Amazon aims to help high school students soar to greater heights through a new program that will award $10 million in scholarships.

The program is designed to equip students from underserved communities with the opportunity to go on to pursue post-secondary education and study computer science. 

The Amazon Future Engineer program will provide 250 students with $40,000 each while also offering them a paid internship at the e-commerce giant. The childhood-to-career initiative was created to encourage millions of students across several underserved communities with the chance to build life-changing skills through careers in computer science.

In the latest investment, Amazon is doubling its previous commitment. Since the program’s inception in 2019, it has awarded $22 million in scholarships to 550 students across the world.

The Program

“Each year, we are inspired by the talent, work ethic, and passion of our Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship recipients. We’re thrilled to expand our commitment to $10 million in scholarship funds to help 250 students from historically underrepresented and underserved communities pursue a computer science education,” said Victor Reinoso, Global Director of Amazon’s philanthropic education initiatives in an official statement. “These opportunities are imperative to building a diverse tech industry and enriching our communities. These students have fulfilling careers ahead, and we look forward to seeing them at their Amazon internships and all they will achieve.”

A variety of factors come into play when it comes to selecting recipients of the scholarships. Amazon hand selects the students based on their academic achievement, demonstrated leadership, participation in school and community activities, work experience, future goals, as well as their financial need.

“Without this scholarship, I likely would not be able to attend my dream school,” said Destiny Ogar, senior at the Baltimore Leadership School for Young Women and a 2022 Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship recipient. “This scholarship will open doors for me and allow me to pursue a career in technology.”

How To Apply

Applications for the Amazon Future Engineer scholarship will open in Fall 2022. They will be available to students who are rising high school seniors and have completed an Advanced Placement computer science course in high school with the intent to pursue a degree in computer science at a four-year college or university.

For more on how to apply, click here.