How to Find Scholarships for Nursing School

Health care continues to be one of the career areas where professionals are still in demand. Nursing is recession-proof as the number of people who get sick doesn’t decrease when times are bad. And, as the overall population of the United States continues to age, health care is going to be even more in demand. So, now that you’ve decided that the field is for you, how do you find scholarships for nursing school?

First, you should know that nursing programs at community colleges and state sponsored four year schools are impacted. That means that even many qualified students are turned away. Many of them end up going to more expensive private programs.

Next, you should know that nursing school has more expenses associated with it than comparable degrees in business or English. You have to buy specific uniforms for your clinicals and carry malpractice insurance. You have to have extra immunizations. And, you have to have reliable transportation between the school and the hospital site.

Contact the school you want to go to and find out what kind of aid package they can put together for you. This will probably be a combination of scholarships, grants, work study and loans at public and non-profit private colleges. There are many for-profit nursing schools around which offer degrees but little aid. Your aid package will consist mostly of loans when you go with these schools.

Another avenue to pursue is a sponsored ladder. In these programs, a hospital will pay for your first year of school to become a practical or vocational nurse in exchange for your commitment to work for that organization for two or three years following graduation. You draw a full salary once you get started working. The hospital offers these programs because they want to ensure a steady stream of new recruits.

But the deal gets even sweeter because the organization guarantees that they will pay for your part time studies toward a Registered Nursing (RN) degree during your two or three year commitment. In this way, you have your tuition paid for and, after the first year, you earn while you learn.

If you are planning to get a four year Bachelor of Science of Nursing with a RN, you can qualify for a military scholarship. These scholarships pay for your tuition and books as well as providing a small stipend. When you graduate, you are commissioned into a branch of the military as an officer.

In the Air Force’s program, all students who meet the minimum qualifications get the award. There is no selection process. Students tend to have an eight year commitment to the military, three of which must be active duty.

If you are considering majoring in nursing, you should take advantage of a free online scholarship database that will let you search nationwide nursing scholarship opportunities.

Need money for college? Use FastWeb’s free scholarship search to find information on more than 600,000 scholarships!