Therapists Scholarships for Disabilities

Therapists Scholarships for Disabilities

Individuals considering a career as a therapist will most certainly find therapists scholarships for disabilities can help them to accomplish their goals. Therapists scholarships are now offered through AMBUCS, a national non-profit organization dedicated to providing independence and mobility to persons with disabilities. This goal is accomplished through community service and scholarships to therapists.

Currently, there are approximately 5,700 AMBUCS members in more than 130 chapters encompassing 30states. AMBUCS chapters offer opportunities that are fun and innovative for members to improve their own communities. Both local and national service programs are utilized. Through chapter activities, members are able to accomplish goals while also learning new skills that can improve their own professional lives. Members also have the opportunity to develop meaningful and valuable contacts while also developing critical leadership skills.

AMBUCS has awarded disabilities scholarships for therapists since 1955. These physical therapy scholarships are awarded to students enrolled in a bachelor’s degree program during their junior/senior year.

Scholarships for therapy students are also awarded by AMBUCS to students who are in a graduate program which will lead to a master’s degree or doctoral degree. More than $7.6 million in scholarship funds has been awarded to therapy students to date. In total, more than 14,000 therapy students pursuing degrees in occupational therapy, physical therapy, audiology and speech pathology have benefitted from these scholarships for disabilities.

Each year more than $183,000 is awarded in physical therapy scholarships from AMBUCS. Scholarship awards range in value from $500 to $1,500 per year. AMBUCS also awards a two-year scholarship worth $6,000. Award funds from these physical therapy scholarships are deposited into the student recipient’s account each semester through the financial aid office of the educational institution where the student is enrolled.

To qualify for disabilities scholarships for therapists, applicants must be accepted into an appropriate health program in speech language pathology, occupational therapy, physical therapy and hearing audiology. It should be noted that assistant programs do not qualify.

The disabled scholarships for therapists offered by AMBUCS were established as a way of ensuring that new generations of therapists will be able to continue enhancing the lives of people with disabilities without financial difficulties standing in the way.

The Scholarships for Therapists program sponsored by AMBUCS is now the single largest private source of educational grants specifically for therapists in America. These AMBUCS scholarship awards are based on U.S. citizenship, financial need, demonstrated academic accomplishment, commitment to one’s local community, career objectives and a character for integrity and compassion.

AMBUCS also sponsors the Big Hat Club, which is an honor group established in 1939 for the purpose of recruiting new members. Current members are granted incentives for bringing in new recruits. Members who are able to bring in the most new members to the organization during that twelve-month period are awarded a ten-gallon hat.

AMBUCS was originally established by William L. White in 1919. Mr. White dreamed of creating a national service organization for young professional men. While Mr. White had the initiative for creating such an organization, he lacked the necessary funding.

Following White’s graduation from Auburn University in the summer of 1919, he began to offer turpentine cups for sale. At the time the turpentine industry was located in the Valdosta, Georgia area. Turpentine cups were utilized for gathering crude resin from the long-leaf pines in the area. The resin could then be distilled; producing turpentine. White managed to quickly gather a $1,000 profit, which he invested in a revolving expansion fund.

Before long he was able to establish the American Business Clubs of Birmingham, Alabama in May of 1922. This first club attracted 50 members. The members adopted a constitution and later established a motto that is still used by AMBUCS today: Shoulders Together. The acronym of AMBUCS went into use by the organization in 1961.

Applications for AMBUCS disabilities scholarships for individuals considering a career as a therapist will find therapists scholarships for the disabled can help them to accomplish their goals.  Applications become available beginning in mid-January. Applications must be submitted by no later than April 15th.