Where do I look for scholarship information?

shyviolet78, LPN, LVN · Sep 9, 2001

The first place to look would be your school's financial aid office. They should have a brochure available detailing the scholarships offered through the school and the requirements for each. Also, check out http://www.fastweb.com (I didn't find it to be very useful, but I know some people have had good results with it.). Here are some links you might try out as well:

http://www.free-4u.com/nursing.htm

http://www.collegefunds.net/scholarships/nursing-scholarships.htm

http://www.findarticles.com/m3231/12_28/53489893/p1/article.jhtml

Another source would be just typing "Nursing Scholarships" into any search engine and see what you come up with. Good luck!

Katnip, RN · Sep 13, 2001

I don't know if anyone's posted this or not, but try FastWeb. Can't remember their address off-hand, but they have a form you fill out and search for scholarships that are more specific to you. Also, check your state. It turns out that mine is paying full tuition if you have and maintain a certain gpa. For every semester they pay for, you have to work in the state. I'm not going anywhere, so it's an outstanding deal.

zannie · Sep 14, 2001

Also check with your school's financial aid office. I got 3 scholarships that I was practically handed by my financial aid counselor.

--zannie :)

kennedyj · Sep 14, 2001

The Army I think they will be hiring soon....LOL.

Rileycat · Sep 14, 2001

In addition to your financial aid dept, also try your dept of nursing. The nursing dept often has its own private scholarships available...and they will also have information about scholarships from the Dept of Public Health.

My advice to you is to apply for as many scholarships as possible. Often, you can be awarded more than one scholarship...which will help greatly in financing your education. Be prepared to fill out forms for federal financial aid (as well as state financial aid forms) and be prepared to write many essays. The essays are usually 300 words or less and should talk about things such as financial need, the reason you think you should be awarded the scholarship, etc.

You can also apply for student loans to cover left over expenses. Financial Aid is where you go for this info.

I would recommend starting the scholarship process now...don't wait until you are in the nursing program. There are many non-nursing scholarships available. I had my education paid for by a "returning student" scholarship. At my school, once you received a scholarship...you received that scholarship every semester until graduation...as long as you kept a "B" average. It may not be that way at all institutions, but it is worth looking into. Go to your financial aid dept and see what is available. Maybe you can get some aid for next semester.

Good Luck!

delirium · Sep 14, 2001

You've been given some great advice.

Also, check with your local hospitals. I am on a scholarship/loan program right now where a local hospital is paying for my tuition and books (I have to pay for my supplies), and on graduation I have agreed to work in their facility as an RN for 2.5 years. You might want to look into something similar. With the nursing shortage, many hospitals offer this option.

Make sure you keep those grades up to be as attractive a candidate as you can be.

Good luck!