Grants For Women
- Author: Mary Singleton
- Posted: 2024-02-03
Types of Grants for Women
The types of grants available for women vary dramatically although it’s common for grant distributors to dictate what the money is to be used for. Grants do not have to be repaid, however, it’s common for a grant to not be renewed if the funder doesn’t believe the money is being put to good use. While a number of people, government departments and organizations have grant money designated for a defined purpose, it is up to the requestor to outline the details of how the money will be put to use. It’s these proposals that the grant committee uses to determine who will win the grant award. The different types of grants specified for women and their various purposes are:
• Federal Grants
• Private Grants
• Corporate/Business Grants
• Minority Grants
• Educational/Research Grants
• Professional Grants
Federal Grants
A federal grant will likely be sub-categorized and overseen by a specific government department. For instance, a grant request to promote women in farming would be awarded by the Department of Agriculture and a grant request to promote women in STEM would likely come from the Department of Education. Receiving a federal grant can be a lengthy process and requires a written promise that the funding will be used only for its stated purpose.
Private Grants
A private grant is funded by an individual or a small group of individuals who have a personal or vested interest in the area in which the grant will be used. Typically, the individual funding the grant will establish a foundation or committee to oversee the grant application and award process. Many well-known philanthropists, such as Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey, have established grant foundations.
Corporate/Business Grants
Corporate grants are typically issued by companies that wish to improve their reputation or fund developments that they believe would benefit the company in some way. There are also business grants established by industry organizations. For example, a women’s organization within the trucking industry might choose to fund grants to assist other women-owned trucking companies to start and grow their businesses.
Minority Grant
A minority grant is will go one step further and focus on minority women. These grants are usually awarded to the person with the best grant proposal rather than looking for a minority woman in a particular industry. Minority grants focus on promoting the success of minority women across a variety of educational and business focuses.
Educational/Research Grants
Educational grants are intended to promote a woman’s ability to reach higher levels of education especially in areas where women are underrepresented. Educational grants can come through the federal grant process such as those given by the Department of Education or from universities or other education-focused organizations. Research grants are awarded in much the same way although their purpose is to aid in women driven research across a wide variety of areas as opposed to promoting educational opportunities. Many research grants are tied to universities where a large amount of research is conducted on an ongoing basis.
Professional Grants
Professional grants are usually awarded by non-profit organizations to women in the profession that are looking to advance their career. These career advancements usually require additional travel and education for which the grant money is used. This allows not only the advancement of the grant receiver but also betters the organization as a whole.
How To Get Started
The first step to getting a grant is to search online for available grants in your area of focus. Begin the application process and make sure you have your proposal outlined and well written. The process can be lengthy and will likely take you many tries, but it’s well worth it. There is a lot of grant money out there that goes unawarded so just keep trying.