Nursing Scholarships: How to Fund Your Degree

Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of NursingThinking about getting a nursing degree but worried about the cost? You’re not alone. Many people considering nursing school for undergraduate or graduate programs worry about finances, including minorities and underrepresented groups. Finding and applying for nursing scholarships is one way to chip away at program fees—or get them completely covered!

Learn how to get your paperwork in order, where to look, and the special scholarships available for students of Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing Thinking about getting a nursing degree but worried about the cost? You’re not alone. Many people considering nursing school for undergraduate or graduate programs worry about finances, including minorities and underrepresented groups. Finding and applying for nursing scholarships is one way to chip away at program fees—or get them completely covered!

Learn how to get your paperwork in order, where to look, and the special scholarships available for students of Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing

Applying for Nursing Scholarships

A four-year undergraduate nursing program can cost anywhere from $40,000 to $200,000. (Goldfarb School of Nursing is on the lower end, between $40,000-$67,000 depending on the program.) Unless you’re able to score a full ride or have the ability to self-pay, you’ll likely need to look at a range of financial assistance: scholarships, state or federal programs, and even programs through a current employer.

When it comes to nursing scholarships, expect to apply for multiple opportunities in order to cover your costs. Even a $200 award could help cover expenses like textbooks. And don’t forget that many scholarships allow you to apply again the following year. It might seem like a never-ending project, but there are ways to make the application process less painful.

How to Prepare

Before you get started applying for scholarships, there are a few things to prepare now that will save you a lot of time in the long run. Joi Haire, one of our financial aid counselors at Goldfarb School of Nursing, also shared some advice for students starting to look for nursing scholarships.

“My greatest advice to undergraduate and graduate students is to start the process early. Many scholarships have strict deadlines. The scholarship process can be lengthy and will require a great deal of patience. Preparation is essential. Students should have their resumes, cover letters, and references updated. They should also maintain a basic personal statement or essay which can be used for various scholarships.”

Based on Joi’s tips, here’s a checklist to help you get off on the right foot:

Make sure you’ve completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form
Gather documentation about past schooling to make sure you meet academic requirements
Consider the types of schools, programs and nursing specialty areas that interest you
Update your cover letter and resume, focusing on soft skills that apply to healthcare if you don’t have much experience in nursing yet
Collect and verify references that you can use in your scholarship applications
Write a personal statement or essay about your desire to be a nurse that can be tweaked based on the scholarship

With all of your paperwork in order, you’ll feel a lot better about working on multiple scholarship applications and getting them out the door on time.

Where to Look for Scholarships

Places to find scholarships include professional organizations, local community organizations, and even the nursing schools themselves. You can find a wide range of options depending on your personal attributes, your family affiliations, and your career interests.

That said, financial aid counselor Joi Haire reminds scholarship applicants to pay attention to special requirements that come along with the money. “While scholarships offer funding that does not require repayment, students should be mindful that nursing and healthcare scholarships may have residency requirements, service commitments to critical shortage areas and facilities, as well as specific healthcare organizations.”

Keep requirements in mind as you browse lists of national and specialty nursing scholarships, like those from Nurse Journal and Nurse.org. We also maintain our own extensive list of external scholarships for incoming and current students, representing various interests, cultures, social affiliations and other diverse needs. It’s updated regularly with the latest deadlines and to add new opportunities as they are made available.

To help narrow down the lists of scholarships to ones that meet your needs and qualifications, consider the following categories and examples.

Nursing Specialties

If you know that you’d like to go into a specific nursing specialty, look for scholarships offered by professional nursing organizations or related companies. Examples include the Bachelor’s in Nursing Degree Scholarships from the Oncology Nursing Foundation and the A Place for Mom Senior Wisdom Scholarship.

Minority Groups

Scholarships are available to students from minority groups who are under-represented in the nursing field. Examples include the DiversityNursing.com Education Award and the Hispanic ECS Fund Scholarship Program.

Non-Traditional Students

People who attend nursing school later in life or as a working parent are eligible to apply for scholarships geared toward non-traditional students. Examples include ExceptionalNurse.com College Scholarship Awards and the Jeannette Rankin Scholarship.

Veterans & Public Servants

If you or members of your parents served in the military or as police or firefighters, you could be eligible to apply for scholarships. Examples include the Army Nurse Corps Association Scholarship (which one of our students received in 2019) and the Fire Family Foundation Scholarships.

Location-Specific

Planning to go to a nursing school in your home state or city? There could be scholarships that are specific to colleges and universities in the area or that require you to work in healthcare in the region. Examples include Missouri Public Health Association Foundation Scholarships and the Friends of Saint Louis Municipal School of Nursing Scholarship.

Nursing Scholarships at Goldfarb

In addition to the above categories, don’t forget to look for scholarships at the schools you’d like to attend. For anyone considering academic programs at Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing, we offer a range of financial support including our own nursing scholarships. These scholarships are made possible by generous donations of the Foundation for Barnes Jewish Hospitals, which is committed to making education affordable and attainable for our students.

Below is a list of the scholarships we offer potential and current students depending on funding availability. You can find more details and applications on the Institutional Scholarships page.

Undergraduate Nursing Scholarships

These scholarships are available for incoming students in our Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) programs. Award amounts vary based on the Upper Division or Accelerated option.

Goldfarb Presidential Scholarship: For students ranked as the Valedictorian or Salutatorian or ranked as #1 or #2 in a private or public high school graduating class
Academic Excellence Scholarship: For students with a final cumulative GPA of 3.9 or higher on all undergraduate coursework
Living Our Values Scholarship: For students who have a final cumulative GPA of 3.75-3.89 on all undergraduate coursework
Empowering Future Nurses Scholarship: For students who have an exceptional demonstrated need and a completed FAFSA form
Goldfarb Men in Nursing Scholarship: For male incoming students
Diversity in Nursing Scholarship: For students who are U.S. citizens or eligible non-citizens from diverse races/ethnicities in Nursing. Meet our 2019 recipient!
Goldfarb Legacy Award: For alumni and/or the children, grandchildren or sibling of an alumni of Barnes School of Nursing, Jewish Hospital School of Nursing and Allied Health, Barnes-Jewish College of Nursing and Allied Health, Barnes-Jewish College of Nursing or Goldfarb School of Nursing
Dependent of Current BJC Employee: For students who are the dependent spouse or dependent aged child of a current BJC Employee

Graduate Nursing Scholarships

Students entering one of our Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) programs or a Doctoral (DNP, or PhD) program are invited to apply for the following scholarships.

Goldfarb Legacy Scholarship: For returning alumni of Goldfarb School of Nursing and its legacy schools
Diversity in Nursing Scholarship: For graduate students from diverse races/ethnicities or male graduate students
Empowering Future Nurses Scholarship: For graduate students who have an exceptional demonstrated need and a completed FAFSA form

Getting Started

Are you feeling ready to take control of your finances and make nursing school a reality? There are a couple different places to learn about the basics of financial aid and find answers about funding your degree program.

Research Financial Aid Options

If you’re new to financial aid for education, we recommend reading more about federal student aid and the different types of aid available, including state and nonprofit programs. The U.S. Department of Education also offers some general tips on finding and applying for scholarships.

Talk to a School Financial Aid Counselor

Once you’ve applied to a school for a nursing program, you can reach out to their financial aid office for more specific guidance and advice about scholarships and other options. Potential and current students of Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing can contact our Financial Aid office to connect with a financial aid counselor by phone, email or in-person appointment.

With thousands of nursing scholarships out there, it can feel overwhelming to find and apply for the right ones for you. The sooner you get started—and the more you prepare ahead of time—the better your experience will be. As Joi says, “Trust the process. It can be lengthy and take a lot of tries, but it’s worth it in the end.”