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For many, a student loan is a good option to help offset the costs of nursing school.
Though there are scholarships and grants available, as well as tuition assistance
from many employers, it may not be enough to be able to get a nursing degree. However,
with a student loan comes student loan payments. These payments may be less than what
you would pay in tuition, fees, and books to your school, but paying off a student loan
can still put a strain on your budget. Looking into nursing loan forgiveness is one way
you can use the money given to you in a student loan without the burden of repaying it
afterward.
There are many ways to have your loans forgiven, and many programs available, each with
different requirements and criteria. Looking at different ways you can qualify for loan
forgiveness ahead of time will help you with the process later down the road.
Some nursing loan forgiveness criteria is based on how well you do while you're in
school. It may be based on your overall grade point average or your class rank. The
criteria may look at your overall school performance or it may focus only on your
nursing program. Since these programs set a high academic standard, it's important
for you to work hard throughout nursing school in case you want to be eligible for
loan forgiveness based on your academic record.
option.
Your field of study
The type of nursing you go into may give you a foundation for nursing loan forgiveness.
Nursing fields range from emergency to surgery to neonatal to geriatric, and they may
all have a loan forgiveness program available to you. One of the advantages to this
type of forgiveness is that it uses what you're passionate about to help you. In addition,
if you're not sure about what field of study you want to pursue, you can look at loan
forgiveness programs that use your field of study as criteria. This can help you decide.
Your volunteer work
For many financial assistance and loan forgiveness programs, what you do outside of
the classroom is just as important as what you do in the classroom. By volunteering
on your campus or in your community, you may be eligible for a loan forgiveness program.
Volunteer work you do in the healthcare field may be particularly beneficial, but
some programs may accept any form of volunteer or charity work that benefits your
campus or community.
Your workplace
Where you use your nursing degree could work to your advantage in nursing loan forgiveness,
as well. Some loan forgiveness programs are in place to ensure that qualified nurses
work in high needs areas. Depending on the healthcare facility you work in after earning
your degree, your employer may offer loan forgiveness after a certain length of time.
The length of time will probably vary among employers, and there may be other requirements
attached. For example, you may have to work in a high needs hospital, but also volunteer
at a free clinic three times a week.
In order to follow your dream of becoming a nurse, it may be necessary to get a student
loan. And while a loan can be a great help to make sure you can pay for school, it can
also be a great burden when the time comes to start repaying it. Fortunately, there are
options for nursing loan forgiveness, and those options can work with things you're
already doing, such as working hard in school, volunteering in your community, and
making plans for where you want to work when you get your nursing license. You may
not have to pay back your student loan. Instead, you can have it forgiven, and move
forward with your nursing career without the burden of debt.
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