Scholarships for Nursing Students in Maryland

There are many scholarships available to aid Maryland’s future nursing workforce. Nursing scholarships come in two basic types. Some have a service obligation that you have to fulfill after graduation. These scholarships can be lucrative, but you have to be ready to make a fairly large commitment. If you move out of the area or can’t fulfill the terms, then you have to repay the money.

Other scholarships come with little obligation. You can use them for educational expenses as long as you remain a student in good standing. The scholarship committee usually selects you for an award because they believe you have something valuable to contribute to the nursing profession. They don’t, however, specify when or where.

Nursing Scholarship Requirements in Maryland

Southern Maryland Nurse Scholarships are loan scholarships; they are available to high caliber nursing students who are studying at the ADN and BSN levels. Your initial application must include two faculty references. Later you may be asked to interview. The monetary value for this award is high. You may receive $5,000 funding for one semester or $10,000 for two semesters. By accepting an award, though, you’re committing to one year of employment for each semester of funding.

Nursing students in Charles County are eligible for smaller awards of $500 to $1,000. The Charles County Commissioners Nursing/ Allied Health scholarship comes with a service obligation of two years. Preference is given to students who are in the clinical phase of an online program. Need and merit are both given consideration. There are April 15 and October 15 application closing dates.

In the past, many nursing students have been funded by Maryland’s own loan scholarship program for nurses. Due to budget issues, the program was unable to accept new students for the 2010 to 2011 year, but expects to begin again soon as new students graduate.

Thankfully, your own nursing school may be a source of additional scholarships. John Hopkins University offers a number of scholarships. The SON (School of Nursing) offers a need-based grant.

Some scholarships may be administered through individual schools, but are in fact open to students attending a number of institutions. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation New Careers in Nursing scholarship is a $10,000 award for students in accelerated BSN and master’s programs. CareFirst is a $40,000, two year award for future nursing educators who are enrolled in master’s level programs. The award comes with a three year service agreement that can be fulfilled by teaching either in Maryland, DC, or Northern Virginia.

Nursing Scholarship Professional Advice

When you approach some scholarship committees, you are doing so as a potential employee. Other competitions favor students with strong academic or essay-writing skills. It can be helpful to go online and read the work of scholarship winners. This does more than just allow you to see essay technique; you also may get some ideas about what experiences in your own life have made you a potentially excellent nurse. The process of winning a scholarship often begins with work and volunteer activities completed years before the application; if you don’t have some models, though, it can be too easy to grapple with what’s important and what isn’t — right on up to the application deadline.

You can read very high caliber essays on the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation site; they have an essay competition where award recipients share what the award has meant to them, and what they believe about nursing. Other good sources are Exceptional Nurses and CampusRN. A representative of Exceptional Nurses shares that it is best to weave personal stories into the overall essay — and also to keep in mind the overall purpose of the award.

Contact Information for Nursing Scholarships in Maryland

Back to Top