Outside/ Other Financial Student

Fish125
Fri, 15 Jan 2021 18:50:29 +0000

I can’t offer advice about external scholarships, but I can give some SDSU advice. Contact the virtual desk of Financial Aid and explain your story in detail. They may have some advice about other SDSU scholarships and funding or can offer suggestions. There are some funds at the school like Courage through Cancer that assist students who are going through some tough financial times. Ask them to check to see if you are eligible for work study (they don’t always note that in your AidLink - my son had to ask directly and they gave it to him). Depending upon your GPA, there is one SDSU Alumni scholarship that is open to grad students. You have a compelling story and SDSU Alumni is all about supporting the school community.

Reach out to your professors in the department who you have connected with over the years and explain your situation and ask if they have any suggestions. When my son was a senior (undergrad), he reached out to his research advisor about ways for him to earn an income while he was in grad school and he ended up applying to be a TA. That income covered his 2 year program and living expenses (he lived at home one year to save money in order to move to his PhD program city) but unlike his PhD program at another university, he had to apply to be a TA in his department at SDSU and go through that hiring process. Also, reach out to your department/chair/etc. and talk with them about it. My kids also sent their CVs to their professors or any staff they had connected with to see if they knew of anyone hiring (and if they did to please forward the CV to them). They found several jobs/internships this way.

Finally, check out the San Diego Foundation. They do have scholarships available and you might meet the requirements for some. I know they mainly have ones for undergrads, but might have some for grad students, too. In 2020, they gave $3+ million in scholarships.

If you need living expenses covered, look at Housing. Their application period starts soon for 2021-22 for Community Assistants, etc. and they love to have grad students in some of these positions.