9 records

Scholarships for Girls

Empowering female students is a primary focus of numerous targeted scholarship schemes. From stipends for single girl children to massive state programs like Kanyashree, these financial aids are designed to bridge the gender gap in higher education and professional fields.

Scholarship	Typical window	Amount	Income limit
AICTE Pragati Scholarship for Girls	Expected: Sep–Dec	₹50,000/yr (₹30,000 tuition + ₹20,000 incidentals)	Family income below ₹8 lakh/yr
National Scheme of Incentive to Girls for Secondary Education	Expected: Aug–Nov	₹3,000 (deposited as a fixed deposit in the student's name)	No income limit for SC/ST girls and KGBV passouts
Indira Gandhi Scholarship for Single Girl Child	Expected: Sep–Dec	₹36,200/yr	No income limit
Kanyashree Prakalpa (West Bengal)	Expected: Jul–Aug	K1 is ₹1,000/year for girls aged 13–18 in classes VIII–XII; K2 is a one-time ₹25,000 at age 18 if unmarried and continuing education or vocational training; K3 is ₹2,500/year for PG students with 45% or above at UG level.	Family income below ₹1.2 lakh/yr
Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar Scheme	Expected: Aug–Nov	Varies (typically free transport or small stipend)	Family income below ₹1 lakh/yr
Moovalur Ramamirtham Ammaiyar Higher Education Assurance Scheme (Pudhumai Penn)	Expected: Jul–Aug	₹1,000 per month via DBT	No income limit
Mukhyamantri Kanya Utthan Yojana (Bihar)	Expected: Jul–Aug	₹50,000 (one-time on graduation)	No strict income limit
Mukhyamantri Medhavritti Yojana (Bihar)	Expected: Aug–Oct	₹15,000 (1st division), ₹10,000 (2nd division) - one-time	No income limit
Gaon Ki Beti Yojana	Expected: Aug	₹5,000 annually.	Reserved for rural students.

Scholarships for girls in India, at a glance

Support for girl students runs across three levels, and the table above mixes all of them. At school level, the National Scheme of Incentive to Girls for Secondary Education encourages girls to continue past Class 8, and state schemes like West Bengal's Kanyashree Prakalpa do the same with milestone payments. At college and technical level, the AICTE Pragati Scholarship backs girls in diploma and degree courses, while the Indira Gandhi Scholarship for Single Girl Child supports families with one daughter through higher study.

A few go further into specialised fields — the L'Oréal India For Young Women in Science scholarship funds women entering science degrees, for instance. Eligibility usually turns on family income, category and course, so open each scheme to check the exact rules before applying.

Most open once a year on different schedules, so the windows above are a prompt to start checking, not guaranteed dates.

Girls’ provisions hidden inside schemes filed under something else

Beyond the 9 schemes listed above, 6 schemes on this site quietly treat girls differently — a larger monthly payment, half the seats, a lower pass mark, or a route only women can use. Not one of them is filed under a girls category, so searching for girls’ scholarships will never surface them. Every line below is the scheme’s own wording, taken from its page on this site.

Where seats are actually held for girls

A reservation, not a preference: the share below is fixed before applications are read.

• ONGC Scholarship for Meritorious SC/ST/OBC Students — “A distinct feature of this scheme is its 50% reservation for girl students.”
• LIC Golden Jubilee Foundation Scholarship — “In a massive push for inclusivity, the scheme also features a dedicated quota for girl students pursuing post-graduation or continuing their higher studies, as well as a specific quota of slots reserved for students with disabilities.”

Where a girl is paid more for the same scholarship

One scheme, one application, two rates.

• Prime Minister's Scholarship Scheme (PMSS) for Wards of Ex-Servicemen — “₹2,500 per month for boys, ₹3,000 per month for girls”

Where the marks bar is set separately for girls

The cut-off is a matrix rather than a single number, so check the row that applies to you before ruling yourself out.

• Sitaram Jindal Foundation Scholarship — “Selection is based on a clear matrix of the student's previous exam percentage and their family's income, with different cut-offs defined for boys, girls, and different course categories.”

A route only women can use

Not a girls-only version of a general scheme but a scheme that exists for one group of women.

• Widow/Divorcee Chief Minister (B.Ed) Sambal Scheme — “Women who are widowed or divorced and are admitted to a regular B.Ed.”

Where being a girl only tips a close decision

Worth applying, nothing reserved.

• Mahindra All India Talent Scholarship (MAITS) — “Preference is strongly given to girls, children from lower-income groups, differently-abled students, and children of armed forces personnel”

A preference is not a quota. Where a scheme says only that it favours girls, applying is still worth it, but no seat is being held for you.