SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

The following eligibility requirements must be met for an applicant to qualify for consideration for the scholarship award.

• Must be a member of the Women in Agile (WiA) organization in good standing; join here
• Must identify as a female or non-binary.
• Must not be a scholarship recipient in 2025.
• Must demonstrate a case of funding necessity, examples include instances where employer declines to pay for training, self-employed, in career transition, furlough, or self-funding contract consultant. Demonstrating the necessity includes but not limited to an excerpt of company policy, a decline message from your employer, etc.
• Must demonstrate a clear case on how the requested event will enhance career growth and engagement in the agile community.
• Intended for professionals active or in transition, as opposed to full-time students.
• Must have an interest in furthering knowledge and/or a career in the agile community.
• Must agree to be part of communication materials including a follow-up award impact report.
• Must select a training or conference provider that is verified and conducts such offerings on a regular basis.
• Must complete the full application in its entirety. Incomplete applications will be considered ineligible.
• Must submit the application during the designated 2026 open award period.
• Payment must be processed in 2026.
• Event must occur in a future date in 2026 (please refer to the Application and Selection Timeline).

Any exceptions to the Eligibility Requirements would be reviewed on a case by case basis, with final decision at the discretion of the selection committee. Applications that demonstrate original thought and limit reliance on AI-generated content will be given higher consideration during the evaluation process.

• WiA values development opportunities that are non-duplicative, and emphasize collaboration.
• The maximum allowable award will be USD 3,000 for attending a class/training and up to USD 1,500 per conference event. The amount disbursed will be based on actual event cost.
• For donated seats, WiA will register scholarship winners to the class (no funding disbursement).
• Scholarship CAN be used for:
  • Training fee for classes that are provided by established training providers;
  • Registration costs associated with established conferences in the Agile or related technology industry.
• Scholarship funding CANNOT be used for:
  • Travel and other expenses.
• Individuals selected for an award will be required to submit a final report and testimonial on the program outcomes. Women in Agile reserves the right to request interim information. It is the responsibility of scholarship recipients to adhere to and meet all timelines, deadlines and requests. No reminders will be sent.  Scholarship recipients are further subject to the written policies in the Scholarship Agreement, including, without limitation, recoupment or “clawback” of payments made under this award for non-compliance.

WiA and our members must work together to effectively measure and consistently communicate our shared value to the community.

Award recipients agree to having their story shared with WiA’s donors, sponsors, members. The recipient’s story, impact, and outcomes will be shared in an impact report, as well as being potentially highlighted in promotion efforts.  Award recipients have the option to keep their name and identity private in Women in Agile communications.

Applicants selected for an award will be required to report the following outputs:

1. Total number of training/conference hours attended
2. Certification/Credits Received/Photo of Registration – Attendance
3. Testimonial with 3 tools/resources learned at the training/ conference
4. A short description on how these have made an impact in career development.

Non-compliance to the reporting requirement may impact future opportunities in WiA programs.

Applications are only accepted within the open period in 2026, until allocated scholarship funds have been expended. There will be no appeals for the entire scholarship process.

The scholarship program is a competitive and transparent scholarship allocation process, wherein submissions are not judged solely on their merit, but against all applications. Awards are the result of a thorough review process that seeks to maximize community impact within available allocated funds.

Process Steps

1. Apply:  The applicant submits online through the designated application form.
2. Review:  WiA scholarship selection committee reviews the applications by the deadline. The scholarship selection committee consists of vetted Women in Agile members, without conflict of interest, and committed to a non-discriminatory selection process that meets the stated requirements and criteria.
3. Short List:  The scholarship selection committee will reject applications that do not meet all the stated “Eligibility Requirements”.
4. Rank: The selection committee evaluates the remaining eligible applications using the “Selection Criteria”, to rank the applications and prioritize those that will receive the award within allocated funds.
5. Finalize decision: The selection committee makes final selections, and initiates acceptance and rejection communications to the applicants.
6. Register for the Event: applicants that receive acceptance have a 60-day period to register for the designated training or conference.
7. Event Payment:  Event payment must be arranged with WiA in 2026 within 60 days of the award decision communication.
8. Attend: The applicant must attend the event, or notify WiA and arrange for refunds.  If the applicant is not able to attend for circumstances including event cancellation or personal challenge, the applicant will be responsible to repay WiA the full awarded and disbursed funds. Once funds are refunded to Women in Agile, the applicant may reschedule with another provider, provided they meet the committee approval.
9. Report: The awarded applicant must complete the Award output report within 30 days of completing the event. 

Eligible applications will be further evaluated using scoring criteria to prioritize the ones that will be awarded.

2024 2nd Cycle Eligibility and Process

2024 1st Cycle Eligibility and Process

2023 2nd Cycle Eligibility and Process

2023 1st Cycle Eligibility and Process

2022 2nd Cycle Eligibility and Process

2022 Spring Eligibility and Process

2021 Summer Eligibility and Process

Winner countries: Australia, Germany, India, Nigeria, Panama, Peru, South Africa, Spain, UK, USA

2021 Spring Eligibility and Process

2020 Summer Eligibility and Process