Student Scholarship

Scholarship Information

The Animation Educators Forum Student Scholarship Program is an opportunity designed to assist students from around the world in completing their education at accredited college-level animation programs. Applications are accepted from undergraduate students entering the sophomore year or above and graduate students working toward completing a thesis/dissertation.

Awards of up to $5,000 USD may be applied to tuition, books and supplies, animation equipment (including computer hardware or software), travel, formal academic research, and senior or graduate thesis production.

Please note that criteria may change from year to year. We provide this information continuously so that interested students may begin to plan to submit an application as soon as the site is opened.

AEF scholarships are merit-based awards designed to support college students in continuing their education in animation.

Awards up to $5,000 may be applied to:

• tuition
• books and supplies
• formal academic research (including travel expenses)
• animation equipment (including computer hardware and software)
• senior or graduate projects

Additionally, all Scholarship awardees will receive a 1-year Student level membership to ASIFA-Hollywood.

To be eligible for the scholarship award, the following MINIMUM criteria must be met:

1. Applicants must be undergraduate students entering the second or higher year of study or graduate students at all levels.
2. Applicants must have a grade point average of 2.5 or above.
3. Applicants must be attending a college, university, or trade program in the field of animation that is accredited by a recognized national or professional accrediting agency.
4. Applicants must plan to attend both semesters of the USA standard academic year (Fall: August to December and Spring: January to June). Students planning to attend only a portion of the year (ex., Spring semester) are NOT eligible for the Scholarship. Special considerations may be made for academic institutions, not based in the United States.
5. Applications will only be considered for the semester(s) that the student will be actively attending classes. Awards cannot be "reserved" for upcoming semesters of attendance nor during a Leave of Absence. Again, special considerations may be made for academic institutions not based in the United States.
6. To receive the scholarship funds, the awardee must be able to provide Proof of Enrollment for the initial semester of the award year (ex. Fall in the USA). Special accommodations may be made for awardees attending institutions with academic calendars that do not align with the USA standard Fall/Spring semester schedule.
7. Students cannot be awarded the ASIFA-Hollywood’s Animation Educators Forum Student Scholarship for two consecutive academic years. Recipients of the Scholarship in the previous year (2023-24) are ineligible for this year.
8. All applications must be completed by 11:59 PM PST on August 1, 2024.
9. Applications from international students are welcome.

Application materials will include:

1. A short biography (500 words maximum) describing the applicant’s experience as an animation major.
2. A proposal (1,000 words maximum) for the scholarship, describing how the award will be utilized and how it will contribute to the applicant’s goals in animation.
3. A proposed budget (500 words maximum) describing how the funds will be spent. For example, the budget might include an itemized list of equipment, travel expenses for research, or tuition with estimated cost figures.
4. Supporting documents based on the type of application – all three are NOT required.
   
   These may include:
   
   * for creative animation proposals: still artwork (10 pieces maximum) and/or an animation reel (2 minutes maximum) demonstrating the applicant’s strengths and/or artistic breadth
   
   * for animation study/research proposals: a formal abstract for an academic paper.
5. Two letters of recommendation:
   
   * one from a faculty member who is familiar with the work of the applicant and
   
   * one from a current ASIFA member OR an individual with verifiable professional animation experience (see notes below).

NOTE: If the applicant is unable to secure a recommendation from an ASIFA member in the area, a faculty member from their institution may join any ASIFA chapter to fulfill this requirement. If the applicant is unable to find a willing party, they may substitute a recommendation from an individual with professional animation experience that may be verified by the Animation Educators Forum.

NOTE: If locating an ASIFA chapter/member or animation professional is too difficult, the applicant should contact the Scholarship Committee at aef_scholarships@animationeducatorsforum.org to discuss an alternate solution.

A panel of animation educators and professionals will consider all of the fully completed applications and select awardees. The recipients of the 2024 Student Scholarship will be publicly announced after September 1, 2024. All awardees will receive written notification from the AEF Scholarship Committee by that date.

NOTE: Information about the status of applications will not be released
(ex. through email) until the awards have been formally announced.

Members of ASIFA-Hollywood’s Animation Educators Forum Scholarship Committee will stay in touch with the awardees throughout the scholarship year. All awardees will be required to provide the following:

1. Permission to use the awardee’s artwork and/or scholarly writings in promoting the Scholarship.
2. Midyear and Final Reports that document how the scholarship was utilized, including a final itemized budget and supporting evidence (example: tuition payment records and receipts for purchases).
3. A brief essay (included with the final report) that describes how the award supported the student’s educational goals.
4. Access to (and/or copy of) the short film, demo reel, still images, or academic paper/scholarly work created during the year of the Scholarship Award.
5. A photographic image (headshot) that may be used in promoting the scholarship.