Students who are currently members of the Baptist Church may be able to get funding for college through their faith. While many other scholarships are based on gender, race or other physical attributes, students should know that many religious groups are willing to provide college assistance to their members. With over 32 million Baptists in the United States and more than 110 million worldwide, the Baptist Church is well prepared to give students the academic support they need to succeed.

To be eligible for the yearly scholarships that are given out by the American Baptist Financial Aid Program students must meet a variety of criteria that include: being an active member for at least one year of an American Baptist Church, be entering an American college or university full time as a freshmen, and applicants must be US citizens.

The awards from the ABFAP will vary in their amount and will depend on how many qualified applicants there are each year as well as the cost of the school that the student has decided to attend. In order to keep the scholarship throughout the duration of the student’s study, a GPA of at least 2.75 must be maintained and the student must stay enrolled continually. Awards are available to both undergraduate and graduate level students.

Of course, this isn’t the only money Baptist students can apply for. There are a variety of other scholarships out there for Baptists. Some of these are minority specific or require that students participate in a ministry program through the church in exchange for the monetary support. Others are dedicated to those entering service careers like the Ellen Cushing Scholarship or other specific programs of study, though a majority of scholarships are open to students pursuing any degree program.

Baptist Scholarships

• American Baptist Scholarships: $1,000 to $2,000 awarded to a varied number of Baptist undergraduate students.
• Texas Black Baptist Scholarships: $800 awarded to varied number of Baptist African-American undergraduate students.
• Dorothy Rapp Music Scholarship: Up to $200 to students attending an Indiana Baptist church who are interested in Music.
• Minister‘s Kin Scholarships: $2,000 to students who are related to a practicing Southern Baptist Minister and who have been admitted to California Baptist University.
• National Ministries Undergraduate Scholarships: Amount og award varies and is given to freshmen who are members of the American Baptist Church