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19 Companies That Give Scholarships for College — No Employment Required

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College scholarships can be unearthed from a variety of sources, including your school and state government as well as charitable organizations.

But it’s wise to include companies that give scholarships in your search for financial aid.

These corporate programs sometimes limit their generosity to employees and their children. For the following 19 companies that offer scholarships for college, however, no employment is required.

Check out scholarship opportunities funded by such organizations in the following industries:

Technology
Food and beverage
Automotive
Education lending
Plus: Where to find more companies with college scholarships

Technology companies that give scholarships

Whether you’re on the lookout for computer science scholarships or financial aid in general, don’t forget to include tech giants among companies that offer scholarships.

1. Google

● Among other Google scholarships, the Generation Google Scholarship awards $10,000 to college students studying computer science
● Winners are also invited to the company’s annual summertime Google Scholars’ Retreat
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

2. Dell

● The Dell Scholars program “targets low-income, highly motivated” high school students and features a $20,000 scholarship
● Beyond financial support, it provides a laptop, credits to buy used textbooks as well as mentorship and support
● Application deadline: Dec. 1, 2020

3. Microsoft

● Full-time college students majoring in a STEM field are eligible to apply for the Microsoft Tuition Scholarship
● Also, the Blacks at Microsoft Scholarship provides three $5,000 awards to high school seniors of African descent who are interested in technology
● Application deadline: Relaunching in 2021

4. Adobe

● The Adobe Research Women-in-Technology Scholarship is geared toward female students majoring in a technical field with at least one year of college under their belt
● The one-time award of $10,000 is accompanied by an Adobe software subscription, a mentor and an internship interview
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

5. Raytheon

● High school senior and full-time college students (except seniors) who participated in robotics program FIRST are eligible to apply for one of 40 scholarships worth $1,000 each
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

Food and beverage companies that give scholarships

You might think of fast-food chains as only a pathway to an entry-level job, but they along with soft drink corporations and other companies also offer thousands of dollars in college scholarships every year.

6. McDonald’s

● The McDonald’s® HACER® National Scholarship is meant for high school seniors with Hispanic heritage who have carried at least a 3.0 GPA
● The program awarded $500,000 in multiyear aid to 30 winners in 2019
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

7. BURGER KING

● Besides helping to fund college for its employees and their families, the BURGER KING℠ Scholars program helps high school seniors (with at least a 2.5 GPA) foot the bill for higher education
● It sent out $4 million to 3,000 students in 2019
● Application deadline: Dec. 15, 2020

8. Taco Bell

● The Live Mas Scholarship calls for applicants (ages 16 to 24) to submit a 30-second to 2-minute video answering questions about college and career plans
● In 2020, the program was slated to write $1 million in checks to 100 winners, with individual awards spanning $5,000 to $25,000
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

9. Coca-Cola

● The Coca-Cola Scholars Program Scholarship distributed $72 million to 6,300 high-achieving high school seniors
● Coca-Cola’s other scholarship opportunities are awarded through Phi Theta Kappa
● Application deadline: Oct. 31, 2020

10. Dr. Pepper

● The soft drink company’s Tuition Giveaway program asks its applicants (ages 18 to 24) to upload a video about how they’ll change the world
● The 2020 program was set to award prizes of $100,000 (five), $25,000 (five) and $2,500 (10)
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

Automotive industry companies that give scholarships

Automakers and oil and gas companies are among companies that offer scholarships — and not just if you’re pursuing a major related to transportation.

11. Toyota

● The TeenDrive365 Video Challenge awards scholarship money to new drivers who create multimedia PSAs about safe driving strategies
● Prize money ranges from $300 to $15,000
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

12. BMW

● The German automaker partnered with the Society of Auto Engineers to award a renewable scholarship of $1,500 per year
● Incoming first-year college students with a strong academic record must be pursuing an engineering degree to qualify
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

13. General Motors (GM)

● Open to high school and nontraditional students (beyond dealership employees), the GM Women’s Retail Network Drive to Succeed Scholarship ($5,000) was developed for female students studying automotive management and technical fields
● Application deadline: May 1, 2021

14. Shell

● The Shell Associate Scholarship Program gives $2,200 scholarships to aspiring technical or craft associate degree-holders attending approved community colleges
● The oil and gas company also has scholarship opportunities for students seeking bachelor’s degrees
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

15. Chevron

● Shell’s competitor partnered with the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) to fund undergraduate and graduate STEM degrees for Indigenous people of North America
● The $5,000 scholarships could help pay for the AISES National Conference and may be renewed annually
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

Student loan companies that give scholarships

If you’ve truly exhausted your scholarship search before resorting to private lenders of student loans, then you may very well find yourself on the digital doorstep of, well, private lenders.

Yes, banks, credit unions and online loan companies lend money for school — but they also offer scholarships to help pay for college, too.

16. Sallie Mae

● High school juniors and seniors with inspiring stories can compete for five $25,000 awards via the annual Bridging the Dream Scholarship Program
● Graduate students can also compete: Four winners in 2020 split $200,000 in scholarship aid
● Application deadline: Passed for 2020

17. MPower Financing

● The Global Citizen Scholarship program doles out $5,000 split among three awards for students enrolled in college and grad school
● MPower, which offers student loans for international students, also awards the same amount of scholarships to female STEM majors
● Application deadline: Dec. 31, 2020

18. U.S. Bank

● Filling out a questionnaire makes you eligible for possible scholarships of $5,000, $10,000 or $20,000.
● The opportunity mirrors similar programs offered by competitors like Sallie Mae ($1,000), Ascent ($1,000), Discover ($5,000) and the now defunct SunTrust Bank Scholarship Sweepstakes.
● If you’re only interested in scholarships, be prepared to unsubscribe from emails, even phone calls from lenders that will use your information to market their student loan products.
● Application deadline: Ongoing

19. Your local lender or credit union

● The State Department Federal Credit Union’s scholarship program, for example, was set to distribute $75,000 to scholarship winners in 2019
● Ensure you’re eligible for your nearby bank’s program before going to the trouble of gathering your application materials — to simplify your search, start with the branches where you or your family members might already have a savings or checking account
● Application deadline: Varies

Look for more companies that offer college scholarships — yes, even student loan companies

There are companies that help pay off student loans, and then there are companies that help you avoid them.

For the 2019-2020 school year, 34% of students resorted to borrowing to help cover their cost of attendance, according to Sallie Mae. About 58% defrayed at least some costs via scholarships.

Before you borrow a student loan, ask yourself if you’ve really looked everywhere for college scholarships. Until now, you might not have thought that online lenders or brick-and-mortar banks — among other companies that give scholarships — would hand out aid that doesn’t need to be repaid.

Make sure you give equal thought to potential opportunities from local businesses and charities, professional associations and your parent’s employer, among other often-forgotten sources of aid.

And if you’ve already taken out student loans, it’s never too late to find scholarships for next year.