Criminal Justice Scholarships

Save Your Money and Get Your Degree

Criminal justice scholarships provide an excellent opportunity to save money while getting a degree. Like any other field, the field of criminal justice has a number of scholarships programs available to their students.

Criminal justice is a broad field, encompassing many areas, from law and crime scene investigation to law enforcement and criminology. With a degree in criminal justice you will have many choices in front of you, many jobs and careers to consider. But education can be costly, we all know that. One way to mitigate this problem is to look into student loans as well as scholarships.

Criminal justice degree programs at various schools have their own bands of scholarships. Scholarships can be based on merit, exceptional scholarly achievement or outstanding financial need. Aside from particular schools, the American Criminal Justice Associations funds annual scholarships for students pursuing a degree in criminal justice.

If you are serious about a criminal justice degree, take the time to research scholarships available to you. Check with the school you plan to attend first. Contact the financial aid office and request materials regarding available scholarships. Aside from scholarships directly related to students in criminal justice, consider investigating general scholarships not intent for a particular major.

Examples of Criminal Justice Scholarships

StraightForward Media Law Enforcement Scholarship
Correctional Association of Massachusetts Scholarship
Monster Scholarship for Government and Public Service

Steps for Criminal Justice and General Scholarships Search

Step 1: Learn to surf

There is so much information about grants, scholarships, awards and aid out there – use it to your advantage. Look everywhere, from your parent’s employers, civic clubs, professional associations in you’re filed of interest to websites of your colleges of choice. Call the Federal Student Aid Information Center (1-800-433-3243). Public libraries and bookstores have books that list scholarships, grants and awards. By utilizing all the free information that is out there on the internet you can find an impressive list of awards, grants, loans and scholarships to apply to.

Step 2: Get organized

There are so many scholarships and award out there; it is very hard to keep up to date and on top of all of them. To achieve this, make a calendar of scholarship/award applications and deadlines. Make copies of what you have already submitted and crate a pile of applications you still need to submit. This will ensure you don’t miss any deadlines and you don’t apply to the same program more then once. Streamline your work and start organizing.

Step 3: Start early

A large number of financial aid is offered on first- come, first- serve basis. Obtain your forms well ahead of the deadline time, fill them out and then be the first one to submit your application on the first day available. Having a calendar (step 2) will allow you to have all the deadlines at a glance. Plan out your application process carefully.

Step 4: Talk to your scholarship counselor

Utilize your scholarship counselor as they have much experience in this area. Your counselor will also have a running list of any new scholarships and awards that come out so check with your Guidance office often. You can have your guidance counselor assist you in your search for financial aid, help you in the application process and serve as a reference.

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