How to pay for nursing school
November 12, 2024 – 6 mins
Get ready to pay for nursing school
Planning on going to nursing school? It’s time to start figuring out how you’ll pay for it. And we’re not just talking tuition and housing. You may need to pay for student insurance, equipment, lab fees, and more. You’ve got a few options to pay for it all—grants, scholarships, federal student loans, and private student loans. Here’s how you can get them.
Pay for nursing school with the 1-2-3 approach
Paying for school can feel overwhelming, and you may not know where to start. Our 1-2-3 approach breaks down the process and makes it all more manageable.
Step 1: Start with money you won’t have to pay back. There are a few different kinds of free money you can get to pay for nursing school:
- Savings: If you or your family have any money saved up, see how much you can dedicate towards paying for school.
- Scholarships: These can be need-based, merit-based, or for things like your hobbies and interests. You can get scholarships from your school, the government, and from other organizations and companies. Think they’re just for perfect students or athletes? Wrong! Scholarships are for everyone, and you can find ones made for your major, background, and more with Scholarship Search by Sallie.
- Grants: These tend to be need-based, and you can get them from the government or your school. Make sure you fill out the FAFSA® (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) to see what grants you may be eligible for and contact your school to see if there are any available.
- Work-study: Work-study programs are offered by the government and certain schools. They’re part-time jobs where you can earn money to pay for your education. Like with grants, you need to submit the FAFSA® to be considered for a work-study position.
Step 2: Apply for federal financial aid. Federal financial aid comes in the form of grants, scholarships, and student loans. Grants and scholarships are free money you don’t have to pay back, but federal student loans are borrowed money you’ll have to pay back with interest. There are a few types of federal student loans you could receive.
Step 3: Consider a private student loan. After you find out how much free money and federal financial aid you have to work with, a private student loan can fill in any gaps. Like federal student loans, private student loans also need to be paid back with interest. However, there are a few differences:
- You’ll apply through a financial institution or credit union, not the government.
- You’ll need good credit to be eligible for a private student loan (Pro tip: applying with a cosigner may up your chances at getting approved and could get you a better interest rate).
- There may be different repayment options available depending on the lender.
The Sallie Mae® Smart Option Student Loan for nursing school students may help you get the money you need to pay for school. Between fixed and variable interest rates, you can choose which one is right for you.footnote 1 Things like tuition, training equipment, housing and more could be totally covered if they’re included in your school’s cost of attendance.footnote 2 With no origination fee or prepayment penalty, you have a few options to help you repay.footnote 3
Paying for graduate nursing degrees
You can get student loans for graduate nursing degrees, too. Fill out the FAFSA® just like you would for an undergraduate degree to get as much federal financial aid as possible. If you still need to cover additional expenses after receiving federal financial aid, you can still pursue scholarships and then private student loans.
Whether you’re going to school in person, online, full-time, or part-time, you’ve got ways to pay. The Sallie Mae® Graduate School Loan for Health Professions is available to help you pay for your graduate degree in nursing. With different interest rate types and repayment options to choose from, you can select the option that works for you.footnote 4 You may cover up to 100% of your school-certified expenses, like tuition, fees, books, and more.footnote 2 You may also get a deferment, which can help you lower or postpone your student loan payments for up to 48 months during your internship or residency.footnote 5
Other options to pay
Submitting the FAFSA® and taking out student loans aren’t the only ways to pay for nursing school. There are a few other opportunities that can help take care of the cost of school:
- Your employer: Employers sometimes offer a tuition reimbursement benefit. Ask your employer if they have programs that help pay for school.
- Government assistance programs: There are programs run by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that may offer full or partial scholarships to pay for your nursing program while you work in areas experiencing health professional shortages.
- Apprenticeships: An apprenticeship is when you get paid while receiving on-the-job training. You could be in the field as a nurse and get paid while you learn. Research if there are any apprenticeship programs in your area.
- Military service: A benefit of joining the military is that they may take care of the costs of tuition, fees, housing, and more in exchange for your service. Check if the military offers to pay for your nursing degree.
Find the money you need
You’ve got several ways to help you pay for nursing school. With a little bit of planning and some research, you’ll be on your way to a nursing degree before you know it.