U.S. Army Hosts Scholarship for Health Care Professionals

College costs can add up fast, especially when you go beyond the undergraduate four years. Students enrolled graduate health care schools may spend as much time worrying about how to pay for their classes as they do on the classes themselves. Luckily, there are resources out there that can help, if you know where to look. For some students, the U.S. Army is just one of those many resources.

Today the Reuters newswire features the United States Army Medical Department (AMEDD) and their efforts to help out students hoping to join the medical community. Thanks to their F. Edward Hebert Armed Forces Health Professions Scholarship Program (HPSP), the department is able to help many students afford their graduate medical, dental, or veterinary degrees, not to mention some undergraduate nursing degrees. As if HPSP paying for tuition, fees, and books wasn't enough, students are also allotted a monthly stipend, and those who receive the scholarship are eligible for a considerable bonus.

Students who have enrolled in the program are lauding its benefits. 2nd Lt. Martha Morales, a student at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry and a poster girl for the program, spoke especially favorably. "HPSP is appealing because I can focus on my education instead of finances," she said for the article. "I also look forward to being able to grow my skills in a group practice."

It isn't an uncommon sentiment. The economy is rough all over these days, and such a military scholarship can be vital to realizing many students' dreams without becoming buried in debt in the process. It's something that Colonel Rafael Montagno, commander of the U.S. Army Medical Recruiting Brigade, knows all too well. "Through the HPSP program, Army Medicine has helped to finance the education and training for thousands of health care professionals across the United States - I would encourage anyone seeking a professional health care degree to consider Army Medicine for its extensive and generous educational benefits."

The scholarship is available in one, two, and four year increments, so that students can apply for exactly what they need. After graduation, successful scholarship recipients will receive all the officer rank benefits that a college degree brings.