Scholarships and Bursaries to Win at Georgian College

No beating around the bush, no sugar coating – university is wildly expensive. If you’ve started, or you’re about to start your post secondary education, you may be in the middle of figuring out what your costs are going to be, and wondering how in the world you are going to cover them. Keep in mind that post-secondary education is an investment in your future. While many students find it tough to make ends meet, Georigan College, Barrie Campus, offers so many options to help you pay your way to graduation. 

By the numbers, $3 million in bursaries is awarded to Georgian students annually, followed by a multitude of donor-funded student awards scholarships and bursaries. With more than 650 awards and scholarships available to students each year that total a combined value of over $750,000, you can feel confident that there is one for you. You don’t need to be fresh out of high school or in your first year of study, and it’s not all about marks either – you don’t even need to be enrolled full-time. Georgian looks towards those with community involvement, involvement within the Georgian community, academic achievement, financial need, sport and athletics, first generation students, and much more. There truly are awards and scholarships for Georgian students from all walks of life. 

Top Scholarships at Georgian

On average, the value of a Georgian award or scholarship is $1000. Many of the award, scholarship and bursary opportunities are funded through the generosity of donors within the community. Georgian makes finding opportunities for these awards accessible through the Georgian College Award, Scholarship and Bursary Homepage. On this homepage, there is a listing of all of the registered awards available. Simply scroll through the endless pages, or search by keyword. 

Women’s Awards

At Georgian College, the education of women and their journey into the workplace is highly regarded, valued, and very much so recognized. As a female student attending Georgian, there are plenty of scholarship opportunities dedicated to you and your achievements. Many range from specified programs, to financial need, academic merit, disability, and more. Here are just a few examples of the scholarships that may be worth applying for… 

For any female students who intend to go into business upon graduation, the Women Owners Network Award may be the one for you. This award is presented to a female student who is enrolled at any Georigan College campus and is in good academic standing. Particularly, this award is meant to assist their future business plans, therefore the chosen student will have demonstrated entrepreneurial spirit and intends to go into business herself.

The Susan Hedges Memorial Award is an award presented to a full-time international female student who has successfully completed Geeorgian’s EAP program and is now registered in a full-time program. This award was established to support female students in support of the Women’s inTUITION fundraising campaign. 

The Jean Grant Smith Legacy Award recognizes a female student who has completed her first year of study in an entrepreneurship program at Georgian college. This goal oriented candidate demonstrates academic merit and community involvement through volunteerism, and whose business aspirations are in industries that are not typically associated with women (construction, trades, etc).

International Entrance Awards

International Education & Training Entrance Scholarship is for students who have demonstrated academic achievement in their home country or an accredited institute in Canada; it is presented to an international student entering any full time program at any campus of Georgian College. 

An award similar to this one is the International Entrance Awards. This Entrance Award is presented to an international student entering their first year of study in any program at any campus of Georgian College, who has completed the English for Academic Purposes program in Canada. The candidate will have also demonstrated academic achievement of 75 percent or higher in the program, as well as have attained excellent attendance. 

Lastly, the International Student Leadership Award recognizes leadership skills, rather than a soul focus on academic achievement. International students who have demonstrated strong leadership skills, are in good academic standing and have completed at least one successful academic semester, and demonstrate a financial need. It is also required that applicants exemplify one of the following: are involved in campus life, or have contributed to or enhanced student life in some way, highlight any of the change-making initiatives that they have championed or participated in, and clearly demonstrate their constant strive to engage in practices that bring social innovation and welfare to the college community. 

Other Awards

Aside from the above mentioned awards, there are hundreds of others that are readily available. However, this would take an eternity to cover, especially considering there are a mass of scholarships in so many varying fields. It’s a challenge to cover them all, so be sure to check the Award, Scholarship and Bursary Homepage – there is great information and an award for everyone.

Bursaries Available at Georgian 

Covid-19 Hardship Bursary

In a time of global hardship, the Covid-19 Hardship Bursary offers a $500 bursary intended to help provide immediate, short term relief to Georgian students experiencing unexpected financial need due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This fund is to help students who are in urgent need of basic necessities, and as such, it is expected that before applying for support from this fund, students will have explored all other options of emergency funding. 

Emergency Bursary

For students who are facing a serious financial emergency during their study period because of events that are beyond their control, the Gerogian College Emergency Bursary acts as a safety net for extreme, unforeseen crisis circumstances. This fund is strictly for emergencies, wherein a financial emergency is defined as a crisis which could not have reasonably been budgeted for during your current study period.

Indigenous Student Bursary

This bursary provides aid to Indigenous students in financial need who are attending Georgian College. 

Ontario First Generation Bursary 

First Generation students studying at Georgian College may be considered for this bursary. To be eligible, a student must not have parents who attended post-secondary studies. 

Conclusion

Georgian offers awards, scholarships, and bursaries to students of all walks of life – domestic, international, Indigenous, full-time and part-time, first years, upcoming graduates, and everyone in between. Bottom line is, you can afford this!

Published on August 26, 2021

About Haylee Tougas

Haylee is a third-year Kinesiology student at the University of Alberta. With a minor in Community Development, she is passionate about delivering sport and free play to children and youth who are vulnerable and believes that access to physical activity for everyone is essential. On the side, she enjoys coaching soccer, volunteering, and living an active lifestyle!