Financial Aid and Scholarships
Nervous about the high cost of your education? Already drowning in debt? Don’t worry, there are many opportunities to pay it off. Just like anything, however, you’ve gotta know where to look. While we make no claims that this is the most extensive list, it is no doubt a great place to start.
Below is an evolving list of opportunities that promise to provide some much needed fiscal relief. Included in the listing is as much information, including links and deadlines, to help you begin. The rest is up to you; because if there’s one thing that’s sure regarding financial aid: you can’t get it if you don’t apply. So chop-chop, the deadline’s approaching!
Add more. Help your fellow PA students find more opportunities: if you know of some other scholarships, grants or loan repayment sources available to PA students, send us an e-mail at capa@capanet.org, and we’ll add it to our site.
Scholarships and Grants
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA): Unless you’ve won the lottery, it’s the one source of funding that is essential to all looking for an educational buck. If you don’t apply here, you can’t qualify for some valuable federal grants (ie, free money) or for federally-sponsored subsidized, unsubsidized, or private student loans. Deadlines are June 30 of each year. For instance the drop-deadline date for 2010 is June 30, 2010; however the earlier you apply the better chance you’ll get more cash. Go to www.fafsa.ed.gov to apply online and your financial aid office will handle the rest.
California Academy of Physician Assistants (CAPA): That sounds familiar. We have three scholarships for $1,000 bucks each. There’s one for every background and the odds of winning one are remarkably good. You just have to be a CAPA member to apply. The application is free and easy. So check out the CAPA Scholarships page to learn more.
American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA): That other PA association has a lot more money to throw around than us, so we suggest you take advantage of them and bring back some of that membership cash to California programs. Not only are there a number of AAPA scholarships, there are some grants and competitions for affiliated organizations. Applications and deadlines vary. Go to www.aapa.org.
The Department of Health and Human Services National Health Services Corps (NHSC) Scholarships: Such a great opportunity that we had a feature article written about it (read it now). Hundreds of scholarships are given throughout the country. Go to http://nhsc.bhpr.hrsa.gov for more details.
The Department of Health and Human Services Indian Health Services (IHS) Loan Repayment Program for Health Professions Educational Scholarships:Around $13 million is available for over 250 awards to provide $20,000 per year for 2-year contracts to serve in American Indian populations. Go to http://www.ihs.gov/index.asp for more information.
The Kaiser Permanente Allied Healthcare Education Scholarship Program
There’s a great chance you’ll be working for this tremendous organization anyways, so you might as well get to know them by asking for up to $2500 a year to get you there. Only California students who are committed to practicing medically underserved areas of California can apply. Priority is given to those in allied health fields, so PAs are second in line so to speak, but it’s worth applying. Application deadlines are March 24 and September 11. Go for it at www.healthprofessions.ca.gov
Health Professions Educational Fund Scholarship: This provides $10,000 a year to California eligible PA students who have a penchant for working the underserved or rural communities of California. Deadline is March 24, 2010. Apply at www.healthprofessions.ca.gov
The Association of Family Practice PAs (AFPPA) Scholarship: Offers $1000 for 1st years and $1,500 for 2nd year PA students. Deadline is September 1st. Go to http://www.afppa.org/ for updates.
USA Funds/Sallie Mae Scholarship: Lot’s of money for lot’s of people. Go to http://www.usafunds.org/planning/access_to_education_scholarship/index.html to learn more and apply by February 15, 2010.
Loan Repayment Programs
The Department of Health and Human Services National Health Services Corps (NHSC) Loan Repayment program: Promises to pay up to $50,000 for a 2-year commitment in rural/underserved healthcare. That’s a lot of money. http://nhsc.bhpr.hrsa.gov
The Department of Health and Human Services Indian Health Services (IHS) Loan Repayment Program for Health Professions Educational Loans: Around $13 million is available for over 250 awards to provide $20,000 per year for 2-year contracts to serve in American Indian populations. Go to http://www.ihs.gov/index.asp for details.
Health Professions Education Fund Loan Repayment Program: Administered by the same foundation as the scholarship. This program pays up to $10,000 a year for the first two years of working in an underserved/rural health care area. The deadline is also in March. For all the details go to www.healthprofessions.ca.gov.
Military Ops: The military is a great place to practice medicine and each branch offers some kind of debt relief.
Army: www.army.mil/
National Guard: www.nationalguard.com
Navy: www.navy.mil
Air Force: www.af.mil
Marines: www.usmc.mil
Private Loans
Who’s your daddy? And can he spare a few bucks? Go ahead, nickle and dime him to death. Don’t forget your parents. They love you. They have more money than you (hence the reason you’re going to school). And let’s face it, they owe you, right?
Rob a Bank: Okay, don’t rob the bank, but if you’re desperate, virtually any bank will loan you some money. Lot’s of qualifications apply of course and they will certainly rob you with gouging interest rates. Stop by your local branch or visit them online for specifics.
Other Opportunities and Search Engines
There’s millions of scholarships out there. Your financial aid office can of course help you find some of them. The internet is also becoming a great place to look for financial aid. Go to search engine’s like www.google.com and type in a querry or subscribe to search accounts like: www.fastweb.monster.com
