NASA launches $1.2M scholarships for community college students

NASA has refreshed its Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) challenge, opening a new window for U.S. community‑college students to link their coursework with careers in space and science. The updated program invites students to explore NASA’s missions, meet agency experts, and apply for scholarships and internships. Applications will open on 12 June and close on 12 July, with finalists announced in early September.

The move follows NASA’s push to build a more diverse, inclusive workforce. Community colleges enroll more than 4 million students each year, many of whom come from underrepresented backgrounds. In 2022 NASA noted that only 10 % of its workforce held a bachelor’s degree, and the agency has set a goal to increase that to 30 % by 2030. The NCAS program was created in 2018 to give these students a pathway into aerospace, but participation had stalled because of limited outreach and a narrow focus on majors. The revamp adds outreach to non‑STEM majors, expands scholarship awards, and partners with 60+ community‑college chapters across the country.

Applicants must be enrolled full‑time, in good academic standing, and have completed at least one semester of a STEM or engineering course. The scholarship pool now totals $1.2 million, offering awards ranging from $3 000 to $15 000, depending on the student’s discipline and the sponsoring institution. In addition, selected scholars will attend a week‑long NASA boot‑camp in Houston, where they will work on real‑world projects and shadow flight‑control engineers. NASA’s Office of Workforce Development will review applications, and a panel of agency leaders will choose the top 200 participants.

Once selected, scholars will join a mentorship network that links them to NASA facilities, internships, and graduate‑school pathways. The program’s goal is to place at least 50 % of scholars into NASA‑affiliated internships or research projects within two years of graduation. NASA officials say the expanded NCAS challenge will help fill critical talent gaps in emerging fields like space‑based communications and planetary defense, while giving community‑college students a clear route into high‑impact careers.