Grants for Single Mothers: The Big Picture


If you are a single mom, you know doubt know just how difficult life can be. Bills bill and more bills make life a living hell. Now you may have heard about “grants for single mothers,” either from a website, on a forum, or just mentioned by someone. The problem is that there is actually very little REAL information on the topics of grants. Oh yes, there is some information out there, but most of it is crap, off-target, flat out wrong or even outright lies. There are grants, but maybe not as much as you’ve been led to believe.

This article will help set the record straight for you single moms out there and shed light on some of the legit single mother grants and single mom scholarships that are available.

Web Scholarships…

For the impatient: If you are looking for a scholarship for school, I suggest applying for the S$10,000 Scholarship for Working Adults. You fill out the free form and get put in the running for a $10,000 scholarship giveaway every month to be used for education purposes. This is great for single moms who would like to go back to school. There is even a similar $10k scholarship for dads as well that dads can apply for. Note, these are not in any way grants nor to be associated with government grants — they are sweepstakes!

Now for moms not in a rush and who want extensive information about other LEGIT single mother assistance programs, keep reading (and grab a large cup of coffee since it’s a long read!).

A Word about Grants…

Let’s get the main question you are no doubt asking: “are there any real grants for single mothers available?” The answer is yes, but the majority of grants for individuals are in fact given only to students and not to regular individuals. You may have heard a lot about federal grants for single mothers. As I’m aware, there are no such things as federal grants for single moms. NO, the government has not made available specific money (as of 2010) just for single moms in the form of grants. Now, that is not to say that there is no grant money that a single mom can qualify from, but there are no “single mom grants” given out by the federal government. Instead, the federal government provides assistance either indirectly through community sponsored organizations (which in turn distribute funding in the form of training, single mother assistance, pregnancy help, etc). Having said this, there are a whole wack of federal benefit programs that low-income individuals may apply for. Some of these programs provide, education, food, and in some cases, money, for needy people; as a single mother in need of financial help, you stand a very good chance of qualifying for some of these programs should you apply.

Keep in mind there are a host of private programs that you can seek help from too, specifically from websites. You can use a grant-finding-website to help your search.

Some suggestions to get “free stuff”

These are basically websites that offer people free stuff to sign up. The sign ups are usually free and are basically so that the website/organization can build up a network of readers. One targeted programs for mothers is the FamilyPlanning program. If you sign up for the free FamilyPlanning.com membership (yes, it really is free…), you get access to free baby samples, weekly grocery coupons, baby coupons, parenting articles, and a number of other things (even a chance of winning 1 year of free diapers). It’s worth signing up for.

Another more known means of getting some quick aid is to visit your local foodbank or charity.

Pretty much all of these programs that will offer you free stuff won’t give you money. If it’s money you are after, then you’ll need to pursue some sort of scholarship/grant/government aid program. So let’s go over the different types of grant/scholarship funding for single mothers and how to get that funding, if it is possible.

Here are a few more web-based sweepstakes geared for moms and families:

A Note About Going to School

If you are going back to college as a single mom, you’ve got a battle on your hand to secure funding. You will probably have to pay for your education with a combination of student loans, federal student aid, scholarships (if you qualify), and a part time (or full time!) job.

One way we recommend you save money is by pursuing a legit degree online. There are accredited online universities that will allow you to work from home (all you need is the internet), during your own hours. You still have to put in the time (you are looking at a couple years at least), but you can save a significant amount of money. Going to a regular college is great, but if you can’t afford it or you simply don’t have the time to attend regular hour classes, then an online college degree is the next best thing. We recommend Classes and Careers as a good place to search for a suitable online school. They also offer financial aid assistance.

College Grants for Single Mothers

The one are that the federal government is not shy about giving money is to students. Though the federal government usually does not provide federal assistance for individuals (visit the grant.gov website if you don’t believe me), they do provide direct financial assistance for students.

If you are a mother who is thinking about going back to college or seeking to get some certified training, you stand a good chance of getting some money.

Now I don’t claim that federal grants for students will pay for all your schooling. They will not. But combining federal grants for students with school scholarships and other college financial aid programs a college (or training center) may offer to financially needy students, it’s possible to take a pretty good chunk out of your education fees with grants. First off, how do you pay for school as a single mom?

Here’s a list of some possible means of getting some extra money for school:

  • Federal Grants/Private Grants for School
  • Federal/Private Student Loans
  • On-Campus Work Programs/Federal Work Study/Part Time Job
  • State Scholarships/College Scholarships/Private Scholarships

Private grants and scholarships do exist and are perhaps the best way of getting money as a single mother to pay for school expenses. You might find private grants offered by fellowships, businesses, schools, or even websites!

What is the difference between grants and scholarships? Well grants are basically need-based funding – you qualify on the basis of financial need and not something like grades. Scholarships, on the other hand, are merit-based awards – you are given money based on something you have achieved – high marks during high school, first year of college, overall GPA while at college, exceptional volunteer work, etc. If you can, apply for both scholarship and grants. Scholarships and grants may be given out by colleges themselves or by non-profit organizations.

One scholarship I highly recommend for single moms (and dads) is the $10,000 Scholarship for Working Adults. This is a web scholarship sweepstake giveaway. You sign up for the scholarship (free!) and are given one chance each month to win 10k towards your education expenses.

Some Actual Grant Programs You Might Look At…

Federal Grants for School

The government offers grants for school. Some of the major grants are:

  • Federal Pell Grant
  • Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants ($100-$4000)
  • Academic Competitiveness Grant ($2000 total)
  • National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant ($4000 per year)
  • Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant ($4000 per year)

Private Grants for School

Federal funding, while providing a good chunk of grant income, should you qualify, is not the only source of grant money for school. There are plenty of private grants you can apply for. In fact, there are far more private grants available than federal grants. You will have to seek private grants through your school financial aid office or online though grant and scholarship finding websites.

College Grants for Mature Women

There are also special class of grants for older women. Many mature woman are looking to go back to school and there are various private grants available for them. First off, as a mature woman, you should first apply for federal student aid with the FAFSA application. Then apply for the free 10k scholarship for moms (if you are a mom). The next step is to look at the following grants for mature women.

  • Newcombe Scholarships for Mature Women Students

This is a grant offered by participating universities across the USA. It’s given to woman of a certain age with the sum usually in the 2000 dollar range.

  • Jeanette Rankin Women’s Scholarship Fund

This is a special fund given to low income, mature women above the age of 34 who are in desperate financial need. The scholarship was created to give mature woman a chance to pursue an associate degree or a bachelors degree in an area that interests them.

  • NLAPW Virginia Liebeler Biennial Grants for Mature Women

Another grant given to women 35 and older. Women of this age group may qualify for a $1000 scholarship The scholarship given out is $1000dollars; the scholarship is awarded to women interested in writing as an art. If you enjoy writing, reading, or English literature, consider applying for this scholarship.

For other private grants and scholarships, the best place to look is a college financial aid website (your college if you are going to one). Pretty much every college has a financial aid department and that department will have a master list of scholarships and grants that you can apply for.

If you work for a corporation (McDonalds, etc), there may be a good chance the corporation has a scholarship fund for employees going back to school – it’s worth looking into this as you can land some free money for school in some cases.

Student Loans

Chances are that if you don’t work full time or have a large sum of money saved up to pay for school, you are going to have to apply for a student loan. There are basically two categories of student loans: federal student loans and private student loans.

Federal Student Loans

  • Perkins Student Loan
  • Chase Student Loan

The federal Perkins student loan and Stafford student loan are government-backed student loans that’s made available for all American citizens. Both are no cosigner, no credit check student loan which means pretty much anyone can qualify for these federal loans for school.

To apply for federal student loans, you are going to need to fill out the FAFSA application. This will put you into consideration for both federal student loans and federal student grants.

Private Student Loans

Many students are finding out that federal student loan aid does not provide enough to cover the full cost of an education. Of course, your ability to pay for schooling will depend on many factors such as your living expenses, type of school, and your budgeting; however, in some cases, federal aid won’t provide enough money. There are private student loans you can apply for. The three major private student loans are the:

  • Chase Student Loan
  • Signature Student loan
  • Sallie Mae Smart Option Student Loan

These loans usually require a credit check, however. Should your credit be bad, you will need a cosigner to cosign for the student loan. To find out about your credit history, there are two ways. The easy way is to use a website to check your credit score or send the credit agencies a written letter requesting your credit documents (takes a month or so). The later is completely free once a year, but it takes a long time.

For more information about federal student loans, visit the the federal aid website.

Part Time Job

Although this is an article about grants, I thought it salient to also point out that part time work can be a good way to help pay your way through school. It’s tough to go to school as a single mother AND work AND take care of kids. As much as I’d like to promise you an alternative, it may be that you’ll have to juggle all of these to pursue an education. The good news is that if you can’t find local work, many college campuses have “work on campus jobs” that are offered to those who are financially needy. This is a good way to supplement your income to pay for school.

The federal government does offer something called the Federal Work-Study which is a program that provides jobs to undergrad and graduate students to help pay for part of their education expenses as well.

If you tell yourself you need more skills to get a real job that actually pays well, then you might think about getting an online degree or pursue some online job training. There are a number of websites out there that will help you find the right degree. You can look at Excel: Networking for Women which is a program that will match women up with online education programs. Getting schooling is a big step, but it’s one of the BEST ways to get yourself out of a financial slump and take your career into your own hands.

Work At Home Jobs

Another option you may want to consider is looking at doing some kind of work at home job. For single moms/single parents, these jobs are perfect because you can work from the comfort of your home or even work after you come back from a job. The downside to these sort of jobs is that they tend to be much harder to achieve than you may initially think. There are also a lot of scams that target people looking to find work at home jobs. I’ve sorted through quite a few of them to find  a handfull of legit methods of making some coin at home. Keep in mind, these are NOT get rich quick schemes (if you find one of those, avoid them!). You have to put real work into these programs to make money.

Make Money Filling Out Surveys – The one program I do recommend as legit is the paid survey program. You basically fill out survey’s for money; the more surveys you fill out, the more money you get. It’s legit, though you’ll have to work filling out survey’s to get money.

Make Money Writing Articles – Another option might be to work as a web content writer; you can line up writing jobs on craigslist, elance.com, RealWritingJobs.com and places like textbroker.com.

Make Money via Internet Marketing–It is possible to make money by marketing products and services online. Most of the programs I’ve look at are complete scams, but there are a couple that actually do what they say: teach you how to make money online for real. The one program I can recommend is The Keyword Academy.

Government Grants for Single Mothers

As stated, there are no direct “federal grants for single mothers” available (that are not scams anyways), but there are federal assistance programs that moms can apply for. Here are some of the more well known and popular ones:

WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) Program – A Single Mom Food Program

This government-backed initiative is one of the more popular and effective federal programs out there. The way this program works is that coupons are given out each month for certain items; the items are usually geared around children and young mothers’ needs. The coupons given out change from month to month. The money given to WIC by the federal government is well established and much higher than some of the other programs for single mothers which means you stand a good chance of acceptance should you apply for this program. To apply, you must contact the WIC in your area trough a toll free number. You can find out more about the WIC here.

CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program) – A Single Mom Health Insurance Option

This is a federally-sponsored program that’s every American state has. The program is geared towards those who are unable to afford any sort of medical insurance. Medical, dental, and even vision insurance are given out to those who lack the finances to purchase such. The terms for getting CHIP vary, but you can expect either no payments or very small payments.

Food Stamps (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) – Food for Needy Families

If you are worried about being able to provide proper nutrition for your children, you may want to consider the Food Stamp program. This is by far the most recognized federal aid program in America. The program was established first in 1964 and has reduced malnutrition by a great deal since its inception. To join the program, you are going to have to look for the local state Food Stamp program (do a Google search to find your state’s food stamp website).

Families First/ Temporary Assistance for Needy Families – Money for Single Mothers

If you need a small infusion of money as a single mother, you might look at this program. The program offers financially-needy families small money amounts to assist with living expenses. People who may qualify are those who are unemployed or employed and still unable to purchase the basic necessities of life. There are some conditions you must meet, however.

  1. Your children must attend school
  2. Your children must be vaccinated (i.e. be properly cared for healthwise)
  3. Children must have legal guardianship (i.e. paternity and parent custody in cases of divorce must be firmly established).

To apply for this program, you are going to have to find your state family assistance website and apply for there.

National School Lunch Program – School Lunches for Kids for Free

Another program that I’ve seen mentioned online and which is legit is the Free or Reduced Meal program. This is essentially a subsidized school lunch program for needy families. This means that if you qualify, your children may be able to eat for free (or reduced prices) at school. You can find out more about the program and apply for it here.

Housing Assistance for Single Mothers

If you find yourself in need of housing as a single mother and you are in financial need, there are some housing assistance programs you may consider.

  • Privately owned subsidized housing — basically offers financially needy government subsidized housing. This is a very good program if you can’t afford standard rent prices on an apartment/home.
  • Public Housing Agency – these are affordable housing units offered by the government for low-income families.
  • Housing Choice Voucher Program – government vouchers which can be used to pay for part of your rent on government-approved housing options.

To seek more information about these programs, you should visit the HUD.gov website.

Financial Assistance for Single Mothers

There are many ways to get financial help for single mothers. We’ve already discussed grants and scholarships in great deal above, but it’s good to look at other means of financial aid.

Women Shelters

There are women shelters in nearly every city that are set up for abused or needy mothers. These shelters offer housing assistance for single mothers, free food, and even potential job training. Many women shelters operate from government grants and are designed for women in serious financial need. In an emergency, look for a women shelter.

Churches

If you need financial help or have been kicked out of your home by your boyfriend or partner, consider looking to see what church programs are available. Most church organizations offer assistance programs for the needy. This may include training, food, and even emergency housing shelter for single mothers. You can look through the yellowpages or do a search online for a local church to contact. You may be shy to ask for help, by many religious organizations have dedicated programs for those in need.

Government Aid Programs

We’ve already discussed the various government help for single mother programs – consult this section again for information on state assistance for single mothers. The list given on this website is by no means complete. You can look at benefits.gov for more government aid programs.

You can find more information about specific grants for single mothers programs at the given link (it’s the best source I’ve found on the web).

Loans for Single Mothers

In a pinch, you may consider taking out some kind of loan. I strongly advise you to think carefully before considering a loan. But for some emergencies, it may be necessary. Your credit history is also important when taking out a line of credit or personal bank loan, so it’s a good idea to know your credit score first before looking at these type of loans. For payday loans and credit card cash advances, you don’t need a credit check, though you’ll pay in higher interest fees for this.

Payday Loans

This is a common type of loan these days. Also called a “cash advance loan” or “paycheck loan” this type of loan is basically a high interest loan you take out for a short period. You usually pay a fee for the loan on the spot and are given two weeks to a month to repay it. For dental or car repair emergencies, you might consider such a loan, but BE ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN you can repay this loan. Failure to repay a payday loan can land you in serious financial trouble as the interest rates on payday loans are some of the highest in the loan industry. Miss a few loan payments and the interest rate may surpass the original amount you owe! If you are looking for a reputable online payday loan lender, I’ve heard 60 Minute Payday is a good company, though heed my above warnings!

Line of Credit

If you have good credit, you might consider asking your bank for a personal loan or line of credit. This is actually a better solution than a payday loan if you need some quick emergency cash as the interest rates are lower. Like any loan, make sure you repay them.

Personal Loans

Another option for you to consider if you need some cash. The interest rates are usually lower on personal loans than on payday loans or credit card loans. However, you’ve got to be able to make the payments. So I don’t recommend Personal Loans as a financial assistance option. If you want a personal loan, you can apply for one online.

Credit Card Cash Advance

If you have a credit card, you can take money out from a bank machine. However, we don’t recommend this because you start paying interest the moment you withdraw money and you are often charged a fee. Consider a line of credit or payday loan instead.

Last Word

It may seem like there are no legit grants for single moms out there, but there are in fact many financial assistance programs that moms can take advantage of in the form of government grants, government assistance programs such as the Stafford student loan, the Pell Grant, and web sweepstake programs like the free-to-apply 10k scholarship. The key to get the help you need is to be persistent in your hunt for financial help. The help you need won’t come to you; you are going to have to seek it out and that takes work! But help is there for single mothers who need it!

October 19th, 2010 . Posted in financial aid for single moms, financial asssistance for single moms, financial help for single moms, grants for single moms, living, loans for single moms, scholarships for single moms, single mom guide | No Comments »
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