Don’t let money get between you and your dream nursing school. Learn about nursing school scholarships to help you reach your goals.
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Nursing school can be expensive, but fortunately, there are scholarships to help you afford it. This guide outlines various nursing school scholarships. Learn about other financial aid opportunities that can help offset nursing school costs.
While the information is accurate at the time of writing, check the sponsor’s website for updated information and additional requirements.
General Nursing Scholarships
These nursing school scholarships apply to many types of learners and have fairly broad guidelines for who is eligible to receive them. Many students or aspiring students are likely to be eligible for one or more of these nursing financial aid opportunities.
Sponsor: American Association of Post-Acute Care Nursing
Amount: Varies
Deadline: October 1
Army ROTC Scholarships are available for attending any participating four-year school and cover tuition and fees, plus a stipend for housing and books. You must serve in the Army Nurse Corps of the U.S. Army, Army Reserve, or Army National Guard for eight years, depending on the scholarship you receive.
Sponsor: U.S. Army
Amount: Tuition, fees, stipend
Deadline: Quarterly deadlines, please check the site for the upcoming deadlines
Sponsor: Association of periOperative Registered Nurses
Amount: Varies, covers tuition and books
Deadline: May 31
The Baby360 Nursing Scholarship provides nursing financial aid for full-time nursing school students with demonstrated financial need.
Sponsor: Baby360
Amount: $2,500
Deadline: Varies
The Barbara Rhomberg Nursing Scholarship is for non-traditional students in an associate or bachelor’s nursing program. Non-traditional students are students who have at least a three-year gap between high school and college.
Sponsor: B4 Brands
Amount: $1,000
Deadline: April 30
The Carol E. Holt Nursing Scholarship offers nursing school scholarships to students accepted to or enrolled in nursing school who have financial need.
Sponsor: Foundation of the National Student Nurses Association
Amount: Up to $10,000
Deadline: January 26
The Lambda Pi Alpha Sorority Scholarship is available to undergraduate nursing students who live in Illinois and have completed at least one semester of nursing school.
Sponsor: Lambda Pi Alpha Sorority
Amount: $1,500
Deadline: April 30
The Madeline Pickett (Halbert) Cogswell Nursing Scholarship is open to students who are eligible for membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution, members, or descendants of members. Two nursing school scholarships are awarded each year.
Sponsor: Daughters of the American Revolution
Amount: $2,500
Deadline: January 31
The Nurse I Am Scholarship is sponsored by Cherokee Uniforms, part of Careismatic. Ten undergraduate or graduate nursing students are selected each year to receive the award, which also includes Careismatic merchandise and student membership in the Careismatic Brands Student Nurse Advisory Council and the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL).
Sponsor: Careismatic
Amount: $3,000
Deadline: April 15
The NurseDeck Go Award is for nursing students who are members of their school’s student nurse association organization, have completed their first year, and need nursing financial aid.
The Travel Nurse Across America scholarship is for nursing students who are members of their school’s student nurse association organization, have completed their first year, and are in need of nursing financial aid.
Sponsor: NurseDeck
Amount: $1,500
Deadline: October 1
The Tylenol Future Care Scholarship is open to college seniors who are U.S. residents and registered for graduate studies or who are enrolled in medical, pharmacy, or nursing school. You must have at least one year of study remaining.
Sponsor: Tylenol
Amount: $5,000 or $10,000
Deadline: August 1
The U.S. Air Force Health Professional Scholarship Program (HPSP) is available on a three- or four-year basis for graduate students who will be 38 or under by the time they are commissioned. Recipients must serve as a commissioned Air Force officer in the Nurse Corps for one year for each year you receive a scholarship (e.g., if you receive a three-year scholarship, you must serve at least three years.)
Sponsor: U.S. Air Force
Amount: Tuition, fees, books, other expenses, plus a stipend
Deadline: Ongoing, but early fall of the year you intend to enroll is recommended, or ASAP if you are already in school
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Graduate Nursing Scholarships
These nursing school scholarships provide support primarily for graduate studies, for master’s or doctoral programs, or both.
Sponsor: American Association of Nurse Practitioners
Amount: $2,500-$5,000
Deadline: March 15
The APIC Graduate Student Award provides awards to graduate students whose work contributes to infection prevention and evidence-based implementation science.
Sponsor: Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology
Amount: $5,000
Deadline: October
The Japanese American Citizens League offers several scholarships, including the Chiyoko and Thomas Shimazaki Scholarship, which is dedicated to graduate medical or nursing school students. Applicants can be of any racial or ethnic origin to be eligible for this nursing financial aid, but must be members of the national JACL.
Sponsor: Japanese American Citizens League
Amount: Varies
Deadline: March 1
CVS Health Foundation scholarships are available for advanced practice nursing students. Funds go directly to the school and can only be used for tuition.
National Health Services Corps scholarships provide at least two years of tuition, fees, and other expenses for students studying to become nurse practitioners or nurse midwives, in exchange for working after graduation at an approved site in a healthcare professional shortage area. Each year of tuition paid must be matched by one year of service.
Sponsor: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
The NurseThink – AACN Scholarship offers nursing financial aid to student members of the Graduate Nursing Student Academy. You must attend a master’s or doctoral program at an AACN member school and plan on a career in becoming a nursing teacher.
The Nursing Economic$ Foundation Scholarship provides nursing financial aid to current students in a graduate nursing program with a focus on management or leadership.
Sponsor: Nursing Economic$ Journal
Amount: Up to $5,000
Deadline: May
Nursing Student Scholarships Based on Racial or Ethnic Identity
As with many other professions, certain groups of individuals aren’t fully represented in the nursing field. To help remedy this issue, many organizations provide financial aid opportunities to students with various racial or ethnic identities.
The AAPINA Scholarship is for graduate or undergraduate study. Applicants must be active members of AAPINA and have at least two years of membership. Involvement with AAPINA is one of the criteria for the scholarship.
Sponsor: Asian American/Pacific Islander Nurses Association
Amount: $500
Deadline: July
The American Indian Nurse Scholarship Award is for students of American Indian, Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian heritage who are enrolled in a tribe or can document tribal ancestry. This nursing school scholarship is per semester and renewable.
Sponsor: The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America
Amount: $1,500
Deadline: June 1
To be eligible for the Diversitynursing.com Scholarship, you must be a full-time or part-time nursing student or a full-time nurse. You must create a Jobseeker.com account to apply.
Sponsor: Diversitynursing.com
Amount: $5,000
Deadline: May
The Indian Health Service offers the IHS Health Professions Scholarship for students who are enrolled in an eligible healthcare program, such as nursing, and are members of federally recognized tribes. In exchange for full scholarships, plus a stipend, recipients agree to work at an Indian Health Facility upon graduation. The facilities are available nationwide, not just on tribal lands.
Sponsor: Indian Health Service
Amount: Tuition, fees, and a stipend
Deadline: February 28
The National Association of Hispanic Nurses scholarships require membership in NAHN and enrollment in nursing school, undergraduate or graduate. Nursing school scholarships for undergraduate or graduate studies include the Abbott Scholarship Fund for future clinical trial leaders, the Suncrest scholarship, the Arizona College of Nursing scholarship, and the Aguilar-Cuellar-Toben (ACT) Research Grant for Ph.D. students.
Sponsor: National Association of Hispanic Nurses
Amount: Varies
Deadline: Varies
The National Black Nurses Association provides a range of scholarships to nursing students who are members of the association and (if available) a local chapter. Many nursing school scholarships are earmarked for a particular degree level, location,
Sponsor: National Black Nurses Association
Amount: $1,000-$15,000
Deadline: April 15
The National Medical Fellowships Primary Care Leadership Program is for medical students or graduate nursing students who plan to pursue a career in primary care. In addition to the $5,000 grant, the program includes leadership and service-learning training. Students who have lower income or are from an underrepresented ethnic or racial group can apply.
Sponsor: National Medical Fellowships
Amount: $5,000
Deadline: February
Current or recently graduated nurses are eligible to apply for the Nurses for Change scholarship. Applicants must be from an underrepresented group in nursing and enrolled in a degree or certification program.
Sponsor: GoodRX
Amount: $5,000
Deadline: July
Nursing Specialty Scholarships
Many organizations offer nursing financial aid for nurses who plan to practice in a particular field of nursing. These kinds of nursing school scholarships are often in honor of a practitioner or leader who made a significant contribution to the field or to a professional association.
The ANNA Career Mobility Scholarships are for American Nephrology Nurses Association members who work as nephrology nurses and are pursuing a BSN or graduate degree. There are five annual nursing school scholarships.
Sponsor: American Nephrology Nurses Association
Amount: $2,000
Deadline: October 15
The Association of Rehabilitation Nurses Scholarships offer nursing financial aid for students at the BSN and graduate levels, as well as assistance for practicing nurses to attend their annual conference.
Sponsor: Association of Rehabilitation Nurses
Amount: $1,500
Deadline: June 15
To apply to the Basic Midwifery Edith B. Wonnell CNM Scholarship, you must be a current member of the American College of Nurse-Midwives and have completed at least one semester (or equivalent) of a midwifery program. Please note that you must be a member to access the application.
Sponsor: American College of Nurse-Midwives
Amount: $3,000
Deadline: February
The Charlotte Liddell Scholarship Fund gives preference to a student focusing on psychiatric nursing and currently attending school in south Florida. You must have completed at least one semester to be eligible for this nursing school scholarship.
Sponsor: Florida Nurses Association
Amount: Varies
Deadline: June 1
The Charlotte McGuire Education Scholarship is awarded each year to both a graduate and an undergraduate student studying holistic nursing. You must be a member of the American Holistic Nurses’ Association for six months for the undergraduate nursing school scholarship and one year for the graduate award.
Sponsor: American Holistic Nurses’ Association
Amount: $1,250
Deadline: April 15
The CRN Exam Scholarship Award offers nursing financial aid to a nurse seeking to certify or recertify as a certified radiologic and imaging nurse. Winners receive free exam registration and a one-year membership to the Association for Radiologic & Imaging Nursing. You must be a member to apply.
Sponsor: Association for Radiologic & Imaging Nursing
Amount: Complimentary registration for exam and membership
The Stephanie Carroll Scholarship is for students earning a BSN or graduate degree. Applicants for this nursing school scholarship make a commitment to long-term care or post-acute care for at least two years after graduation.
Sponsor: National Association of Directors of Nursing Administration for Long-Term Care (NADONA)
Amount: $5,000, $2,500, or $1,000
Deadline: April 15
State or School Specific Nursing Scholarships
Many states and schools have special financial aid opportunities for students or residents, some of which are listed below.
The Alabama Board of Nursing Graduate Scholarship is open to RNs who have lived in Alabama for at least one year, have a current Alabama RN license, and have been accepted to an accredited graduate program within Alabama.
Sponsor: Alabama Board of Nursing
Amount: Varies
Deadline: August 31
To be eligible for the Albert E. and Florence W. Newton Nursing Scholarship or other Rhode Island Foundation nursing school scholarships, you must either be a Rhode Island resident or attend nursing school in Rhode Island.
Sponsor: Rhode Island Foundation
Amount: $500-$5000
Deadline: May
The Alice Newell Joslyn Medical Scholarship is for Latino students living in or attending school in San Diego County who are pursuing a career in healthcare. Applications are reviewed for financial need, scholastic determination, and community/cultural awareness.
Sponsor: The BECA Foundation
Amount: $500-$2,000
Deadline: February 28
The Birmingham Black Nurses Association funds six nursing school scholarships from the associate degree level through the DNP level. Some scholarships are earmarked for specific fields of study or interest, such as gerontology, breast cancer education, or nursing leadership.
Sponsor: Birmingham Black Nurses Association
Amount: $500, $1,000, $2,000, or $2,500
Deadline: June 15
The Bertha P. Singer Nurses Scholarship is for current nursing students who live in and attend nursing school in Oregon. You must be in at least your second year of nursing school. This nursing school scholarship is eligible for renewal. Please note that you must create an account on the Oregon Office of Student Access and Completion website to see details and apply.
Sponsor: Oregon Office of Student Access and Completion
Amount: Varies
Deadline: March 1
Applicants for the eQuality Scholarship must be residents of northern or central California. The purpose of this nursing school scholarship is to recognize and support students who serve the LGBTQ+ community.
Sponsor: eQuality Scholarship Collaborative
Amount: $6,000
Deadline: January 31
The Edwina Foye Award for Outstanding Graduate Student is for healthcare program graduate students from specific regions in Maine and New Hampshire who have demonstrated need for financial aid. Other considerations include workforce shortage areas on the New England seacoast and the likelihood of the applicant returning or remaining in the area as a healthcare professional.
Sponsor: Foundation for Seacoast Health
Amount: May 1
Deadline: Varies
The Katherine Pope Scholarship is one of many nursing school scholarships that the Georgia Nurses Association offers. This particular scholarship is for students without an RN who are attending a BSN program in Georgia.
Sponsor: Georgia Nurses Association
Amount: Varies
Deadline: May 31
The Mississippi Nurses Foundation School of Nursing Scholarship offers several forms of nursing financial aid. This specific nursing scholarship is awarded twice annually to students in their second year at a nursing school in Mississippi.
Sponsor: Mississippi Nurses Foundation
Amount: $500
Deadline: March 10 and September 30
The Nancy Gerald Memorial Scholarship is for students from the top 26 counties of the Texas Panhandle accepted in the nursing program at either Amarillo College or West Texas A&M University.
Sponsor: Amarillo Area Foundation
Amount: $500
Deadline: February
The Nightingale Awards of Pennsylvania Scholarships fund Pennsylvania residents seeking either entry-level, master’s, or doctoral programs at Pennsylvania schools. The scholarship funders hope but do not require that recipients practice in Pennsylvania.
Amount: Typical amounts are $2,000-$5,000 for ADN, $10,000-$15,000 for BSN
Deadline: March 31 for BSN, April 15 for ADN
Financial Aid & Nursing School
Scholarships and grants offer great opportunities to help pay for nursing school, but they are far from a student’s only options. The most common source of financial aid for college students is student loans. There are a number of loan sources available for nursing students.
Begin by submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®). Students fill out the FAFSA® to determine their eligibility for federal student loans, including the Federal Perkins Loan, Direct Subsidized Loan, Direct Unsubsidized Loan and the Direct LOAN Plus.
Another federal loan source for nursing students is the HRSA. The HRSA’s Nursing Student Loans program provides long-term low-interest loans to full-time and half-time students pursuing a course of study leading to a diploma, associate, baccalaureate or graduate degree. To be eligible for an HRSA loan, a student must demonstrate financial need and provide financial information about his or her parents.
Private student loans are another option, but they are less preferable when compared to federal loans due to less attractive interest rates and terms.
Advice From Financial Aid Director Sherrod Wilkerson
Wilkerson has worked in student aid for over ten years. He is passionate about helping individuals understand the student aid process. He’s been recognized as an Emerging Leader by the Eastern Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. Sherrod earned a graduate degree in Higher Education from Vanderbilt and is currently the Director of Student Financial Services at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing.
How would you advise a student just starting to consider financing their nursing school education?
The very first thing I would suggest is to complete the FAFSA®. If they are applying for our school, we also ask them to complete the student aid application. If they are not certain where they want to go to school, we would encourage them to contact the schools, go to their websites and find out what additional forms they need to complete to be eligible for financial aid. For example, some schools require students to fill out a separate application for school scholarships, whereas here at Johns Hopkins, the admissions application is also their scholarship application.
Beyond scholarships, are there other funding options for nursing school?
There are a lot of workforce development programs out there for nurses. One of the bigger ones is the Health Resources and Services Administration. They have a lot of repayment and scholarship programs and we always encourage our students to apply for those. We’ve been pretty fortunate over the past few years in having students receive those awards. On top of that, nearly every state has their own workforce development program for nurses.
How do your students handle student loans?
Any student here that applies for student aid is offered a loan as part of the self-help component. However, the amount they’re offered can vary. I would say about 60% to 70% of our students use federal student loans.
Can nursing students participate in work-study programs, and if so, how do they work?
They are available to our students as with any similar institution. We will post jobs. The student then goes to an interview and then through the hiring process. Once they’ve been hired, students will work up to twenty hours per week maximum. They will receive payment in the form of a check to use for personal or travel expenses, or any other expenses during the course of the year. It is possible to have those funds directly apply to tuition, but we encourage our students to take those payments directly.
What is the biggest mistake you see students make going through the nursing school funding process?
Starting the research process late or forgetting the research process altogether. Finding the best funding opportunities is a matter of research, research, research. A lot of times individuals may not know the best options for them because they don’t do enough research. I’ll give you an example. A student can go to a school in their state and receive a quality education and pay as an in-state resident. However, if the student qualifies for a larger scholarship at an out-of-state school, the total education cost could be cheaper. But someone wouldn’t know that unless they research the options that are out there.
Advice from Student Services Expert Patrick Tufford
Patrick Tufford is the assistant director of academic services at the University of Washington’s School of Nursing. His work connects him with a wide range of students, from those in high school students learning about nursing to Ph.D. students conducting original research. Tufford enjoys working with first-generation students navigating higher education for the first time.
When a student first comes to you about funding nursing school, what do you tell them?
I start by talking to the student about the financial aid process at the federal level. The very basic first step is to file your FAFSA®, which qualifies you for federal funding as well as funding at the university level. We have some funding awards in the form of scholarships, grants and work-study students, things like that, depending on your unmet need number.
The need number, which comes from the FAFSA® process, is the amount of need that the student is not expected to fund out of his or her own personal resources. Based on that need, we’ll award scholarships, grants, and we have a very tiny amount of loan money as well. There are also lots of scholarships that are not administered through us and that we may or may not know about. But we do maintain a financial aid blog where if we do know about a program out there that would be relevant to our students we’ll post it to the blog.
What types of in-house sources of funding should nursing students look for?
We encourage students, particularly grad students to look into research assistant and teaching assistant jobs because in addition to the stipend they get just for working, under certain conditions they can get a tuition waiver as well.
We all know that debt from loans has become a significant problem for many students. How do nursing students handle the problem?
Nursing has some benefits when it comes to debt. Most of our students work as nurses in some capacity or another, or have in the recent past. And depending on where they’re working, they may qualify for tuition waivers. For example, we have a medical center system here that is affiliated with the university. The people who work there are state employees and can qualify for some forms of tuition waivers.
There are also loan repayment programs. If you want to become a nursing faculty member, for example, there’s a faculty loan repayment program where under certain conditions they will repay a large percentage of a student’s loans. Likewise, if you are working in some rural or other populations, there are some loan repayment programs for that. In those programs, you usually have to commit to two years, but you get a large percentage of your loan repaid. So, if you are looking to get your loan paid off quickly, that can be a good way to do it.
Do you have any particular advice for students just starting to consider how to pay for their nursing school education?
I’ve made the rounds with many of the other administrators here who handle financial assistance, and I think universally their advice has to do with taking on too much debt. That’s the biggest pitfall for students. You know, you get into school and get some aid in the form of scholarships, or not, and you take out loans for the rest of the costs. And by the time you finish school, you could be $60,000 in debt.
So, make sure you aren’t taking on too much debt, especially in the form of unsubsidized loans. That’s our biggest worry for students, and we make sure that we advise them frequently to take advantage of counseling from our financial aid office.
National Association of Neonatal Nurses (NANN): Neonatal nurses looking for assistance in advancing their educational and professional needs are welcome to join this professional organization.
National Black Nurses Association (NBNA): This organization is comprised of Black nurses whose mission it is to ensure all patients have equal access to high-quality healthcare.
National Student Nurses’ Association (NSNA): The NSNA is a professional organization that provides mentoring opportunities for nursing students and promotes continuing advancements of standards and ethics in nursing education.
Oncology Nursing Foundation: Aims to help those dealing with cancer by supporting oncology nursing, including helping future oncology nursing students pay for school.
Sigma: A professional organization that represents the interests of nurses from all over the world.
How would you advise a student just starting to consider financing their nursing school education?
