Top Grants And Innovation Funds For Women In STEM And Tech

As we begin the new year, it’s a good time to align our refreshed energy towards funding our goals. According to AIPRM’s statistics compilation, women are just a quarter (26%) of STEM employees in the United States of America, and as of 2024, there were only 12 female-led STEM companies on the Fortune 500 list.  

Additionally, it’s been found that women researchers receive less grant money on average than men, with women’s average grant award being $342,000, while men’s average grant award is $659,000.

In lieu of this, several organizations have sprung up to address this gap and further inclusion. To help women move forward in their STEM careers, here are some grants and innovation funds to explore:

These grants seek to overcome barriers to girls’ participation in STEM by funding innovative, community-based programs that create pathways for K-12 girls to develop STEM confidence, skills, and identity, and encourage them to pursue STEM higher education and careers.

It offers up to $75,000 to support nonprofits and educational institutions helping girls with the preparation needed to thrive in technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). 

They support programs that provide hands-on learning, mentorship from women in STEM, family involvement, and confidence-building experiences. Additionally, they are interested in helping girls from historically underrepresented communities.

Becoming a grantee means joining a community that offers pathways for collaboration, visibility, and growth, and joining a network that fosters shared learning, elevates voices shaping the future of STEM, and builds capacity for long-term impact.

They are looking for organizations with these requirements:

• U.S.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit (or fiscal sponsor) or K–12 institution, with projects implemented in the U.S.
• A demonstrated ability to design and deliver effective K–12 programs for girls
• Using participant feedback to continuously refine and improve programming
• The leadership and programs reflect and actively engage the communities served.
• Maintaining transparent systems to track, manage, and report grant funds responsibly.

They run an application each year, and the deadline is October 31. To learn more about the AAUW grant, from the selection criteria to the application process, visit their website. 

The program awards five postdoctoral scientists annually with grants for their contributions in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields and commitment to serving as role models for younger generations. It operates out of this belief: the world needs science, and science needs women because women in science have the power to change the world. 

It is the U.S. component of the L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science International Fellowships program. So far, it has awarded 110 postdoctoral women scientists over $5 million in grants. Each year, the program attracts talented applicants from diverse STEM fields, representing some of the nation’s leading academic institutions and laboratories, towards the shortlisting of five postdoctoral scientists to receive grants, mentoring, and networking. 

The current cohort represented a range of research areas, including physiology, sensory biology, microbiology, biomedical engineering, and developmental biology. 

To apply, candidates must have completed their PhD and have started in their postdoctoral research position by January 31, 2026, and must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident. The deadline for the next cohort is February 13, 2026. To learn more about this program, explore their website.

This award is dedicated to recognizing women impact entrepreneurs at the forefront of scientific and technological innovation. Open to women entrepreneurs from any country and sector, this award highlights disruptive solutions built around unique, protected, or hard-to-reproduce technological or scientific advances that require heavy R&D, a long commercialization cycle, high capital intensity, technology risk, and complexity.  

The award is in three tiers: $100,000 for the first-place awardee, $60,000 for the second-place awardee, and $30,000 for the third-place awardee.  It also includes a fellowship program with a combination of 1:1 training and collective workshops.

Lastly, the program aims to bridge connections between the grant awardees and our current community through mentorship from jury members during the fellowship, access to a lifelong community of 500+ active community members, and ongoing support for the development of the fellows’ impact businesses.

They’re in search of businesses with the following features:

• Deep-tech solution built on unique, hard-to-replicate scientific or engineering advances with strong industry and societal impact.
• Business intentionally designed to solve social or environmental problems, with impact embedded, measurable, and scalable.
• Clear competitive advantage addressing a large unmet market need with evidence of validation and potential market leadership.
• Profitable, well-structured business model with a clear growth plan, risk awareness, and systems to monitor execution.

Applications for the 2027 edition will be open from April 16 to June 16, 2026, and you can find more information about the grant process here.

Although it is not a traditional grant, JLABS provides laboratory space, equipment, and up to $50,000 in services for healthcare startups. It also gives the awardees access to their global incubator network, which includes expertise, community, industry connections, and entrepreneurial programs.

No matter what stage you’re at, they can provide access to all the elements you need with the goal of helping you develop your life science or health technology startup, positioning your company for potential success. 

The grant includes the following benefits:

• JLABS sites are strategically located in life science and healthcare hubs worldwide, so you can connect, collaborate, and scale.
• Access to leading experts, research institutions, collaborations, and partnerships—wherever you reside.

They accept applications on a rolling basis. You can submit your idea to help solve a healthcare challenge for a chance to receive these awards. To get more information, peruse their website here.

In Honor Of Julia K. Levine 

Komen awards grants to support cutting-edge breast cancer research that will provide the greatest benefit to patients. They are focused on conquering metastatic and aggressive breast cancers, advancing personalized breast care, and eliminating breast cancer disparities and inequities.

This grant provides funding to support innovative research focused on metastatic invasive lobular carcinoma (mILC) that will hopefully unlock new knowledge about metastatic lobular breast cancer, advance patient care, and improve patient outcomes.

They are looking for independent investigators working at non-profit institutions and organizations, and the award amount is $400,000, including combined direct and indirect costs, $200,000 per year for up to 2 years.

The application timeline runs from April 15 to June 16. To get more information, please explore their website.

The Generation Google Scholarship, for women in computer science, helps students pursuing computer science degrees excel in technology and become leaders in the field. 

Selected students will receive $2,500 USD for the 2025-2026 academic year. The scholarship is awarded based on the strength of each candidate’s demonstrated leadership, academic performance, and financial need.

This scholarship is also available individually in Europe and Ireland. Please see IIE’s website for complete information on the scholarship, including eligibility criteria.