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Hi all! Starting this thread because I see some inquiries for the 2019 cycle being tacked on to the 2018 thread so I thought I'd start a new one. I believe applications for those of us starting our programs this year won't open until March and be due in May, but correct me if I'm wrong. Let's do this!! Signed, NHSC hopeful starting her program in AZ in August 2019

Hello prospective NHSC scholars! I noticed the scholarship application has officially opened. Looks like the deadline is May 10th. Just thought I'd get an official thread going so we can all chat about the application process and share any updates any of us may potentially get! Fingers crossed, good luck everyone!

Hey everyone, I'm in the process of starting my essays for this year's NHSC scholarship and was wondering if anyone had advice on how they approached the essays. My specific questions are highlighted below. 1) How specific were you in outlining your future career plans for the essay on the NHSC mission? Did you list HPSA sites and/or non-profit organizations you were interested in affiliating with? 2) How did you approach the essay regarding your commitment to working in primary care? Did you take a narrative approach regarding life events or circumstances that led you to pursue a career in primary care, a philosophical approach rationalizing the importance of primary care, a combination of the two, or something altogether different? Thanks in advance for any help!

Hi all! Congrats to everyone who was accepted this cycle!!! I received my acceptance in February and have been ecstatic since. Then I remembered that I need to pay for this somehow, loans or scholarship. I am married and have three children under 5, and my wife stays at home, so it is looking like lots of loans or (fingers crossed/praying) NHSC scholarship. I just finished my NHSC scholarship application and submitted yesterday! Anyone else apply for the NHSC scholarship? I know it will be a while before we hear anything, but hopefully we can keep each other updated on our status changes for encouragement. Good luck to everyone!

Hi, did anybody else submit or is about to submit their application for the 2015 NHSC scholarship? Also, does anyone have an idea of the timeline it usually takes to hear something back from them?

Well since this thread hasn't been started for this cycle yet, I'll be the one to kick it off.

Here is my question: How much does your first job determine the future of your career? I am a student who has just completed interviews at a few highly reputable PA programs. While interviewing at these programs, many of the directors made the comment, "Don't just come here because our school has a big name. Where you graduated from only gets you your first job. The rest of your career depends on what you did at that first job and the most recent job after that." To me, that statement makes a lot of sense. I have talked to a handful of recruiters, Docs, PA's and PA educators about this and they have agreed. They have also added how important it is to find a first job that you not only can learn a lot from, but have ample opportunities for career growth. Some even went as far as to say that working in a rural clinic right out of school is a bad move, even if that is your ultimate goal, because of having fewer minds to learn from and less experience in "the extremes" when it comes to medical cases. They suggested working internal med at a bigger hospital, gaining experience and confidence in diagnostics/procedures, and then moving on to a rural clinic if thats where I still wanted to be. Honestly, I do not have a definitive specialty that I am set on, but, if I had to choose at this moment, family practice would be in the mix. With that being said, programs like NHSC or the Army/Navy/AF equivalents are EXTREMELY appealing when it comes to paying for my education (I will be going to a phenomenal school, but it is coming at a price!), but I would hate to place limitations on my future career opportunities by being placed in the middle of Alaska (Or on a ship, in an army base, etc, etc...) with a PCP that has little to offer when it comes to my growth as a clinician. I have no intentions of being a less-than-extraordinary PA, and would be willing to work off every penny of my expensive education if that meant I would be more competent and experienced when it is all said and done. Any thoughts or opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Hello there fellow PA Students. I just wanted to create a thread for the 2013 NHSC (National Health Service Corps) Scholarship applicants so we can keep in touch about hearing back or to answer any questions other students may have. I know the website says we should hear back by September 30th but I spoke with another student in my class who applied as well and she heard somewhere that we COULD hear back as early as July. I know most likely this is not the case but I figured with this thread we could have a better idea of when students start hearing back. Good luck everyone!

Curious about NHSC Loan Repayment or the NHSC Scholarship? In this blog posting, I've included the former as well as many other loan repayment options and scholarship options you might not know about. Take advantage of this information! You might be a current PA student, a practicing PA, or a pre-PA student considering repayment options for your loans. Make sure you know other resources out there before you make a decision! This information is just to get you started and is by no means all inclusive. I realize there may be many more options out there, but I did the best I could to get your mind thinking. Good luck fellow PA-S and PA-C! http://doseofpa.blogspot.com/2014/03/physician-assistant-school-scholarships.html

Hi Fellow PA's Question to the general population , have any of you created a site for loan repayment from NHSC? How does that process work? I know its been done but its hard to find information on how and what steps to take? How difficult is the process? Does anyone know if Urgent Care jobs count? Thanks in advance

So, I'm ending my first year as a PA with a pretty well paying job outside of school (90k), which unfortunately will be ending for me soon (practice is closing, forcing me to find another job). However, I have an obscene amount of student debt that literally leaves me broke after each paycheck. I know I did this to myself, but I just get so disheartened because I feel like I worked so hard to get here with little to no help from anyone else, and I have nothing to show for it. I don't live above my means or anything like that, but after each paycheck I barely have enough for food, and I think to myself... how can this be?! I'm a PA! :/ Besides, National Health Service Corps Jobs (which I have been applying for), does anyone else know any other resources for repaying student loan debt? I have been looking for a job that offers loan assistance also.... and knowingly will probably have to relocate and break my fiance's heart. But I just can't do this anymore. We will never be able to afford children if I have to keep living like this. Don't get me wrong... I LOVE being a PA and I don't regret it. I have no problem continuing to work my ass off to pay this money back.... just looking for some assistance if possible. I have no issues working 2-3 jobs either to pay for my loans... I just didnt have this opportunity with my little experience and I also work 6 days a week at my current job. I'm hoping that in my second year as a PA, I will be able to find a job that will allow me to work extra shifts, or an extra job or two... Any help/resources would be greatly appreciated! Thank you. You guys are invaluable!

Is there anyone else out there who applied for the NHSC Loan Repayment Program cycle this year? Does anyone know what scores got awarded last year? Has anyone gotten any feedback regarding their application for this year's cycle? Every time I call to find out when we will find out whether we got awarded, I get a different answer. Some people say July, some August, some September... Just seeing if anyone else is in the waiting game with me :)

Helloooo! I'm planning on majoring in Human Biology, Health, and Society (yup that's one major haha) and minoring in Global Health. Many of the classes overlap, and the ones that don't seem really interesting! As part of the minor requirements, I plan to spend my Junior-Senior summer in Ecuador through U-belong as a medical assistance volunteer (not MA). Would this count as HCE, or would my time be better spent on working as a CNA in a community health clinic closer to home? Not participating in the international experience will make me ineligible for the minor, but does having/not having the minor influence my application? I'm personally excited for either opportunity, but which would be better looked upon by PA schools and especially the NHSC Scholars program? So in other words, summer in Ecuador + Global Health minor vs. summer as CNA at community health clinic in the eyes of NHSC scholars program and PA schools? (Assuming all other parts of application are the same)

Despite the darkness that exists in the shadows of this world, it is through our passion and our sense of purpose that we are able to truly grasp the beauty that exists in the light. My first experience with seeing this spark of passion came in the 7th grade, when I began extreme rollerblading. What first started out as a simple way to kill time after school and hang out with my friends, quickly morphed into a love like none I had experienced before; I ate, drank and slept rollerblading. The strength of my love for this sport provided me with an opportunity to see, with my own eyes, the rewards that come from fully dedicating yourself to something that you love. I started out having little clue of what I was doing, struggling to even keep my balance, let alone skate backwards, but I was soon performing more and more difficult maneuvers, and eventually went on to win competitions and receive sponsorships. Not only did rollerblading reveal to me the value of passion and dedication, but it also provided me with the opportunity to travel all around North America, interacting with and becoming good friends with people of all cultures, ethnicities and economic backgrounds in the process. During my travels I have encountered a myriad of obstacles, ranging from the minor to the severe, yet I have always managed to emerge as a stronger and more knowledgeable human being. The sums of my experiences as a rollerblader have taught me invaluable life lessons about both myself, as well as others. Despite the immensely valuable life lessons and the worth of passion and purpose that rollerblading has taught me, I have spent a significant portion of my life feeling as if something was missing, that there was something more I could offer. All of this came to a head in the fall of 2011, following the deaths of my longtime girlfriend and two grandparents whom I had been extremely close with, all within the period of a couple of months. The ensuing depression that resulted from these losses forced me to withdraw from school in two consecutive semesters, and left me feeling as though I had lost my sense of direction and purpose. Upon finally deciding to get outside help in the form of psychotherapy, along with months of self-searching, I was able to rediscover what it is that makes me who I am, and what exactly it is that I have to offer to this world. This entire series of events allowed me to become a stronger person than I ever could have imagined, and realize once again the beauty that comes with passion and purpose. Though my previous experiences working in healthcare had shown me a glimpse of the beauty that comes with a passion for helping others, my tragedy allowed me to connect the dots and realize that there is nothing I would rather do than dedicate my life to serving others. Following this realization, I decided to take a job as a mental health technician so that I could immediately begin serving those who are less fortunate than me. Since this time, my appetite to help my fellow man has continued to grow, and I am now absolutely sure of my desire to serve all of those around me; I am once again able to feel the spark of passion that rollerblading originally showed me, only now it has become stronger than ever before. Through my paid clinical experience as an EKG/telemetry technician and a mental health technician, along with my time spent shadowing an ER physician, I have become fully acquainted with the benefits that a career as a physician assistant would offer in terms of providing effective healthcare and serving my fellow human beings, providing me with the ideal outlet to pursue my passion. I feel as though physician assistants serve as the perfect balance between physicians and nurses, along with the multitude of other clinical positions, as they are able to provide treatments and services that nurses and other lower-level positions are unable to, while functioning on a much more personal level than most physicians do; and all the while working to make sure that all of these positions interact seamlessly. My time spent working at XstremeMD has allowed me to become intimately familiar with the nearly infinite possibilities which the cutting-edge technology of telemedicine offers to the medical field going forward; especially concerning treatment of those that are less fortunate and those in hard-to-reach areas. My dream is to utilize the knowledge and training that I receive during my physician assistant training, in conjunction with my familiarity with the rapid advances of telemedicine, in order to provide treatment on a broad scale to poverty-stricken areas that have so often been looked over, so as to better the health of those involved, while also granting them with the same sense of purpose that has served to show me the immense beauty that a life of passion and purpose has to offer.

So I applied this year for the loan repayment program with NHSC. I waited patiently yesterday, which was the deadline, but never got any notification whether or not I got my award. Anyone else in this situation? It looks like online that they didn't even look at my application. What's up with these people?

I am a new grad living near Charlotte, NC. I just received a job offer from a community health center about 40 minutes away and would love to get feedback from some of you experienced PAs out there. In addition to the details below, this clinic has a HPSA score of 17 and therefore qualifies for the $30,000 annual tax free loan repayment from the National Health Service Corps (in exchange for a 2-year commitment). I have $60K in loans, so this would be the perfect amount. The employer cannot guarantee that I'll be approved for the loan repayment, but it sounds promising. Here are the other details: Practice: Federally Qualified Health Center Hours: 40-50 weekly Base Salary: $74,000 to start with annual reviews/raises. CME Credit: $2,500 License & Membership Dues Credit: $2,000 Time Off: 4 weeks vacation + 1 week for CME + 9 paid holidays Other Benefits: Medical insurance, 401-K, and voluntary dental What do you think?

I am considering taking a position in a critical access hospital with a HPSA score of 14. The position is ER / UC - not primary care. Does anyone have experience with NHSC LRP in this situation? Would the position qualify for loan repayment? Thanks.

Hello all, I'm a prospective student for either a fall 2013 or spring 2014 matriculation. I have not yet been accepted to a program, and am curious about opportunities might be out there for scholarships and financial aid. I have heard a little about NHSC and about Military scholarships, could anybody elaborate on the process? -How might I apply? -How soon? -What's the commitment? -What are my chances? (what are they looking for?) I'm finishing polishing my caspa narrative, and submitting this Friday. Any insight or advice is greatly appreciated! -Ken

Hello out there I need advice and expertise from the community!! I am a PA in Maryland who is looking to move to the Sacramento area around may-june and I have some questions about switching from inpatient cardiology medicine into family or internal medicine outpatient as well as help with ideas regarding NHSC jobs. I am on the NHSC website frequently and currently it is listing only 10 jobs for california- most outdated with starting dates in the beginning of 2011. I have been on indeed.com and advance practice but dont see much for office medicine or jobs that are NHSC qualified... 1) Has anyone on here had experience getting NHSC jobs without using the website? In other words, did you find an office job that might qualify and how did you go about applying?? How difficult is that process? is there any hospital jobs that qualify (i see no hospital listings)?? Or is there NHSC jobs out there that somehow you cant see on the website- I have been looking on it since Nov 2011 and it seems outdated there are very few new posts and few details?? I have also browsed the full list of NHSC sites but it seems overwhelming to blindly send resumes to all of them... Any other ideas about loan repayment (I have ~170,000 to pay off by myself sadly my husband is unemployed)... Currently I work for a not-for-profit hoping to do the government repayment 10yr program but i am afraid that by the time it comes for repayment that program wont exist anymore! I am looking to stay in northern ca to be close to family as well as my parents are not in good health. I can work anywhere from Sacramento to as far south as San Jose. IF anyone knows of any available jobs or contacts or ideas for how to get me there- - i am just afraid the website is not showing much....THANKS 2) I work inpatient cardiology/hospitalist medicine for the last 2 years and have never done office work. Is there tips/books or other recommendations you have for how to transition? Looking for responses from people that have done something similar and have experience with what worked for you. I know it ll be a steep learning curve but any reference material or tips you have that i can start on now i would greatly appreciate!! ps Anyone got advice on moving cross country cheaply (have a 2 bedroom apartment 2 cats and dog and one SUV)... When i moved out here for PA school everything i owned fit in my car now im married and want to know how to keep costs reasonable... looking for what to expect and how many extra shifts to work to save for it! I ve heard pods, there is uhaul... i just want to know briefly what you moved (house apt in general) how and what it cost approx. THANK YOU SO MUCH for reading this very long post any answers will be greatly appreciated! CardioPA =)

Hey folks: I intend to work in a federally-qualified clinic when I graduate (I've lined up my last rotation in a clinic I hope will hire me), and I would like to apply to the NHSC to get my loans paid back. The deadlines for the application cycle look like they are made for traditional students, rather than PA students (who can graduate at any time). I graduate at the end of July next year. The application cycle for NHSC runs from November till May. From what I read, the earlier you get the application in, the better. I wanted to apply next year before I graduate, so that I can get the loan repayment when I start work; however, they say you are required to start work 60 days after you submit your application. It looks like I'll have to wait another year to apply, since even if I wait till the last day of the application cycle, there is still no way I could start working before I even graduate. Anyone else run into this problem? The only "exception" I've seen is geared toward doctors finishing their residency.... Suggestions?