the science and engineering workforce by supporting the graduate studies of underrepresented groups such as women, disabled persons, veterans, and minorities. Past recipients include US Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, Google founder Sergey Brin, and Freakonomics author Steven Levitt.
Eligibility: Applicants must be early-career US citizens or, if an international student, permanent residents, intend to pursue graduate studies in a target field, and begin studies within a year of receiving the award.
Application Requirements:
Online application
Reference letters
Statements on background and future goals
Amount: Annual stipend of $37,000, $12,000 cost of education allowance for up to 3 years
Governmental
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US Department of Defense SMART Scholarship-for-Service Program
The US Department of Defense SMART Scholarship-for-Service Program incentivizes bachelor’s, master’s, and Ph.D. students working in areas like computer science, information science, mathematical sciences, and aeronautics to pursue careers in government by providing full tuition, an annual stipend, internship opportunities, and guaranteed employment at the Department of Defense (DoD) upon graduation.
Eligibility: Applicants must be citizens of the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, or the United Kingdom, enrolled in a degree program in one of 21 technical areas at a US accredited college or university, able to complete a summer internship, and willing to work at the DoD upon graduation.
Application Requirements:
Online application
College transcripts
Personal statement
References
DoD employee supervisor letter
Amount: Full tuition, annual stipend ($25,000-$38,000) for up to 5 years, internship, guaranteed employment
US Department of Energy Computational Science Graduate Fellowship
The US Department of Energy Computational Science Graduate Fellowship is a PhD fellowship offered to doctoral students at an accredited US college of university working in one of a dozen target areas, including computer science, materials science, machine learning, and chemical engineering. Recipients receive full tuition, a yearly stipend, a professional development allowance, and practicum experience at the US Department of Energy (DoE).
Eligibility: Fellowship recipients must be enrolled as full-time graduate students in a target area. International students are welcome to apply, but must be lawful permanent residents. For more information on eligibility, see the DoE’s requirements page.
Application Requirements:
Transcripts
Green card (if not a US citizen)
References
Program of study
Amount: Full tuition, annual stipend ($45,000) for up to 4 years, practicum
Corporate Scholarships (Non-DEIA)
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Bloomberg Data Science Ph.D. Fellowship
Bloomberg’s Data Science Ph.D. Fellowship supports exceptional doctoral candidates interested in data science for social good, human computation & annotation, information retrieval & extraction, financial machine learning, natural language processing and other areas. In addition to full tuition and a living stipend, recipients of the data science fellowship receive extensive mentorship from Bloomberg employees and complete a summer internship at Bloomberg.
Eligibility: To apply, an individual must be a current doctoral candidate able to work in the US.
Application Requirements:
CV
Research proposal
Reference letter from doctoral advisor
Amount: Full tuition and an annual living stipend ($35,000)
Nonprofit, Social Sector & Public Good
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MinneAnalytics Data Science Scholarship
MinneAnalytics Data Science Scholarships are intended to support those Midwestern students who intend to use their analytics skill set to improve their communities. Each year, MinneAnalytics also presents the MinneMUDAC Student Data Science Challenge, which provides undergraduates and graduate students with the opportunity to collaborate with their peers and employ their data analytics skills to solve real-world problems.
Eligibility: To be eligible for a MinneAnalytics Data Science scholarship, students must be current undergraduates at one of 30 partner universities across the Midwest and be able to demonstrate a commitment both to data science and community engagement.
Application Requirements:
Applications are submitted on behalf of students by staff and faculty members of partner colleges and universities.
Award: $1000
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Jack Larson Data for Good Fellowship
The Jack Larson Data for Good Fellowship supports aspiring data scientists in the University of California – Berkeley’s Master’s of Information and Data Science program (MIDS) who have a demonstrated track record of leveraging data to further non-profit, governmental, and other social initiatives.
Eligibility: Current and incoming MIDS students are eligible to apply during three application windows annually.
Amount: $8,500
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Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program
The Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program offers full tuition each year to 143 Indiana residents attending public or private four-year colleges and universities in Indiana, with the aim of retaining Indiana’s brightest minds and strengthening Indian communities.
Eligibility: Recipients must have graduated high school in Indiana and attend an accredited public or private college or university in Indiana full-time.
Application Requirements: Vary depending on local community foundation
Amount: Full tuition
How to make your application stand out?
To give yourself the best chance of success when applying to data science scholarships, make sure to do they following:
Stay organized: Identify the scholarships that you’re eligible for, then input relevant information like deadlines and application materials into a spreadsheet so you can stay on top of things. As you’re putting together your application, double- and triple-check the requirements to ensure that nothing is missing. Often, organizations offering scholarships won’t give you a chance to fix any errors or submit any missing materials after the deadline.
Ask for recommendations early: There’s no easier way to hurt a potential recommender’s opinion of you than asking for a recommendation too late. Make sure to give those mentors nice enough to write a letter in support of your application ample time to paint the best possible picture of your achievements and character.
Tell your story: There are always lots of qualified applicants for a scholarship — so why do you deserve it? When writing a personal statement, preparing for an interview, or even putting together your resume, make sure that your own story shines through. What brought you into data science, and what are bringing into it? How will the scholarship help not only you, but your community? Check out our resume, interview, and cover letter guides for essential tips and tricks.
Get busy: It would be great to simply apply to one scholarship and get it, but it’s a good idea to apply to a bunch. This means more work for you, but also better chances that this work will be rewarded.
What’s next?
Above, we’ve laid out some great scholarship opportunities for undergraduate students and graduate students alike and discussed best practices for applying. Of course, with so much competition in the field of data science, getting the most lucrative scholarships can be anything but easy. If you’re interested in a data science bachelor’s or master’s degree, this can mean that you’ll need to self-fund or take out loans for your education. To read more about the financial calculus behind pursuing a data science master’s degree, check out our investigation into what makes the degree worth it.
If you are a college student, either a current undergraduate student or a master’s student, or even an early-career professional interested in pursuing a doctorate, you may have more options. While we’ve previewed some selective doctoral fellowships offered by corporations and government agencies above, the truth is that many US doctoral programs in data science, computer science, and applied mathematics are fully funded, meaning that students receive tuition remissions and a modest living stipend. If you’re interested in going this route, check with each department you’re looking into to see if they offer funding packages.
If you’re researching data science scholarships because you’re considering a career-shift or you’re looking into education options, you might instead be interested in learning more about the field. To do so, we’d recommend the following articles:
Data Science vs Data Engineering: Which is right for you, and why?
The Inside Scoop on Top-Ranked Data Science Rankings
To learn more about data analytics, an overlapping field that’s easier to break into for someone with little to no experience working with data, check out our guides to:
Data Analytics Colleges and Universities
Landing Your First Data Analytics Job