Scholarships in the USA and Canada

How to get a scholarship

America is the dream of many students and athletes, but the money is often the first obstacle that puts them off. Does that mean only those with plenty of it get to live the dream? Thanks to scholarships, sponsors and foundations, it does not.

$4bn+in sports scholarships awarded each year by NCAA D1 and D2 universities

170+ countriesthat NAIA athletes come from

196,000+student athletes receiving athletic financial support

100%of our student athletes win at least a partial scholarship

What kinds of scholarship can you win?

America is closer than you think.

Studying in the USA and Canada is more attainable than most people think. The price quoted on a university or high school website is not necessarily what a student ends up paying. American schools work with a whole range of scholarships, grants and other forms of financial support that can bring the final cost down substantially. Federal financial aid, known as FAFSA and based mainly on a family's financial situation, is not available to international students. So the question is: what options does a student arriving in the USA from abroad actually have?

Merit Based Scholarships. One of the most common routes is a scholarship awarded for academic results. A school may take into account your GPA, the difficulty of the subjects you have taken, your SAT or ACT scores (the American equivalent of the Czech SCIO tests), and your overall profile as an applicant. At some universities you are considered for a Merit Scholarship automatically when you apply; at others a separate application is needed. There are also entry scholarships for new students and special scholarships for students transferring in from another university.

Need Based Scholarships. Some American universities also provide financial support of their own based on the financial situation of the student and their family. This is not federal aid from the state but money provided by the school itself. For international students this option is less common and the conditions tend to be stricter, yet it can still make up a very significant part of the financial package. Private universities in particular may have their own funds and grants open to international students too. So if a family cannot cover the full cost of study, it is worth finding out not just the tuition fee but also whether a particular school offers institutional need-based aid for international students.

Sports Scholarships. For athletes another major source of funding comes into play. The size of a sports scholarship, or of the athletic portion of an overall offer, is decided above all by the coach and the specific athletic programme. Offers can differ considerably depending on the sport, the player's level, the programme's budget and how much the coach wants that particular athlete. Communication with coaches, the timing of the whole recruiting process and the ability to compare offers from several schools all play a large part.

Independent Scholarships. Funding does not have to come from the university alone. There are thousands of scholarships in the USA provided by foundations, companies, professional bodies, communities and other private organisations. They are often aimed at very specific groups of students: by field of study, background, membership of a minority or religious community, volunteering, talent or personal circumstances. With these it pays not to search for a general "scholarships for international students" but to focus on the most specific group the student belongs to. Platforms such as Bold or Scholarships360 can help you find them. With each one, check whether it accepts applications from international students.

Czech foundations, scholarships and sponsors. Part of the funding can be found before you even leave for the USA. Czech and Slovak students can apply for support through domestic foundations and scholarship programmes, such as the Bakala Foundation or The Kellner Family Foundation, if they meet that programme's conditions. Individual sponsorship is another option. Successful athletes in particular can approach companies, local partners, sports clubs or other organisations willing to support their studies and athletic career abroad. Even several smaller sources can together cover a significant part of the cost of flights, insurance, accommodation or the studies themselves.

And then there are scholarships and programmes so specific that many students do not know they exist. A great example is the Robitschek Scholarship at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, a scholarship programme intended for Czech and Slovak students. Another interesting option is the Florida–Eastern Europe Linkage Institute (EELI), which lets selected students from Eastern European countries studying at public universities in Florida obtain support so that, under certain conditions, they can pay tuition at the Florida resident rate rather than the considerably higher international rate.

Types of competition

College leagues and how they are divided:

The flagshipNCAA D1The top level of college sport in the USA, home to the largest schools, elite athletic programmes and facilities that often surpass professional clubs. Competition for a roster place is fierce and sport is a major part of a student's daily life. Sports scholarships can cover a significant share of the costs and in some cases the whole degree, including campus accommodation and meals. But D1 does not automatically mean the best choice for everyone. The quality of programmes varies widely, and more important than the division itself are the specific school, the coach, your role in the team and the overall offer.

Sweet spotNCAA D2A highly competitive level of college sport made up mostly of smaller schools and universities. The standard of play can still be very high, but programmes and their budgets tend to be smaller than in D1, which also limits what sports scholarships are available. The big advantage is being able to combine a sports scholarship with academic and other institutional scholarships. D2 often offers an excellent compromise between good sport, funding and more room for study, frequently in attractive locations.

Academic prestigeNCAA D3NCAA D3 is made up mostly of schools with very strong academic programmes and a more personal approach to students. The standard of sport can be surprisingly high, but unlike D1 and D2 these schools award no athletic scholarships. Instead, athletes can win academic, merit-based and other institutional scholarships that can cover a significant share of the total cost. That is precisely why a student's academic profile plays a decisive role in the final financial offer. Schools in this league suit students whose focus is primarily academic, who have no ambition to make a living from football but want to keep playing at a solid level.

The hidden gemNAIAThe NAIA is a separate college sport organisation that operates entirely independently of the NCAA. It is not a lower NCAA division but its own system with its own schools, rules, competitions and national championships. It brings together mostly smaller universities, but the standard of sport can be very high. Its big advantages are the availability of sports scholarships, the option of combining them with other financial support, and generally more flexible rules for admitting and recruiting international students, of whom there are several thousand in this league.

The strategic bridgeNJCAA Junior CollegeJunior College is a two-year route that is often considerably more affordable than a four-year university and is heavily focused on sport. For international students it offers an easier start, more room to improve their English and often a better chance of playing regularly. Sports scholarships are available too, in some cases up to the full cost. With the right choice of courses, the subjects and credits you complete transfer to a four-year university, so after moving on a student continues their degree rather than repeating the same subjects. After one or two years a student can therefore transfer to an NCAA or NAIA school as a more experienced and, to coaches, more interesting player.

Map of partner schools

The specific schools we work with

An interactive map of universities and prep schools in the USA and Canada. Filter by sport, division and state.

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Pavel Bucha on the enormous differences between Viktoria Plzeň and America's MLS

Pavel Bucha has played in the Czech top flight, in European competition and for the national team. He now plays in MLS and speaks openly about what surprised him most about American football. What, in his view, are the biggest differences between Viktoria Plzeň and playing in the USA? How do the tempo, the training, the facilities, the travel and the life of a professional footballer differ across the ocean?

Find out what studying in the USA could really cost you.

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