Scholarships

Nursing major Rebecca Fraley received a prestigious Gilman award to study in Lisbon, Portugal.

Students are encouraged to conduct extensive scholarship research to identify awards that are applicable to their planned program of study. In many cases, WMU students receive scholarship awards from a variety of sources including the Haenicke Institute, individual academic colleges, select departments, honor societies, professional organizations, and other external funding sources. Only degree-seeking WMU students are eligible for scholarships administered by the Haenicke Institute.

Students who choose to participate in "virtual" or alternative study abroad programs should check with the scholarship provider to make sure those programs are eligible for scholarship funding.

Types of Scholarships:

NEW in 2023: Global Engagement Program Scholarships
NEW in 2023:��Scholarships for Pell Grant recipients
Haenicke Institute for Global Education Scholarships
College-Specific Scholarships
Country and Region-Specific Scholarships��
Diversity and Inclusion Scholarships
Financial Need-Based Scholarships
Foreign-Language Study Scholarships
Major Specific Scholarships
Post-Graduation Scholarships
Other Resources

��New in 2023: Global Engagement PRogram Scholarships

Students can earn scholarships while participating in international activities and events throughout the school year. By earning points toward the Global Bronco and Global Explorer statuses of the Global Engagement Program (GEP), students can earn $500 and then $1000 study abroad scholarships.

Global Bronco status, earned by attending international events (that are usually free) on campus, earns students a $500 scholarship to be used toward virtual, short-term, and traditional study abroad trips or toward enrollment in the single required GEP course, GIST 3100. This course is necessary to earn Global Explorer status. Students enrolled in GIST 3100 will have direct guidance on exploring and developing their ideal study abroad trip, alongside learning about various topics related to globalization, world cultures, and more.

Global Explorer status, earned by attending international events (that are usually free) on campus, and by completing GIST 3100, alongside one of 75+ GEP-approved courses (many of them satisfying Western Essential Studies Requirements), earns students a $1000 scholarship that can be used on any virtual, short-term, or traditional study abroad trip.

Please note, the $500 Global Bronco and Global Explorer scholarships cannot be combined for one trip.��

NEW IN 2023: SCHOLARSHIPS FOR PELL GRANT RECIPIENTS

Starting with Summer I 2023 study abroad programs, all students who receive the federal Pell Grant to attend WMU will automatically receive scholarship funding of at least $1,250 upon acceptance to a study abroad program administered by WMU Study Abroad; this includes faculty-led, faculty-directed, exchange, or study abroad partner programs. Please note, students who participate in 3rd Party Program Provider or unaffiliated programs are not eligible for this scholarship funding. Confirmed Pell Grant recipients receive one of the following scholarships from WMU Study Abroad: HIGE Study Abroad Scholarship ($1,250), Mesara Study Abroad Airfare Scholarship ($1,250), or the President's Grant for Study Abroad (up to $5,000). Please note some additional details of this funding:

Students only receive funding from one of the three scholarships (HIGE Study Abroad, Mesara, or President's Grant)
Student are eligible to receive this funding once per term, but can receive it multiple times if they study abroad multiple times
President's Grant for Study Abroad is only eligible for semester-long foreign language programs
There is not a separate scholarship application to be considered for this funding. A students' study abroad program application serves as the application to be considered for scholarships

For more information, see the Gilman Scholarship page.

Haenicke Institute for Global Education Scholarships

Haenicke Institute for Global Education (WMU Study Abroad) scholarship funding is only available for WMU students who earn 3 or more credits in the same semester/term in a study abroad course/program.

Haenicke Institute For Global Education Study Abroad Office Scholarship—supports WMU student participation in study abroad and virtual study abroad programs

Mesara Study Abroad Airfare Scholarship—provides partial funding for airfare to select Pell-grant eligible students.

President's Grant for Study Abroad—supports intensive foreign language study for semester or academic year.

Wenger Memorial Study or Work Abroad Fund—supports study or internships abroad lasting 10 weeks or more, with preference given to female students studying anthropology, sociology, and/or gender and women's studies.

College-specific scholarships��

WMU college-specific scholarships support a wide variety of study abroad experiences.��

College of Arts and Sciences

College of Education and Human Development

College of Engineering and Applied Sciences

College of Fine Arts

College of Health and Human Services

Haworth College of Business

Lee Honors College

Country and Region-Specific Scholarships

Africa

Boren award—national scholarship for undergraduates to study language in areas underrepresented in study abroad.

Asia

Boren award—national scholarship for undergraduates to study language in areas underrepresented in study abroad.

Freeman Awards for Study in Asia

Gilman Scholarship

Central and Eastern Europe

— for use with API programs.

Boren award—national scholarship for undergraduates to study language in areas underrepresented in study abroad.

France

— for use with API programs, also good for the rest of Europe.

—French-language or business study or internship in France.��

Germany

— for use with API programs, also good for the rest of Europe.

—provides support to study, research, or intern in Germany.

— this scholarship fully covers the WMU Exchange Program Fee for one academic year to the Freie University of Berlin.

Gilman Scholarship

Hungary

The "Linda Lesniak International Study Scholarship in Mathematics or Mathematics Education" will provide $1,000 to a student selected by the Department of Mathematics who has been accepted to study at either Budapest Semesters in Mathematics or Budapest Semesters in Mathematics Education. The Department of Mathematics may be able to provide additional funding to the same student who receives the Lesniak scholarship. Please see the chair of the Department of Mathematics for more information on these scholarship opportunities.

Japan

Boren award—national scholarship for undergraduates to study language in areas underrepresented in study abroad.

Freeman Awards for Study in Asia

Gilman Scholarship

—provides a full-ride scholarship for one academic year to Keio University. Read more about Yukiko Murakami.

— for use with the U.S.-Japan Bridging Foundation Scholarship application.

Latin America

— for use with API programs.

Boren award—national scholarship for undergraduates to study language in areas underrepresented in study abroad.

Gilman Scholarship

Middle East

— for use with API programs.

Boren award—national scholarship for undergraduates to study language in areas underrepresented in study abroad.

Gilman Scholarship

New Zealand

—various scholarships for students studying at a university in New Zealand.

Scandinavia

— for use with API programs, also good for the rest of Europe.

South Africa

- supports STEM students interning in South Africa

United Kingdom

— for use with API programs, also good for the rest of Europe.

— awards will go to students in master's programs in the fields of science and technology.

Diversity and Inclusion

—provides funding for underrepresented groups that include economically disadvantaged, first generation, students with disabilities and ethnic and racially diverse students.��

—provide funding for students in underrepresented groups that include financial need, status as member of racial/ethnic/gender groups, status as first-generation college students, disabilities and lack of experience with travel.��

Students with disabilities

��(for use with API programs only)

��(for use with CEA programs only)

��provide up to $20,000 to U.S. undergraduate students to study abroad in areas of the world that are critical to U.S. interests and underrepresented in study abroad.

��(for use with CIEE programs only)

��(for study at the American University in Dubai)

First-generation students abroad

: for use with API programs

: for students who receive a Federal Pell Grant and who have been traditionally under-represented in study abroad

: for use with IFSA-Butler Programs

: open to students who have been traditionally under-represented on study abroad programs including first generation college studetns, students from low income families and students with a history of overcoming adversity

: for use with a semester Education Abroad Network semester program

LGBT students abroad

: awarded to a deserving LGBTQI student who aims to participate in a high-quality, rigorous education abroad program

: for students participating in an AIFS program

:��for use with CIEE programs

: for study at The American University in Dubai

: for students studying abroad through an ISA program

: for students going abroad through a CEA program

: for students going abroad through an IES program

��

Ethnic diversity

��offers a comprehensive list of scholarships for African American individuals

��Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund: offers several scholarships

:��for use with CIEE programs.

: for study at The American University in Dubai.

: for students going abroad through an IES program.

: for students going abroad through a CEA program.

: for students going abroad through an IES program.

: for students receiving Pell Grants.

: must have a 3.75 cumulative GPA, but do not have to be a member of the honor society.

��

Financial Need-Based Scholarships

— for students participating in AMIDEAST Education Abroad programs in Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, and Tunisia

Bruce W. Mesara Study Abroad Airfare Scholarship—provides partial funding for airfare to select Pell-grant eligible students.

Freeman Awards for Study in Asia—provides funding for long-term study in select countries in East Asia to students with demonstrated financial need (requires FAFSA).

Gilman Scholarship—national award that provides substantial study abroad funding to select Pell-grant eligible students.

—national award that provides substantial��funding to select recipients of Title IV funding (i.e., Pell Grant, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), Perkins Loan, etc.) and are a dependent child of an active duty service member. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.

��—provide funding for students in underrepresented groups that include financial need, status as member of racial/ethnic/gender groups, status as first-generation college students, disabilities and lack of experience with travel.��

Foreign-Language Study Scholarships

Boren award—national scholarship for undergraduates to study language in areas underrepresented in study abroad. Contact Dr. Michelle Metro-Roland for more information

Freeman Awards for Study in Asia

Gilman Scholarship

President's Grant for Study Abroad

—for use with SOL Education Abroad programs.

WMU Department of Spanish

WMU Department of World Languages and Literatures

Major-specific scholarships

Mathematics

If you are applying to a semester of full-year study abroad on the Budapest Semester in Mathematics/Mathematics Education program, please inquire into the "Linda Lesniak International Study Scholarship in Mathematics or Mathematics Education," as well as any other department funding that may be available to defray expenses related to study abroad. General inquiries about this scholarship should be directed to the chair of the Department of Mathematics.