2024 CRN Rainbow Scholarship

The Chinese Rainbow Network (CRN), founded in 1996, is the largest overseas Chinese LGBTQ+ organization established by Chinese students studying in the United States. Our mission is to build a better Chinese LGBTQ+ community. With this vision in mind, a group of passionate overseas Chinese launched the "CRN Rainbow Scholarship" in 2016 to encourage Chinese LGBTQ+ students facing difficulties and support global Chinese students with ambition and academic abilities who have some understanding and thoughts on LGBTQ+ identity.

Since 2016, the CRN Rainbow Scholarship has been successfully held for seven consecutive years, receiving nearly 1200 applications and awarding scholarships to 40 individuals. The preliminary success of the CRN scholarship further strengthens our determination to carry on the spirit of mutual assistance within our community and continue moving forward.

Now, the application for the 2024 CRN Rainbow Scholarship is officially open, and we welcome LGBTQ+ students of Chinese descent from around the world to apply. The scholarship has 12 award slots, with each winner receiving $1,000. Whether you are studying in North America, mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, or anywhere else in the world, the "CRN Rainbow Scholarship" sincerely invites your application. Share with us your unique growth experiences and educational stories. We look forward to awarding this year's 12 scholarships to you, who are persistent and determined.

All funds for the CRN scholarship come from individual donations. As a non-political, non-religious, and non-profit organization, we explicitly reject donations from government agencies, foundations, and religious organizations for the CRN scholarship. To foster closer connections between donors and recipients, CRN does not directly administer scholarship disbursement. Instead, we match recipients with donors based on their backgrounds, and the scholarship working group assists in ensuring direct communication and awarding between donors and recipients. We aim to create a one-on-one mentorship-based support relationship based on Chinese LGBTQ+ identity, encouraging each other and progressing together on our growth journey. By doing so, we emphasize the essence of our project: a scholarship initiative launched by a group of passionate students rooted in the community. What we stress is not merely financial support but the value of mutual assistance and care among individuals in our community!

CRN Scholarship Charter (including information on this year's scholarship donors): https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/dkSGUANjYY9qzkJz6l--zg

Scholarship Recipients (12)

Twelve winners will receive $1,000 each.

Applicant Qualification 

1.    Applicants must self-identify as an LGBTQ+ individual of Chinese ethnic or national origin or descent.

2.    Applicants must enroll in a bachelor's (or higher) degree or a diploma program in September 2024.

3.    Cumulative GPA: 3.0+ (out of 4.0) or an average of 80+ (out of 100). Special circumstances may be considered. 

Application Process

Considering the potential difficulties that LGBTQ+ students may face in real life, we have divided the application process into preliminary and final stages to alleviate the difficulties and sensitivities of applicants preparing materials involving third parties (such as recommendation letters). In the preliminary stage, all applicants only need to submit an application form. We will score the application content and generate a list of finalists. In the final stage, we will contact the shortlisted applicants, inviting them to submit recommendation letters, transcripts, and school certifications involving third parties to verify and supplement the application content, thus completing the final scoring. This arrangement aims to reduce the trouble faced by applicants not selected for the final stage when preparing materials.

The application form includes basic information about the applicant and four questions:

1. Self-identification: Who are you? How do you identify yourself, and how do your various identities affect your life? What does the community/communities mean to you? What is the significance of Chinese, LGBTQ+, student, and other identities to you? What have you done to shape your identity? (within 1000 words)

2. Pride: Please describe three personal achievements or experiences that make you proud. We hope that in addition to discussing widely recognized achievements in society, you also showcase personal growth. (within 750 words)

3. Growth: What significant setbacks or challenges have you faced, and how did you overcome them? How have these experiences affected you, and what have you learned from them? (within 500 words)

4. Goals: What are your goals for the next year? Why are you applying for the CRN Rainbow Scholarship? How can the CRN Rainbow Scholarship help you? (within 300 words)

   We sincerely hope that you view this application process as an opportunity to reflect on your unique identity and gain something from it. We understand that thinking about these questions may be stressful or trigger trauma related to our identities. If you or someone you know needs any emotional support, feel free to contact the CRN Peer Support Hotline at any time. Appointment link: https://wj.qq.com/s2/7318748/e1a6/

   Confidentiality of your information is our top priority, and CRN will strictly protect all your application information! You can also request to withdraw your application at any time.

Criteria for Awarding the Scholarship

1. Demonstrate learning potential and accomplishments;

2. Have a positive attitude toward the LGBTQ+ identity;

3. Be persistent and work hard in a specific field;

4. Retain courage and determination to overcome difficulties and setbacks;

5. Have experience in serving the LGBTQ+ community or any other social service contributions.

6. We will also take into account the applicant's financial background and needs.

Application Deadline

Application closed on August 31st, 2024 at 11:59 PM (PST)

Application Method

Please use one of the following links to download the application form, copying the link to your browser. Note that screen size may affect the display of the link, which may appear divided into two lines. The link itself is not divided or separated.

Google Drive:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/141JzVT8_VP2LJoMNkWNW6ydIBlB3Ll7M?usp=sharing

The application form includes detailed explanations for each question.

After completing the application form, please submit it via email to scholarship@crn.ngo, with the subject line formatted as follows: Name - Country/Region of Study - Scholarship Application. We will reply with a confirmation email within seven working days after receiving your application. If you need to update your application before the deadline, please reply directly to our confirmation email.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask on the message board at the bottom of the website or email scholarship@crn.ngo.

We look forward to your application and wish you success!

Application Timeline 

Preliminary Selection Phase: 

The CRN review team will complete the preliminary scholarship review by the end of October, selecting 20 candidates for the final review committee. At the same time, we will start sending out explanatory letters to those who unfortunately did not make it through the selection process in January 2025. We will carefully read your application materials and collaborate with the CRN support hotline project to provide personalized advice, feedback, and resources that may interest applicants.