Top 10 Scholarships for Autoimmune Diseases

There are a lot of persons living with one disease, disability or disorder. These diseases, in a way, has limited them from doing things they’d normally do. For a truth, most of the persons living with this illness, or disease, or disorder have career goals. Some have plans to obtain higher education. For this cause, some charity organizations have come together to setup financial schemes to aid, and encourage these persons living with diseases pursue their life goals. These financial schemes can come in the form of scholarships like scholarships for autoimmune diseases, scholarships for chronic illness, scholarships for the blind, scholarships for autism, and so on.

In this article, we’ve provided details on scholarships for autoimmune diseases. In other words, only persons living with this health condition can apply for the scholarships we’ve listed.

Before we proceed, let us observe a few vital facts about the disease and scholarships offered.

What are Autoimmune Diseases?

The immune system is designed to protect the body from antigens like bacteria and viruses. Autoimmune disorders can cause low or over activity of the immune system. In cases where there’s immune system over activity, the body attacks and damages its own tissues. This Immune deficiency diseases will cause the body to be vulnerable to infections. According to the AARDA , autoimmune diseases affect the lives of up to 23.5 million Americans.

10 Most Common Types of Autoimmune Diseases

Here’s a list of 10 Most Common Autoimmune Diseases:

• Vitiligo
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Rheumatic fever
• Pernicious anemia/atrophic gastritis
• Hashimoto’s autoimmune thyroiditis
• Graves’ disease
• Lupus
• Diabetes mellitus, type 1
• Celiac disease

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In the same vain, there are autoimmune diseases that are very rare. According to National Human Genome Research Institute, there are over 6,000 rare diseases.

Here’s a list of 10 Rarest Autoimmune Diseases

• Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA)
• Guillain-Barre syndrome
• Kawasaki disease
• Mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD)
• Myasthenia gravis
• Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH)
• POEMS syndrome
• Retroperitoneal fibrosis
• Scleroderma
• Thyroid eye disease

If you get diagnosed with autoimmune diseases you’ve never heard of, or met someone living with it, it can be quite difficult to explain to others, including friends and family.

There are several types of autoimmune disorders: most of which are not fatal. However, there are some autoimmune disorders that can be life threatening.

Here’s a list of the Fatal Autoimmune Diseases

• Autoimmune Vasculitis
• Mixed Connective Tissue Disease
• Anti-NMDA Receptor Encephalitis
• Giant Cell Myocarditis

As earlier stated, there are scholarships for persons living with autoimmune diseases who wish to pursue higher education. Now, let us observe the top scholarships for people living with autoimmune disorder.

A notable organization which offers scholarships is the Anthony’s Legacy of Love (ALL) Foundation. Established in 2018, this non-profit organization is designed to support persons living with autoimmune disorders. From 2018 until now, this organization has provided over $18,000 scholarship funds for college students living with this disease. These scholarships are offered every year.

Another organization that offers scholarships to persons with this disorder is Bella Soul. This charity organization was established to empower students living with autoimmune diseases, physical disabilities, disorders, etc.

Here’s a list of the Top 10 Scholarships for Autoimmune Diseases

• Outstanding Community Leadership Scholarship

This scholarship is provided by the Anthony’s Legacy of Love (ALL) Foundation. To receive this scholarship, you must be enrolled in an accredited university to pursue a bachelor’s degree. Also, you must have outstanding academic record, and maintain a CGPA of 3.0 and higher. The amount to be awarded is $2000.

• Autoimmune Warriors “You Got This” Scholarship Award

This scholarship is provided by the Anthony’s Legacy of Love (ALL) Foundation. To be eligible for this scholarship, there are certain criteria you must meet. You must be enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate program at an accredited college or university in the United States.

• Anderson & Stowell Scholarship

This scholarship is provided by Bella Soul. To receive this scholarship, you must be enrolled in a full-time or part-time program at an accredited university. Additionally, applicants would be required to write a two-page, double-spaced story about the challenges of living with autoimmune disease. The value to be awarded is $400.

• Microsoft Disability Scholarship

Microsoft is a giant tech company. It is known to offer variety of scholarships. It is not a surprise to see it on this list. Microsoft designed this scholarship to empower people with disabilities caused by autoimmune diseases. The scholarship is valued at $5000, and is awarded annually. Students who maintain good academic record can receive the scholarship for up to three (3) years.

• This Is Me Foundation Scholarship

This particular scholarship is designed for students who are suffering from, or just recovered from Alopecia. As part of the process to receive this scholarship, applicants must submit the following:

• A personal statement describing your experience with having alopecia
• A resume of your life/school and work experience
• A letter of recommendation from school, work, or community sponsor
• Letter of acceptance into a higher institution

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• EveryLife Foundation RAREis Scholarship Fund

This foundation was majorly designed to support persons living with, not only autoimmune diseases, but other rare diseases like Type 1 diabetes. Earlier In this article we mentioned rare autoimmune diseases. If you have any of the rare diseases mentioned, then this scholarship is for you. The scholarship is valued at $5000, and is awarded to only 35 persons. So, hurry up and apply. But, you must not be younger than 17 years.

• The Hannah Bernard Memorial Scholarship

This scholarship is offered to those students suffering from autoimmune disorders with complex pain conditions. This scholarship is valued at $600. To receive this scholarship, all you need to do is fill an application, and write a 500 word essay describing how you’ve lived through the chronic pain that comes with the disease.

• The Elaine Chapin Fund

This scholarship is restricted to residents of Saint Louis and the Missouri region in the United States. It was established to provide funds to aid students with sclerosis. to receive this scholarship,  you must be enrolled in a higher education institution in the US.

• The Buckfire Law Scholarship

This particular scholarship is designed for persons living with all kind of autoimmune health conditions. This scholarship is valued at $1000. To receive this scholarship, you must meet certain eligibility requirements. Let us see a few here:

• Be a permanent resident in of the US.
• Have been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease
• Have been enrolled in an accredited university or college

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• NBC Universal Tony Coelho Media Scholarship

This scholarship is named after Tony Coelho, a one-time representative in the United States. This scholarship is limited to only 8 students. Eligible students will receive over $5,500 to cover their cost of education. However, you must meet certain eligibility requirements. Let us see a few here:

• Be a permanent resident in of the US.
• Have been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease
• Have been enrolled in an accredited university or college

We’ve come to the end of autoimmune scholarships. Being diagnosed with any autoimmune health condition is not the end of your life. You can pursue your academic goals via these listed scholarships. Ensure you apply on time. You can also apply to more than one of these scholarships to stand a greater chance of receiving.

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