Latinos is the term referring to Hispanic Americans, who are Spanish speakers from Western countries and now live in the United States. They have been settling in the US since the year 1700. Today, their population is estimated to be more than 40 million and this number is growing in an increasing rate.

According to studies, the number of Latinos who suffer from poverty is increasing, while those who are able to finish college is decreasing. It has also been proven that in terms of acquiring quality education, Hispanic Americans are left behind among the other minority groups. This trend is alarming because this clearly translates to higher cases of discrimination and country's regression. To attend to this problem, more groups of people are offering educational grants to exceptional and skilled Latinos. There are non-government and government organizations extending their help to underprivileged Latinos by giving generous scholarship grants. They offer various grants for vocational, graduate, and post graduate courses.

Latino organizations aim to provide their fellow Hispanic Americans of greater opportunities in different fields so that someday, they may do the same noble work of sending others to school. Latinos are believed to have greater potentials in businesses because most them have the skill to communicate in two or more languages.

Qualifications and Requirements

The major qualification is that one has to be a Latino or of a Hispanic American descent. Aside from that, the criteria of different foundations may vary. There are those who are asking for a particular citizenship and residency. Some consider the school where you are planning to enroll. They prefer universities and colleges that are reputable and accredited by the government. They also have an above-average grade requirement ranging from 4.0 to 2.5. Meanwhile, most foundations prioritize students who are from poor families, hence, you may be requested to inform them about your family's annual income. Moreover, there are organizations that prefer applicants who actively participate in the community and promote values and development.

There are scholarship foundations that offer specific fields or programs like Journalism, Medicine, Law, and Religion to those who are interested. This means that the foundations will be the ones to tell you what course you will enroll in college.

Some of the requirements you will have to submit are duly-accomplished scholarship forms, a letter of intent, an essay about a particular topic or cause, transcript of your records, certifications of your citizenship, family's income, and good moral character from your previous school.

To continuously enjoy the grants, foundations require their scholars to maintain a general and cumulative grade in a particular period of school year. Scholars will also have to live according to the standards of the foundations and must serve as good examples in their community and in the school.

Foundations Offering Educational Scholarship

Some of the foundations offering grants are: The L. Gordon Bittle Memorial Scholarship, which is giving $2,000 to Latino students who are enrolled in the Teacher Credential Program (TCP); the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), which is offering Law School Scholarship and awarding up to $7,000 monetary aid for qualified students; the Minority Scholarship Award, which is granting $500 to senior students who want take Journalism course in college; and The Emerging Young Artist Award (EYAA), which is providing $5,000 every year for four years to Hispanic American students who are interested in the arts (Dance, Music, Theater, Visual Arts)

Grant

The financial aids that the foundations offer range from $500 to $7,000 per academic season or year. Generally, a full scholarship grant covers educational expenses and allowance for transportation, room, books, and food. On the other hand, a partial scholarship grant offers payment for a certain percentage of the academic fees. It can be 10% to 70% of the students' matriculation cost.

Tips

As much as possible, get a brochure of the foundations' guidelines and carefully read them. They can also be searched and downloaded through the Internet. From the guidelines, you will have an idea of what you need to accomplish to qualify for the scholarship. Be sure to abide with these guidelines to avoid disqualifications. Guidelines are also important because they will help you with the procedure on how to avail the grant: from the filling out of the application forms to the address where you are going to submit them. Most likely, guidelines are enumerated, hence they can serve as your checklist, which may aid you in organizing your search process, keeping you on track of your greatest goal – to get that scholarship that best suits you.