Students to Service Program

The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Students to Service Loan Repayment Program (S2S LRP) provides loan repayment assistance to medical students (MD and DO) in their last year of school, in return for a commitment to provide primary health care services in eligible Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) of greatest need.

Financial Benefits

The S2S LRP will provide funds to participants to repay their outstanding qualifying student loans while still completing health professions training.

Program options include:

  • Full-Time Clinical Practice. The NHSC will pay up to $120,000 for an initial three years of full-time clinical service defined as no less than 40 hours per week, for a minimum of 45 weeks a year.
  • Half-Time Clinical Practice. The NHSC will pay up to $120,000 for an initial six years of half-time clinical service defined as no less than 20 hours per week (not to exceed 39 hours per week), for a minimum of 45 weeks per year.

Annual payments of up to $30,000 will be made over the course of four years. With continued service, eligible providers may be able to pay off all qualifying student loans.

Service Commitment

Upon completion of residency, participants must engage in three years of full-time or six years of half-time clinical practice at one or more NHSC-approved service sites located in a HPSA of greatest need. 

Eligibility

To be eligible for the S2S LRP, all applicants must be enrolled as a full-time student in the last year of school, be attending a fully accredited school in an eligible degree program, and be planning to complete an accredited primary medical care residency in an NHSC-approved specialty (Internal Medicine, Family Practice, Pediatrics, OB/GYN, and Geriatrics). 

Applying to NHSC Students to Service LRP

The S2S LRP application cycle opened on November 15, 2011 and closed on December 19, 2011 at 5pm ET. 

If there are more qualified applicants than available funding, the NHSC will prioritize applications based upon:

  • Disadvantaged Background. The applicant must submit certification from a school that he/she: (i) was identified as having a “disadvantaged background” based on environmental and/or economic factors or (ii) received a Federal Exceptional Financial Need Scholarship.
  • Characteristics Likely to Remain in a HPSA. The NHSC will also give funding preference to applicants who display characteristics that indicate a higher likelihood of continuing to serve in a HPSA once the service commitment is completed as outlined in their application essay and letters of recommendation.

Additional information regarding the S2S LRP can be found in the Program Guidance.

Resources