Scholarships for Nursing Students in New Mexico

In some fields, there is an abundance of positions at the entry level, but positions dwindle as one moves up in the ranks. Nursing is not like this. In New Mexico, as in many other states, demand is increasing more rapidly at higher levels of practice. In the years between 2008 and 2018, in fact, positions for RNs are expected to increase by 24% while those for nursing aides and orderlies increase by only 22%. Some positions that require master’s level training have been especially hard to fill.

What does this mean to you as a nursing student? You can still find plenty of sources of financial aid to help you enter the healthcare field at the LPN and ADN level; these can include governmental grants and tax credits as well as merit-based scholarships. You will find additional scholarship opportunities, though, to take your skills higher There are options worth exploring, whether you are a nurse aide pursuing licensing as a nurse or a BSN who has his or her sights set even higher.

Nursing Scholarship Summary for New Mexico

Students enrolled in nursing programs at the LPN to BSN level may apply for a Nightingale Scholarship through the New Mexico Center for Nursing Excellence. You need to be a resident of New Mexico, but do not necessarily need to be enrolled in a New Mexico school; an out of state or online program could be acceptable if accredited by NLNAC or CCNE. You do have to plan to serve as a nurse within New Mexico borders. The application must include a personal statement, references, and a transcript that indicates at least a 3.0 grade point.

The Nightingale Committee has a separate competition for students who have worked for at least a year in hospice or home health care (as an aide or a nurse, for example). You should be currently enrolled in nursing programs anywhere from the LPN to the doctorate level — in other words, anything higher than the level where you’re currently practicing.

In New Mexico, you will also see several scholarship programs that come with work obligations. One is the Nursing Student Loan for Services. The program provides up to $12,000 a year of need-based financial aid; debt can be forgiven for working in a designated high needs area after graduation. The application closing date is July 1.

Other service obligation scholarships are available to those in master’s or doctoral programs. The New Mexico Health Services Corps program is open to prospective family nurse practitioners; there is a September application deadline. The Nurse Educator Loan for Service program is for graduate nursing students who are ready to make a three year commitment to teaching nursing at one of New Mexico’s public colleges. This programs differs from some of the others in that it is not necessary to demonstrate financial need. The scholarship is worth $5,000 a year, and the deadline is July 1.

Professional Advice About Applying to Nursing Scholarship Opportunities in NM

Your scholarship search begins long before you fill out those applications. Some of New Mexico’s competitions are designed to help successful healthcare workers reach the next level. If you are less experienced, there are still opportunities to demonstrate your commitment. These can include volunteering and job shadowing — you might want to talk to your professors about what opportunities are available. Some scholarship competitions post essays or profiles of winning candidates. It can be interesting to look at these. If you study them early, perhaps even before you begin your clinical studies, you can get some inspiration. Awardees often have noteworthy experiences, but these vary greatly. It may be too late to travel to another country, but it’s not too late to become active in the community. You may also realize that you have very interesting experiences indeed; you may have just never given them much conscious thought or connected them to your current goals.

Contact Information for Nursing Scholarships in New Mexico

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