Partial scholarships are available to Vermont residents only.

Master Composter Scholarship applications accepted from August.1-August 31. Applications are reviewed the first week in September and applicants should receive notification before the course registration deadline.

Master Gardener Scholarship applications accepted from December 1-December 31. Applications are reviewed the first week of January and applicants should receive notification before the course registration deadline.

The application is currently CLOSED, please see open dates above.

Other Sources of Assistance

Bennington Residents

A $250 scholarship is available to Bennington County residents interested in learning more about the fundamentals of home gardening focused on plant and soil sciences. Contact Dottie Sundquist with questions. dotsun53@gmail.com

AmeriCorps

AmeriCorps engages more than 80,000 Americans in intensive service each year at 21,600 unique sites including nonprofits, schools, public agencies, and community and faith-based groups across the country. Contact the National Service Hotline at: 1-800-942-2677 or submit a question to AmeriCorps via webform. Students use their AmeriCorps education stipend funds to cover the course fee.

  • The student logs into their AmeriCorps account to fill out the form. They select UVM as the Institution, and select Non-Credit Course, and include the Start and End Date.
  • The student contacts master.gardener@uvm.edu to provide their contact information to register for the course, and to ask for UVM to go in and verify their enrollment.
  • Once the student's enrollment has been verified by UVM, the student receives a voucher from AmeriCorps indicating they will cover the course fee.
  • The student provides a copy of the "paper voucher" to master.gardener@uvm.edu to register for the Master Gardener Course

Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC)

VSAC offers Non-Degree Grants, based on financial status. To apply, you must first create a MyVSAC username and password, or call 1-800-642-3177 for an application or questions (be sure to select UVM Vermont Master Gardener Program as the Agency Name). Once the student receives verification they have been awarded a grant, the student must contact the master gardener state office to complete their registration - 802-656-9562.

The Vermont Division of Vocational Rehabilitation and the Vermont Department of Labor

Provides funds to any Vermonter dealing with a disability that affects employment. Visit the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation for more information.

Master Gardener Course Books

If you are unable to afford the purchase of a course book(s) you may borrow the book(s) from a library. If you don't live in any of the cities or towns listed below you may go to your local library branch and request the book via the CLOVER interlibrary loan system. The book will be transfered to your local library. Please keep in mind that the public library loan period may be shorter then the duration of the course, so you may need to renew the book several times. This period varies by library, so be sure to ask at your local branch about their loan period policies. Some libraries will offer an extended loan period, so be sure to ask your local library if this is possible.

One copy of the Penn State Master Gardener Manual, and one copy fo the Landscape Plants of Vermont will be avalible in 2022 at the following locations.

  1. Montpelier- Kellog-Hubbard Library
  2. Rutland-Rutland Free Library
  3. Brattleboro-Brooks Memorial Library
  4. St. Johnsbury-Athenaeum Library
  5. St. Albans-St. Albans Free Library
  6. Burlington-Flectcher Free Library
  7. Burlington-UVM-Howe Library

  • Jessica, 2012 recipient says:

    Receiving the scholarship and taking the EMG course allowed me to begin learning and building a passion for gardening at a younger age, and made it less daunting in a new place. The scholarship allowed me an opportunity for continued learning that I would have delayed otherwise, while also allowing me the opportunity to participate in the educational aspect of the EMG course, and this was a very key priority for me.

    The scholarship was a stepping stone to many things for me: lifelong learning, cultivating a knowledge of gardening in Vermont, fostering an appreciation for growing food, and most of all, the opportunities to share this with others in our state's communities.

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Scholarships