Are women-only STEM scholarships still legal?

In the United States, private scholarship programs may legally restrict awards to women without violating Title IX, which applies to educational institutions, not private foundations. Most women-only awards in this directory are administered by private foundations, professional societies (SWE, AAUW, AWM), or corporations. Government-funded programs (NSF, DOE) are open to all but use women's representation data to target outreach.

Why apply for women-only programs specifically?

Women-only programs have a smaller applicant pool by definition — the same credential competes against fewer candidates. They also tend to have stronger mentorship networks and community components. For students who want both financial support and a cohort of peers with shared experience, women-only programs often deliver more than equivalent open awards.

What are the biggest women-only STEM scholarships?

By total dollars distributed: SWE Scholarships ($1.5M annually across 260+ awards), AAUW American Fellowships ($20,000–$30,000 each), L'Oréal USA For Women in Science Fellowships ($60,000 each for postdocs), and the Microsoft Research Ada Lovelace Fellowship ($42,000/year + tuition for PhD students). The Hertz Foundation Fellowship ($50,000/year) is open to all but historically has strong women's representation.

Women-Only STEM Programs & Scholarships | WIGSAT

Fellowships (13)

Funded Other

AAUW Selected Professions Fellowships

Deadline: November

Fellowships supporting women pursuing their first full-time master's or professional degree in fields where women remain underrepr…

Women-Only Programs

Fellowships (13)

AAUW Selected Professions Fellowships

AAUW American Fellowships

L'Oréal USA For Women in Science Fellowships

P.E.O. Scholar Awards

L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science UK & Ireland Rising Talent Programme

L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Australia & New Zealand Fellowships

L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science International Fellowships

Zonta International Amelia Earhart Fellowship

Schlumberger Foundation Faculty for the Future Fellowship

OWSD PhD and Early Career Fellowships

Women TechEU

Graduate Women New Zealand Fellowship

AWM Karen EDGE Fellowship

Scholarships (45)

NCWIT Aspirations in Computing Award

Society of Women Engineers (SWE) Scholarships

Palantir Scholarship for Women in Technology

Generation Google Scholarship: Women in Computing

Google Women Techmakers Scholars Program

P.E.O. STAR Scholarship

IEEE Women in Engineering International Scholarship

AWIS Scholarships and Grants

Scholarship for Women Studying Information Security (SWSIS)

Royal Academy of Engineering Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship

Palantir Women in Technology Scholarship — Australia

Science Ambassador Scholarship

WiCyS FS-ISAC Women in Cyber Scholarship

Hyundai Women in STEM Scholarship

BHW Women in STEM Scholarship

SPIE Women in Optics Scholarship

AAUW International Fellowships

AWIS Kirsten R. Lorentzen Award

WID Scholar Program (formerly HORIZONS Scholarship)

ANS Delayed Education Scholarship for Women

P.E.O. International Peace Scholarship

GHC Advancing Inclusion Student Scholarships

Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Scholarships

Iota Sigma Pi Lois Jean Durham Scholarship

AMS Women in Science Scholarship

Association of Women in the Metal Industries (AWMI) Scholarship

Zonta International Women in STEM Award

P.E.O. Program for Continuing Education (PCE)

Women in Aerospace Foundation Scholarship

ACS Priscilla Carney Jones Scholarship

GHC Advancing Inclusion Scholarships

Abie Student of Vision Award

ATSE Elevate: Boosting Diversity in STEM

FIRST Robotics Canada Women in STEM Scholarship

AWIS First-Generation College Student Scholarship

AWIS Opportunity Scholarships for Career Re-Entry

AWIS Kirsten R. Lorentzen Award

NASA MUREP Women's Colleges & Universities Scholarship

SWE Lillian Moller Gilbreth Memorial Scholarship

SWE Anne Maureen Whitney Barrow Memorial Scholarship

SWE Olive Lynn Salembier Memorial Reentry Scholarship

SWE Judith Resnik Memorial Scholarship

SWE Linda J. Marincel Scholarship

SWE Admiral Grace Murray Hopper Scholarships

AWM Alice T. Schafer Mathematics Prize

PhD Programs (2)

AWIS Distinguished Doctoral Research Scholarship

AWM Dissertation Prize

Graduate Programs (5)

Palantir Women in Technology Scholarship (WITA)

IAEA Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship Programme

ACS WCC/Merck Research Award

British Council Women in STEM Scholarships

Rising Stars in EECS Workshop

Undergraduate Programs (5)

Brooke Owens Fellowship

Generation Google Scholarship: Women in Computing (US & Canada)

Women at Microsoft Scholarship

Intel Women in Technology Scholarship (Ireland)

Generation Google Scholarship (EMEA)

Certificates & Programs (10)

MIT Women's Technology Program (WTP)

Black Girls Code (BGC)

Technovation Girls Challenge