The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) announced on April 22 the creation of the RWJF New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program, designed to alleviate the nation’s nursing shortage by dramatically expanding the pipeline of students in accelerated nursing programs. Scholarships in the amount of $10,000 each will be awarded to 1,500 entry-level nursing students over the next three years. Preference will be given to students from groups underrepresented in nursing or from a disadvantaged background.
Through the program, funding will be available to schools of nursing with entry-level accelerated programs at the baccalaureate and/or master’s degree level(s). By bringing more nurses into the profession at those levels, the new scholarship program also hopes to address the nation’s nurse faculty shortage. Data from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration show that nurses entering the profession at the baccalaureate level are four times more likely than other nurses to pursue a graduate degree in nursing, which is the required credential to teach.
AACN will serve as the national program office for this RWJF-funded initiative and will oversee the grant application submission and review processes. Read the press release.
