Health Professional Scholarship Program (HPSP) Nursing Scholarship

The Health Professional Scholarship Program (HPSP) provides financial assistance to students receiving education or training in a direct or indirect health-care services discipline (Title 38 and Hybrid Title 38 occupations); and assists in providing an adequate supply of such personnel for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). HPSP helps the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) meet its need for qualified health care professionals for which recruitment or retention is difficult.

Eligibility:

• Applicants must be currently enrolled or been accepted for full-time enrollment in an accredited academic program that will qualify for employment in one of the professional fields associated with the scholarship program. The academic program must be at the educational level required, and the academic program must be located in the United States.
• Applicants must be citizens of the United States. US Citizenship is defined as by birth or naturalization only. Those on Green Cards or Resident Alien status are not eligible for VA scholarship programs
• Applicants must not be delinquent on payment of federal debt. This includes delinquent taxes, audit dis-allowances, guaranteed or direct student loans, Federal Housing Administration (FHA) or VA mortgages, and other miscellaneous administrative debts. Delinquent is defined as 31 days past due on a scheduled payment.

Scholarship Details:

• Full-time students:
  • Tuition and Fees – The HPSP award pays a participant’s school tuition and approved fees through direct payment to the school. HPSP assistance includes topping off any existing grants and scholarship to ensure 100% of tuition and required/mandatory fees are paid.
    Required/Mandatory Fees are defined as those fees assessed by the college or university to all students in the academic program for which the scholarship was awarded. General Guideline: If the fee is optional, the fee is not required by all participants in the plan of study, or if the student at any time can opt out of the fee, they do not qualify for reimbursement.
  • Stipend –  HPSP will pay a monthly stipend directly to the participants. The payment is made for each month a participant is enrolled in coursework, beginning with the first month of the school year. The current stipend amount is $1,302 per month.
  • Book Stipend – HPSP will pay an additional stipend to help cover books, paper, pens, pencils, computers, etc. This stipend is usually paid out annually during the July/August timeframe while under scholarship.

Service Obligation:

• VA HPSP exists to fill the hardest to recruit and retain critical locations across the US in support of our US Veterans. It is critical that you are flexible at the time of graduation/residency completion to fill one of these locations anywhere in the US. If you are not mobile at the time of graduation, VA HPSP may not be a good fit to meet your educational needs. The service to our nations veterans is of paramount importance for the VA HPSP Team to ensure care at the bed side of our veteran population. Your flexibility is key to the success of VA HPSP.

  Upon completing their educational program and obtaining licensure/certification, participants work as permanent, full-time VA employees in the occupations for which the scholarship was awarded. Service obligations are year-for-year with a minimum requirement (2-Years) and will be automatically extended for individuals attending residencies and fellowships by half the period of the training. Therefore, a 1-year residency or fellowship will add 6 months to the minimum service obligation.

Application Process:

• The Spring 2025 application cycle closed on September 30, although the HPSP Scholarship Portal is open year-round. Applications will be evaluated, and selections made throughout the scholarship cycle. Future deadline will be posted as they become known.