What are Continuing Education Grants?

Continuing education grants can refer to several different programs and concepts. The first distinction that needs to be made is that sometimes organizations that offer additional training to workers can receive continuing education grants to pay for that training. The grant is usually given to the organization directly, which might reimburse workers for training sessions, or have on site training. In other instances, people refer to these grants as money given to people who are continuing their education after some time off, and often the majority of private grants of this nature are designed for single mothers, but there are categories that may apply to any returning student, or a person seeking to meet continuing education requirements to maintain licensure or credentialing. A final definition occasionally applies with private grantors when students transition from junior college to a four year school; these may also be called transfer scholarships and are usually based on academic success at the junior or community college.

There are a number of sources from which continuing education grants can come. State or federal governments may issue them or they could be from private organizations. Types and amount of money available can sometimes be dependent on economy. In very lean economic times, most people and applying organizations may expect to find fewer resources.

When organizations look for continuing education grants to offer extra training or fund the additional training of employees, they may have a variety of places to search. Public agencies, like libraries could have access to some grants from the state in which they’re located. Looking at public or private programs that offer some reward to the employer for training employees may be a good option too. Sometimes large grantor agencies set up grants for small businesses or their employees to get extra training that will result in greater efficiency, sustainability or advanced use of technology; private industries may have one or two grants of this nature.

In grants for continuing students, it should be noted that US students ought to look for more traditional sources of funding first. A person continuing their education should certainly fill out a Federal Application For Student Aid (FAFSA) form, since students going back to college may be eligible for things like Pell Grants, state grants and a variety of student loan offers. It might be easier to find specific applications for continuing education grants through scholarship offices at colleges a person plans to attend. Another good place to look is the Internet, which has some sites with free scholarship listings.

People searching for a grant to fulfill continuing education requirements can look in a variety of places. State aid could be available and sometimes a person’s professional organizations, affiliations or unions have such grants. For the transfer student, the best place to ask about transfer scholarships is the financial aid or scholarship department at the community college.

Though not as attractive, there are also continuing education loans. These will of course need to be repaid at a specified time when schooling is completed. They may be of benefit because they could exceed amounts allowed for education by the state, and they are often designed for people who had an interrupted college experience and who now wish to return to school. Sometimes these loans are limited to people who are single parents, but there are many to explore and they may have more generous lending terms than standard student loans, in some instances.