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Medical education is costly, and the fees have risen steadily in recent years, which is unpleasant for medical students. With a proactive scholarship strategy, however, it is possible to graduate medical school for less. Applying for scholarships will help you cut down on the quantity of loans you will need to take out. The Kaiser Permanente Scholarship, which pays $2,500 to selected medical students, is an alternative option for medical students. Continue reading to find out how to win the scholarship and receive free money to help you pay for education.
About the Kaiser Permanente Scholarship
The Kaiser Permanente Health Equity Scholars Program, or simply the Kaiser Permanente Scholarship, is a program designed to support young leaders who have a demonstrated interest in pursuing a clinical or non-clinical career in the healthcare industry.
For instance, applicants may be aspired to become pharmacists, physicians, practitioners, nurses, or marketers. As a matter of fact, medical school in the United States currently costs an average of $55,000 per year. To an 18-year-old high school graduate from a middle-class family, this sum would appear to be enormous.
Luckily, the scholarship aids students to realize whatever their dream is in the sector. By applying for this scholarship, individuals will be able to lower the number of debts they will need to take out in the future, resulting in skilled healthcare workers.
Kaiser Permanente is a California-based integrated managed care consortium. It believes everyone should have equal access to education and live a long, healthy life. The Kaiser Permanente Scholarship aims to build healthier communities by helping students achieve their dreams of going to college.
All in all, this scholarship program enables young leaders to pursue a clinical or non-clinical career in the healthcare industry. It also serves as an alternative option for medical students to financially support their education.
Program Benefits
The Kaiser Permanente Scholarship awards a $2,500 scholarship to selected students. Scholarship funds may be used for tuition, fees, books, and other academic-related supplies, as well as for room/board and transportation expenses related to a student’s graduate studies.
However, since the scholarship is not large enough to cover the entire costs of medical school, you may have to look for some other sources of funding in addition to this. For example, other financial aid you may want to consider include MBBS Scholarships.
The Kaiser Permanente Scholarship Eligibility Requirements
When applying for the Kaiser Permanente Scholarship, you must meet all criteria for the program to be considered for the award.
For starter, you must plan to enroll full-time in an accredited, public or not-for-profit, four-year university, or a community college in the U.S. at the time of application. In addition, you must have a permanent address and reside in one of the following states/districts:
- California
- Colorado
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Maryland
- Oregon
- Virginia
- Washington
- Washington D.C.
Most importantly, you must be a graduating high school senior to apply for the scholarship. Plus, you are required to have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale (or equivalent), earned from 9th grade through the first semester/term of 12th grade.
In addition, as mentioned earlier, you must have a demonstrated interest in pursuing a clinical or non-clinical career in the healthcare industry. Preference will be given to students from underrepresented communities with demonstrated financial need.
If you have what it takes to be considered as one of the winners, read on to learn what you should be doing next.
The Kaiser Permanente Scholarship Application
To apply, you must create a scholarship account. Once logged in, you will see the scholarship application. Please take not that this program does not accept paper applications. Hence, you must submit your scholarship application using the online application system only.
You will need to get the following documents ready before applying for the program:
- Transcript(s)
- A letter of recommendation
- Enrollment Verification
1) Transcript
You are required to upload your academic transcript(s) only when requested to do so. If requested, scan and upload a PDF copy of your transcript(s) to the scholarship portal. You may also submit a screen shot of your transcripts from your college student portal. Handwritten transcripts will not be accepted.
Your transcript(s) must clearly indicate your name and institution. You may click ‘View’ after uploading your transcript(s) to verify the document is legible. Meanwhile, if your transcript does not include an academic GPA, please request a GPA and written explanation that describes how the GPA was calculated from your counselor or Registrar.
2) A Letter of Recommendation
In order for your application to be considered complete, you must submit one completed academic recommendation. Your academic recommender must be an instructor, an advisor/counselor, or someone who is able to evaluate you academically (e.g., academic performance, motivation, plans and goals).
You will be prompted to list your recommender’s contact information and the letter of recommendation in Phase II of the application. Your recommender must complete the electronic Recommendation Form online. One recommendation must be from an academic reference; the second is optional and can be submitted by anyone who is not a family member or friend.
If you have been out of school for two or more years, your academic recommendation may come from a non-academic recommender who is familiar with the work you do and holds a position that is greater than your title. The recommendation should evaluate your intellectual capabilities, as well as your work ethic.
On the other hand, non-academic recommenders can be colleagues in your field of work and/or anyone in a managerial position that has worked closely with you (such as a boss, a coach, a volunteer coordinator, etc.).
3) Enrollment Verification
There are several options for submitting an official Enrollment Verification form. First, you can go directly to your institutions registrar’s office and request and official Enrollment Verification form.
Alternatively, you can submit an official Enrollment Verification from the National Student Clearinghouse. This is an organization with whom most US institutions register, and which offers a verification form as an expedited service. You can go to their website at http://www.studentclearinghouse.org, and for a nominal fee, they will send you a PDF version of your Enrollment Verification.
Another alternative option is that you can download the Kaiser Permanente Scholarship Enrollment Verification form, which will be emailed to you. You can take this form to your registrar’s office for completion. Please be sure to complete the student portion of the form and that the registrar’s office has completed all questions on its portion.
Closing Date
The Kaiser Permanente Scholarship application process opens once a year on January 1 and ends on March 1. The finalist phase runs from March to April. Applicants will be contacted regarding the selection results around October to December.
The selection process consists of four stages:
- Phase I
- Phase II
- Verification (for both pre-selected and waitlisted students)
- Disbursement
Successful candidates are selected on the basis of academic achievement, personal strengths, leadership, and extracurricular accomplishment, in addition to meeting all stated requirements. Completed applications are evaluated by certified readers. It is important that the information you provide regarding your “intended” school/major be as up to date as possible, prior to the selection process.
Contact Details
Send any questions you may have regarding this scholarship program via your Message Center, located in your scholarship account (log in and check the top right-hand corner of your dashboard).
The Kaiser Permanente Scholarship Official Website
Lastly, apply to or find out more about the Kaiser Permanente Scholarship by clicking here. Looking for more financial resources for medical students? Check out our guide on the best scholarships for healthcare and medical students.
