Single mother scholarships can usually mean the difference between studying and not studying, if you’re a single parent. Without the extra help from a scholarship or grant program, it can be near impossible to find the funds to go to school. Sure, you have the option to take out a student loan, but paying it back is certainly stressful.

Some of the places you can locate a suitable scholarship include:

Federal Government (grants such as the Pell Grant)
Private foundations and businesses
Not for profit organizations
Universities and colleges

If you’re having trouble finding an advertised scholarship in your area, it is always worth approaching institutions and businesses to see what they have on offer.

If you live in Arkansas, the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund is an excellent initiative. It is aimed at low-income single parents who wish to undertake post-secondary education. Even if you don’t like in AR, it is worth researching whether a similar scheme exists in your own state or county. Areas with particularly high rates of single parent families are likely to have similar initiatives going on.

Another example of scholarships that are suitable for a single mother are the UW-Madison Adult Career & Special Student Services Division of Continuing Studies scholarships. This program is only open to single parents who are currently degree students at UW-Madison or have applied for a degree program. If that is you, you have a good chance of receiving this scholarship as the competition would not be as fierce as some of more general programs out there.

The Ford Opportunity Program is another scholarship worthy of your attention. It is designed only for single parents and is available in California and Oregon. If you want to get a bachelor’s degree and need financial assistance, this program can help.

A scholarship aimed directly at single mothers is the excellent Jeannette Rankin Women’s Scholarship Fund. JRF scholarships can be used not only for your education, but also to assist with your children’s child care and living expenses. It is a firm favorite amongst single mothers because of its narrow focus on their needs. Over time they’ve awarded more than $1 million to single mothers.

Single mother scholarships are, without a doubt, the key to providing financial assistance for your schooling. No longer do mothers who raise their children alone have to forego their own education and future employment opportunities simply because they don’t have the funds to cover tuition fees and associated expenses.