Scholarships | Nurturing the future of cybersecurity

Addressing the Cybersecurity Talent Shortage

A strong talent pool is a business imperative, creating a competitive advantage by reducing hiring time and costs, improving hire quality, and increasing agility. The financial sector needs a wide variety of different backgrounds, experiences, and skillsets to stay ahead of nimble and innovative cyber criminals as the financial system evolves.

Launched in 2016, the FS-ISAC Scholarship Program is 100 percent funded through the generosity of our members. Sponsor firms provide the funds for the financial awards, actively participate in the mentor-mentee program, and provide a path for potential intern and employment opportunities to students pursuing cybersecurity careers in financial services. To-date, the program has awarded 212 scholarships equating to $2,120,000 to support students studying cyber or related fields. Member firms interested in sponsoring a student(s) may send an email to scholarship@fsisac.com and our team will reach out to you to discuss.

Future Leaders in Cyber Scholarship Program for the 2026-27 Academic Year

Scholarship winners for the 2026-27 academic year were announced on 6 May, 2026. The scholarship is merit-based; awards are based on applicant academic performance and future focus (financial need is not applicable).

Benefits to Students

Award – $10,000 scholarship for 2026-27 academic year.
Work with a Mentor – participate in a mentor-mentee relationship, a program providing invaluable learning and networking.
Networking – attend a FS-ISAC Summit in your region (registration, travel, and accommodations included).
More Learning - complimentary access to LEARN

Benefits to Sponsors

Access – meet high achieving students in post-secondary cyber or related fields of study.
Mentorship – participate in the mentor-mentee program – a win-win program component.
Development – provide staff opportunity to be mentors and grow professionally.
First Class Learning – mentors receive a complimentary pass to a regional Summit to meet with their student, attend sessions, and network.

Christina Fontaine

Maram Selsabila Mahmoudi

Angel Gupta

Azka Siddiqui

Corinne Kinlaw

Krish Oli

Priyadharshini Rengaramanujam

Numa Rahman

Madelynn Guy

Sydney Rivers

Yoltzin Resendiz

Arya Baviskar

Angelika Szymanowska

Amy Dederich

Praise Anwinam

Timothy Simpson

Abraham Ochelle

Nadia Gadson

Mia Willis

Zeinab Eleie

Tyfanna Moulton

Alivia Montes

Allie Champion

Ahmed Chaudhry

Emmanuel Akpan

Joshua Krzemien

Kateryna Zinkevych

Simran Sall

Melissa Santa Ana

Elise Corwin

Elise Esparza

Tanya Reddy Sattineni

In Our Winners'
Words

Katie Earles, 2022-2023 Winner

What led you to this career path?

Books like George Orwell’s 1984, Dave Eggers’ The Circle, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, and M.T. Anderson’s Feed launched me into studying cybersecurity and data privacy.

Monika Kumari, 2020-2021 Winner

How was your scholarship program experience?

As an FS-ISAC scholar, I had an unrivalled opportunity to learn from an outstanding network of cybersecurity professionals in real time. My conversations with my mentor helped me gain a new perspective and redefine my future career goals, as well as a path and plan of action. Overall, it was a fantastic experience.

Jade Meyer, 2022-2023 Winner

Why do you want to work in cyber?

From tactical and operational threat intelligence to security awareness, there are seemingly endless opportunities to get involved in defending companies (and their customers) from cyberattacks. The wide variety of fields within cyber, combined with the potential to make genuine, tangible positive impact, excites me most about cybersecurity and encouraged me to pursue this field.

Betta Lyon Delsordo, 2022-2023 Winner

What led you to this career path?

My first exposure to cybersecurity was through making websites for entrepreneurial women in Montana. Though I started out as just a web developer, I soon had to learn to protect their websites from online threats. Armed with the mission to learn it all, I taught myself how to hack, took every course my university offered in cybersecurity, and secured an internship with a pentesting firm. I know quite a bit more about cyber than I did then, but I still have a hunger to learn even better ways to keep people safe online.