2024 Summit Scholarship Program Details
The Summit Scholarship program offers a series of mountaineering & adventure stipends to help break down the barriers to entry to the big mountain realm for women and gender-diverse adventurers from all walks of life. Mountaineering and backcountry adventures can be a transformative experience for all who partake, yet they are costly; the people who are poised to benefit the most from this type of empowering adventure experience are also often the ones who are not in a position to afford it.
That's why we here at the AWE Summit Scholarship Foundation have created the Summit Scholarship: for all of us to dream big together. Let’s go climbing!
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All women, transgender and cisgender, are welcome to apply. New for 2024, we also have several scholarships available to women-aligned gender-diverse applicants, including non-binary and transgender folks.
Applicants can apply from anywhere in the world. Most of our scholarships do not have citizenship or residency requirements, but a few do. These requirements are listed in the details of each specific scholarship.
There is no upper age limit, and each Summit Scholarship has a different lower age limit. While most scholarships are open to applicants 18 and older, some are available to applicants as young as 14, including a dedicated mountaineering course on Mount Baker that is reserved ONLY for youth applicants!
To be considered for the Summit Scholarship, simply complete a few demographic questions and a couple of short essays during our application window.
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Applications are accepted from December 15, 2023 to January 31, 2024
Scholarship recipients are announced in March 2024
Scholarship expeditions & adventures take place throughout the remainder of 2024 and early 2025
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In 2024, we were able to create over $55,000 in expedition & adventure stipends. You’ll find a list of the available scholarships further down on this page. What and how many stipends are available depends on what sponsor commitments we are able to secure, and on the outcome of our direct fundraising campaigns. You can help increase the number of available scholarships by buying a Women of Mountaineering Calendar for $30 (free shipping in the US and internationally!) or making a donation of any size on our website here.
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We are excited to continue our partnership with key supporters who are making this program possible.
A big thank you to our returning core financial partners The Cairn Project, Nite Ize, McGill’s Mountains and LOWA Boots; we couldn’t do it without you!
Thanks to the generous support of Lucy Westlake - the youngest American woman to summit Mount Everest - whose grant contributions have been instrumental in creating Youth Scholarships
A huge thank you to All The Sky Foundation for supporting the 2024 Summit Scholarship program with a substantive grant
LOWA, LEKI and AWExpeditions all contribute invaluable product & service partnerships.
A hearty welcome to Deuter, EXPED and Kula Cloth as contributors!
Interested in supporting this program? Get in touch.
Got more questions? Our complete list of FAQs is here.
Keep scrolling to see details about the individual scholarships
To apply, click on the scholarship that interests you (below), review the scholarship details, and follow the application instructions.
2024 Summit Scholarships
Click on each trip to learn more
Aconcagua Normal or 360 Route
Dec 1-21, 2024 OR Dec 27, 2024 -Jan 16, 2025
open to women (trans, cis) ages 18 to 75+
1 scholarship available
Operated by AWExpeditions
and INKA Expediciones
Level One New England Backpacking Trip with The Venture Out Project
June 7-10, 2024
open exclusively to LGBTQ+ transwomen, transmen, and non-binary folk
ages 18 to 75+
1 scholarship available
Operated by The Venture Out Project
Mount Baker 3 Day YOUTH Climb
August 1-5, 2024
open to ages 14 to 21
5 scholarships available
Operated by AWExpeditions
and Climbing The Seven Summits
Cordillera Blanca: Ishinca & Tocllaraju
July 14-28, 2024
Open exclusively to women from Africa
ages 18 to 75+
1 scholarship available
Operated by AWExpeditions
and Peruvian Mountains
Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim Backpack
September 22-26, 2024
open to ages 14 to 75+
1 scholarship available
Operated by AWExpeditions
and Dreamland Safari Tours
Level Two New England Backpacking Trip with The Venture Out Project
August 10-15, 2024
open exclusively to LGBTQ+ transwomen, transmen, and non-binary folk
ages 18 to 75+
1 scholarship available
Operated by The Venture Out Project
Mount Baker 5-Day Glacier II Course
June 6-12, 2024
open to ages 16 to 75+
2 scholarships available
Operated by AWExpeditions
and Climbing The Seven Summits
Level Three New England Backpacking Trip with The Venture Out Project
September 14-21, 2024
open exclusively to LGBTQ+ transwomen, transmen, and non-binary folk
ages 18 to 75+
1 scholarship available
Operated by The Venture Out Project
