The ESA Foundation today announced the establishment of a program which will grant $45,000 in scholarships to students pursuing careers in game development.

The program outlines 15 scholarships of $3,000 each for women and minority students who are enrolled full-time at accredited four-year academic institutions. The scholarships will be available for use towards fields supporting game development including compuster science, animation, graphic design, software engineering and others.

"Positions in our industry are high-paying jobs with a remarkable potential to inspire and entertain millions of Americans," said ESA president and CEO Michael Gallagher. "We offer this program to help create our industry's next generation who will boost the industry's creative capital with new and unique approaches," Gallagher added.

The deadline for applications for the ESA Foundation's 2008-09 scholarship is May 15, and interested students can apply online.