AGMA Foundation Scholarship Program

Guidelines for distribution of funds and criteria for selecting recipients are established by the AGMA Foundation Board of Trustees and implemented by the Scholarship Committee. Selected by the Board of Trustees, the Scholarship Committee comprises members of the gear industry who have experience in workforce education. The Committee reviews applications and makes recommendations to the Foundation’s Board of Trustees for final approval. The Foundation will next award scholarships in the Fall of 2024.

The AGMA Foundation Scholarship Program is open to students who are interested in a career in the gear industry, and/or power transmission as it relates to the gear industry. Applicants must be currently enrolled, or recently accepted, as full or part-time students in a nationally accredited program. Annual scholarships are awarded to students at the technical/associate, undergraduate, and graduate school levels.

Preference is given to applicants with current or recent experience working in the gear and/or power transmission industry.

Scholarship funds are paid directly to the educational institution and may be used for tuition, room and board, textbooks, and materials. Scholarships are awarded in August of each year and paid in two installments –half in September of that year, and the second in March of the following year. Students who do not continue school in the spring semester forfeit the second payment.

The deadline for all scholarship applications is Monday, July 1, 2024, at 5:00 pm ET. The scholarship levels, renewal policies, and award amounts are:

Technical school/associate degree students are eligible for a scholarship award of up to $2,500. Many students are attending school part-time, so students should apply for the funding needed for classes in that academic year. The scholarship is renewable in additional years, for a maximum aggregate of $7,500 in funding at this level. Scholarship renewal is not automatic, applicants MUST submit a full and timely application to be considered for additional scholarship awards. Scholarships awarded at the technical school/associate degree level do not disqualify a student from applying for a scholarship(s) at higher levels and do not count towards the maximum funding aggregate at higher levels.

Undergraduate students are eligible for up to a $5,000 scholarship award. Awards are made at the discretion of the AGMA Foundation Trustees and are based on the experience of students and the number of eligible scholarship awardees for a given year. The scholarship is renewable for a maximum of three additional years, for a maximum aggregate of $20,000 in funding at this level. Previous AGMA Foundation scholarships awarded as a technical/associate degree student do not count towards the $20,000 undergraduate-level aggregate. Scholarship renewal is not automatic, applicants MUST submit a full and timely application to be considered for additional scholarships.

Graduate students are eligible for up to $5,000 scholarship awards. Awards are made at the discretion of the AGMA Foundation Trustees and are based on the experience of students and the number of eligible scholarship awardees for a given year. The scholarship is renewable for a maximum of two additional years, for a maximum aggregate of $15,000 in funding at this level. Previous AGMA Foundation scholarships awarded as a technical/associate or Undergraduate degree student do not count towards the $15,000 Graduate level aggregate. Scholarship renewal is not automatic, applicants MUST submit a full and timely application to be considered for additional scholarships.

Evaluation Criteria

1. Grade Point Average – must be 3.0 or higher for Undergraduate and Graduate students, and 2.0 or higher for Technical/associate degree students
2. Internship, co-op, work, community, volunteer, and other extracurricular activities
3. Work experience in the gear and/or power transmission industry
4. Two letters of recommendation
5. Honors, awards, and other recognitions of the student’s work and leadership skills
6. Personal statement regarding proposed program and study, career goals, and financial need 
7. (for graduate level scholarships) Relevance of graduate-level research to the gear and/or power transmission industry