NLN Foundation for Nursing Education Scholarship

The 2026 application period will run from Monday, February 23, 2026 through Tuesday, May 19th, 2026. Applicants will be notified by the end of July 2026 and awardees will be recognized at the NLN Summit in the Fall of 2026 in Washington, DC.

We are proud to be the first member organization providing scholarships specifically to nurse educators. The NLN Foundation for Nursing Education offers scholarships of up to $8,000 each year to support the NLN’s mission to build a strong and diverse nursing workforce to advance the health of the nation and the global community.

These scholarships are awarded to nurses pursuing advanced degrees to advance their career as a full-time nurse educator.

The funds are for master's or doctoral students enrolled in accredited programs who have completed at least one full year of study by June 2026 and for whom program/project completion is feasible (i.e. IRB approved for research, dissertation proposal defended, capstone project approved, QI or change initiative approved).

The NLN Foundation wants to encourage more experienced and ethnically diverse nurses to pursue advanced degrees to prepare for full-time positions as nurse educators.

Eligible candidates must also be NLN members either through individual dues or through their employer schools’ NLN membership.

Resources to Review Before Preparing Proposals:

• NLN Nursing Education Scholarship Review Rubric
• Scholarship Application Prep Webinar - Recording 2025
• NLN Scholarship FAQ

Application Requirements

Each proposal must include the below content areas. Carefully review this NLN Nursing Education Scholarship Review Rubric.  Incomplete applications will be disqualified.

1. Introduction: Describe your need for support and clarity of purpose.
2. Description of your Program of Study (i.e. dissertation, capstone, scholarly project, pilot project; quality project; change initiative).
3. Include specific outline, timeline and projected graduation date. If you have competed a dissertation proposal defense or had a DNP project approved, please include defense date. If project has been IRB approved, indicate.
4. Describe how your study links to NLN’s Mission and Core Values.
5. Describe your goals as a nurse educator.
6. 2 Letters of recommendation (addressed to the NLN Foundation).
7. Budget Narrative: Be sure that each line item on the budget is clearly justified.
8. Biosketch Form (also available on SM Apply)

Please note that there is not a specific application template, however, each application should attempt to follow the order of the checklist and use headings indicative of these requirements.