Scholarship application submission deadline is February 1

(SOUTHFIELD, Mich., January 9, 2023) – The SME Education Foundation has partnered with IOScholarships to create an equal opportunity for all students to achieve their educational goals and diversify the manufacturing industry and STEM fields. The Foundation operates as the philanthropic arm of SME, the national nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of manufacturing technology and fostering manufacturing and engineering talent and capabilities in North America.

IOScholarships is a search tool that helps underrepresented students find scholarships in the STEM fields. Their mission is to increase the number of underrepresented students in the science, technology, engineering, and math fields by offering a free, intuitive, user friendly scholarship matching experience for diverse undergraduate and graduate students.

“Our partnership with SME will reduce barriers for low-income Hispanics and diverse students pursuing an associate or bachelor’s degree in manufacturing, engineering, or related discipline,” said María Fernanda Trochimezuk, founder of IOScholarships. “Together we will help grow the representation of underserved and underrepresented communities within the STEM workforce and create economic mobility for the next generation of manufacturing and engineering talent.”

With more than 60 distinct scholarship programs, the SME Education Foundation awards scholarships to hundreds of graduating high school seniors and current college students pursuing an associate or bachelor’s degree in manufacturing, engineering, or related discipline. Through its scholarship program, the Foundation awarded nearly $1 million dollars in scholarships in 2023. 

“This partnership is a continuation of the Foundation’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiative, which started in 2021 and enhances our scholarship program, allowing us to better engage with communities whom we are trying to excite about the manufacturing industry,” said Rob Luce, vice president of the SME Education Foundation. “In addition to making sure that the students who need it most are the ones receiving funds to earn an associate or bachelor’s degree, we’re also improving the likelihood that recipients complete their degrees, by providing more financial support throughout their time in an educational program.”

According to the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Hispanic, Black, and American Indian or Alaska Native U.S. citizens and permanent residents earned 26% of science and engineering bachelor’s, 24% of science and engineering master’s, and 16% of science and engineering doctoral degrees in 2020. Women were underrepresented among degree recipients at all degree levels in physical and earth sciences, mathematics and computer sciences, and engineering in 2020.

In 2023, more students than ever before applied for scholarships from the Foundation with 1,404 applications reviewed, with an increase in participation among women and students of color. Last year, $913,800 – a record amount – was awarded to graduating high school seniors, undergraduates, and graduate students as part of the Foundation’s mission to inspire, prepare and support the next generation of manufacturing and engineering talent. Awards to women and students of color remained strong, doubling, and tripling the historical average. Since 2005, the Foundation has awarded over $18 million to over 5,000 deserving students.

Learn more about the Foundation scholarship recipients and their achievements here.

The SME Education Foundation will accept scholarship applications for the 2024-25 school year until February 1. For additional information or to apply, please visit smeef.org/scholarships.