25 Top MBA Scholarships For Minorities In The USA

Only 4% of chief executives in the United States are black and only 6% are Hispanic. Women, native Americans, the LGBTQ+ community, and people of color remain under-represented in the workforce and in the business school classroom.

However, US business schools are taking steps to boost MBA diversity, offering a wide variety of MBA scholarships for minorities—a great way to help you fund your studies at a top business school, regardless of your background.

For MBA candidates from under-represented groups, here are 25 diversity-based scholarships that will help you finance your MBA studies at a US business school, available on a national and school-by-school basis.

You can skip to your section of interest by clicking the links below:

Black/African American MBA Scholarships

Latinx MBA Scholarships

Women MBA Scholarships & LGBTQ+ MBA Scholarships

More minority MBA scholarships (e.g. industry specific)

Black/African American MBA Scholarships 

1. Whitney M. Young Jr. Fellowship 

Amount: $25,000

The Whitney M. Young Jr. Fellowship is run by the African American MBA Association (AAMBAA) at Wharton University. The fellowship remembers Whitney M. Young Jr., a US civil rights leader who led the National Urban League—the world’s largest civil rights organization at the time—from 1961-71. The fellowship provides one student each year with a $25,000 scholarship. 

Quinton McArthur, Wharton’s senior associate director of diversity for MBA admissions, says, “over the years our WMY Fellows have been leaders, role models and embodied qualities that lent themselves to greatness. 

“The WMY Fellowship is an annual reminder that the AAMBAA and the Black community have for decades made a significant impact on campus.”

2. National Black MBA Association Fellowships

Amount: $25,000 - Full tuition  

There are a wide variety of scholarships available through the National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA) offering various amounts of funding. At Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business, NBMBAA scholars receive $50,000 of funding, while at Arizona State the scholarship is worth $25,000. Other business schools like Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business offer needs-based funding for scholars which can cover the entire tuition fee. 

Paul North, executive director of graduate programs at Fisher, says, “Fisher College of Business values and prioritizes diverse classroom experiences while encouraging unique perspectives and diversity in all forms.

“Fisher’s MBA program is committed to scholarship students from various social and ethnic backgrounds.”

3. Darryl T. Banks HBCU Scholarship

Amount: Unconfirmed

Duke Fuqua School of Business announced the Darryl T. Banks HBCU Scholarship in 2020 on recommendation from the school’s Racial Equity Working Group, a joint team of 18 faculty, alumni, and students. The merit-based award will focus on supporting students who join Duke from a historically black college or university (HBCU). The title pays homage to Darryl T. Banks, a former alum and professor at Fuqua who joined the school from an HBCU in 1986. 

Assistant dean of admissions and director of diversity initiatives at Duke, Sharon Thompson, says, “By offering merit scholarships to recruit diverse talent from all backgrounds and experiences, we are removing barriers, strengthening our communities, and developing the leaders the world needs.”

4. Consortium Fellowships

Amount: Full-tuition

Washington University’s Professor Sterling Schoen created The Consortium for Graduate Study in Management to help African American students gain the skills they need to take on roles in American corporations. Since then, the Consortium has offered more than $465 million to MBA students in America. 

Full-tuition fellowships are available to students who can demonstrate a commitment to The Consortium’s mission of helping to reduce the serious underrepresentation of African Americans, Hispanic Americans and Native Americans in both schools’ enrollments and the ranks of management.

The Consortium includes schools such as Tuck School of Business, Kelley School of Business, McCombs School of Business, Simon Business School, Jones School of Business and many more.

Lina Bell, director of diversity, equity and inclusion at Rice says: “At Jones Business School, we consider cultural competency a key leadership skill for our MBA’s. One of the many ways that we foster an appreciation of diversity of thought and opinion is to ensure a  representative student body. Our portfolio of scholarships, (made possible by generous donors) enables us to compete for in-demand top talent.”

Go to page two for Latinx Scholarships. 

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