Women in Aviation International (WAI) announced seven new scholarships on June 4, including support for advanced flight training, maintenance training, and academic programs.
The scholarships are among dozens to be awarded at WAI’s twenty-seventh annual International Women in Aviation Conference in Nashville March 10 through 12, 2016. WAI awarded more than $600,000 in scholarships in 2015 in a wide range of aviation professions and will open its 2016 application process July 1.
"WAI scholarships are not simply for scholastic assistance,” said WAI President Peggy Chabrian. "We offer flight training including type ratings and financial assistance for nearly every aviation/aerospace profession from ag flying to engineering. We even have scholarships for those who choose to simply fly for fun.”
New offerings include scholarships for spin training, flight training for an initial or advanced certificate, a baccalaureate degree program in aviation, helicopter maintenance training, a CFI add-on rating, pursuit of a career in aviation and aerospace technology, and exam preparation.
The Ace Aerobatic School Spin Training scholarship, valued at $800, provides a spin training course to an aspiring flight instructor who is already a commercial pilot. Two Blackburn Northwest Flight scholarships award $5,000 for any phase of certification from sport pilot through airline transport pilot. Applicants must be student pilots, and the scholarship is intended for women from the Pacific Northwest. Women holding a current FAA flight instructor certificate may apply for the Martha King Scholarship for Female Flight Instructors, which provides $5,000 toward flight training for any CFI add-on rating and lifetime access to King Schools Online courses. The scholarship is valued at $13,120 and includes flight instructor refresher courses for life. Three recipients of the MzeroA.com Flight Training Scholarship will receive online courses to prepare for their private, instrument, or commercial knowledge and oral exams as well as full registration to the Women in Aviation conference.
Students pursuing careers in aviation may apply for the Career Eagles Aviation Scholarship, a partnership of the Ohio State University Center for Aviation Studies, the Knowlton Foundation, Youth Aviation Adventure, and the Experimental Aircraft Association. Two $5,000 scholarships will be awarded to aspiring professional pilots entering a baccalaureate degree program in aviation. The HAI Helicopter Maintenance Scholarship, valued at $1,000, will be given to someone interested in earning a helicopter mechanic certificate; applicants pursuing an airframe, powerplant, both airframe and powerplant certificate, or the international equivalent will be given preference. The Southern Museum of Flight is offering the $5,000 Mary Alice Beatty Scholarship to women ages 15 to 25 actively seeking careers in aviation and aerospace technology; the scholarship, which honors the namesake originator of the museum, is designed to support job growth for women in aviation and aerospace technology in Alabama, but all applicants will be considered.
Applicants to all scholarships must be WAI members. Information on 2016 scholarships, including further requirements for each, will be available online in July.
