Research Guides: Parents and Families: Scholarships

Local Scholarships

Please contact SBCC Financial Aid for the best information about current scholarships:

SBCC Scholarships
Provides numerous general as well as program specific scholarships.

SBCC Promise
The SBCC Promise will provide any local student who completes their secondary education within the Santa Barbara Community College District with the opportunity to attend SBCC full-time for two years free of charge.

Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara
Partners with the Santa Barbara Foundation in awarding financial aid to the best qualified qualified students from Santa Barbara County schools.

National Scholarships

Please contact SBCC Financial Aid for the best information about current scholarships:

If you are a student-parent searching online for scholarships, try some of these search term:

student parent scholarships or grants
students with dependent children scholarships or grants
single parent scholarships or grants

Some schools offer other types of funding for student parents like childcare grants, on-campus housing, food assistance, on-campus healthcare, and more.

CA Student Aid Commission - Students With Dependent Children
Cal Grant students attending a University of California, California State University, California Community College, or private non-profit institution who have dependent children may be eligible for an access award of up to $6,000. The Students with Dependent Children (SWD) Grant increases the Cal Grant award by up to $6,000 for qualifying Cal Grant A and B recipients and up to $4,000 for qualifying Cal Grant C recipients.
Federal Pell Grant
Federal Pell Grants usually are awarded only to undergraduate students who display exceptional financial need and have not earned a bachelor's, graduate, or professional degree.

Recommended Books

1001 Ways to Pay for College by Kelly Tanabe
Call Number: 378.3 T161o 2023
Publication Date: 2023
Completely revised with updated descriptions, contact information, websites, and available monies, this guide to financing higher education is the only resource students need to fund their pursuit of knowledge.
Resume and LinkedIn Strategies for New College Graduates by Jan Melnik and Louise Kursmark
Call Number: 650.14 M527r 2023
Publication Date: 2023
Jan Melnik and Louise Kursmark are recognized leaders in the field of career management. Both are Master Resume Writers and have worked with new-graduate job seekers for more than two decades.
The Ultimate Scholarship Book 2022 by Gen Tanabe and Kelly Tanabe
Call Number: eBook
Publication Date: 2021
Information on 1.5 million scholarships, grants, and prizes is easily accessible in this revised directory with more than 300 new listings that feature awards indexed by career goal, major, academics, public service, talent, athletics, religion, ethnicity, and more.
To University and Beyond by Mandee Heller Adler and David Teten
Call Number: eBook
Publication Date: 2021
Learn how to use your time as a student to supercharge your career with this step-by-step guide to everything from resumes and internships to online classes. Chapter 16 is about scholarships.