Nursing Education Loan Repayment Program

The Nursing Education Loan Repayment Program is a selective program of the U.S. Government that helps alleviate the critical shortage of registered nurses currently experienced by certain types of non-profit health care facilities by helping nurses working at them to repay their student loans.

In exchange for two years of service, participants receive 60 percent of their total qualifying nursing education loan balance. For an optional third year of service, participants may receive 25 percent of their original total qualifying nursing education loan balance.

Participants also receive the salary and benefits they have negotiated with their employing facility.

Eligible Applicants

To be eligible to apply, you must be a registered nurse who has completed your training (diploma, associate, baccalaureate or graduate), is licensed and employed full time (at least 32 hours per week) at an eligible non-profit facility.

You must be a U.S. citizen (born or naturalized) or National and Lawful Permanent Resident and your education must be from an accredited school of nursing located in a U.S. State.

Eligible Facilities

Only non-profit facilities of the following types are eligible:

• Hospitals
• Federally Qualified Health Centers and Look-Alikes, Indian Health Service Health Centers, Native Hawaiian Health Centers, Rural Health Clinics
• Nursing Homes
• State or Local Public Health or Human Services Department
• Hospice Programs
• Home Health Agencies
• Skilled Nursing Facilities
• Ambulatory Surgical Centers

First preference for funding is given to qualified applicants whose total qualifying educational loans are 40 percent or greater than their base annual salary and who work at a Disproportionate Share Hospital or Critical Access Hospital; Federally Qualified Health Center or Look-Alike, Indian Health Service Health Center, Native Hawaiian Health Center, or Rural Health Clinic; Nursing Home; or State or Local Public Health or Human Services Department.

There is no list of eligible facilities. For more detailed descriptions of each of the types of eligible facilities, please see the Application and Program Guidance.

Before You Apply

Applications are accepted once each year, beginning in February or March and ending in March or April. Before you apply, please read the Application and Program Guidance (updated annually) carefully. The application includes a contract that obligates you to serve two years at the facility listed in your application if you are selected to participate in the program. If you are selected and you do not fulfill that obligation, you will face serious financial consequences.