Scholarships for graduate students

Scholarship Name	Donors	Description
College of Nursing Millennium Fund	Alumni and Friends of the UK College of Nursing	Established in 2010 to provide support to students through scholarships, travel funds and other academic-related expenses.
Teresa Anna Free Pediatric Nursing Practitioner Scholarship	Friends and family of Dr. Free	Established in 2010 to celebrate the life of Dr. Teresa Ann Free. She was a beloved professor, colleague and friend who served as coordinator of the Pediatric Nurse Practitioner track from 2002 until 2009. This renewable scholarship is awarded to a student enrolled in the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Track.
Katherine Tenore Girone Scholarship Fund	Mr. and Mrs. Roderick Lewis	Established in 2006 in memory of Katherine Tenore Girone by the Lewises, executors of her estate. Mrs. Girone was a public health nurse for many years. This scholarship is awarded to full-time students in the UK College of Nursing in the Bachelor’s, Master’s, DNP or PhD programs who have a declared interest in public health nursing and have maintained a grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or better.
Dr. Jan Coleman Gross Scholarship	Dr. Jack B. Gross	Established in 2009 by Dr. Gross in memory of his wife, Jan Coleman Gross. Dr. Coleman Gross was a professor in the UK College of Nursing who dedicated her career to supporting students and providing them with outstanding educational opportunities, both inside and outside the classroom, through programs such as the Blueberry Spa at Cardinal Hill Hospital. This renewable scholarship is awarded to a BSN student in good academic standing.
Melva Jo Hendrix Scholarship	Mrs. Jenny D. Dorris	Established in 1993 by Mrs. Dorris, a 1971 UK graduate, in honor of Professor Melva Jo Hendrix, DNSc, RN, FAAN career. Dr. Hendrix was a leader in the area of psychiatric and mental health nursing. This renewable scholarship is awarded to a DNP student in the Psychiatric/Mental Health Track.
Betsy M. Holliday and Eunice Milton Scholarship Fund	Lieutenant Colonel (RET.) David C. Holliday	Established in 1992 by Lt. Colonel (RET.) Holliday in memory of his wife, Betsy M. Holliday and her mother, Eunice S. Milton. This fund provides support for a student who is a native Kentuckian or is the child of a member of the armed forces who was serving on active duty when the recipient was born. This renewable scholarship is given to an RN who has returned to school for additional training. Preference given to a student interested in the treatment of cancer patients.
Pamela Stinson Kidd Memorial Scholarship Fund	Mr. and Mrs. Ronald W. Stinson	Established in 2006 by Dr. Kidd’s family, friends and colleagues following her sudden death. This renewable scholarship is awarded to a graduate nursing student who shows potential for leadership in the area of injury prevention, emergency, primary, acute or critical care nursing. An essay is required. Preference is given to an applicant who demonstrates the ability to integrate clinical and community practice, scholarly activity and leadership.
La Sertoma Scholarship	Dr. Marcia K. Stanhope	Established in 2004 in honor of the ladies of the La Sertoma Club who provided financial support to her as a nursing student. This renewable scholarship is awarded to a student with an outstanding academic record who shows the potential for leadership and is in the DNP Program, is an Undergraduate Nursing Scholar or a BSN with an interest in public health nursing.
Dorothy Luther Fellowship Fund	The Estate of Dr. Dorothy Luther	Established in 2003 by the estate of Dottie Luther, an emerita UK College of Nursing faculty member, with additional contributions made by her friends and colleagues. This renewable scholarship is awarded to graduate students in adult nursing.
Karen Hall Sexton Nursing Leadership Scholarship	Family, friends and colleagues of Dr. Karen H. Sexton	This scholarship is given in memory of Dr. Karen Sexton, long time nurse leader and mentor for many nurses in the Commonwealth and beyond. “Karen would be so pleased to know that funds raised in her name are being used to further the education of nurse leaders,” stated Dr. Colleen Swartz, Chief Nurse of UK HealthCare. Funds were raised from UKHC Nurses and UK College of Nursing Faculty. Scholarships are awarded to students in the graduate program.
Sally G. Siebert Scholarship for Nurse Practitioner Students	Lieutenant Colonel (RET.) Sally G. Siebert	Established in 2005 by Lt. Colonel (RET.) Siebert, this renewable scholarship is awarded to a DNP student in the Family, Pediatric or Psychiatric Mental-Health Nurse Practitioner Track in good academic standing.
University of Kentucky Medical Center DNP Academic Excellence Scholarship	University of Kentucky	This renewable scholarship is awarded to DNP students with high GPAs and demonstrated involvement in scholarly activities.
University of Kentucky Medical Center DNP Enhancement Scholarship for Nursing Students	University of Kentucky	This renewable scholarship is awarded to DNP students who contribute to the diversity of the College and University through academic standing/class rank, leadership and community involvement or as a first generation college student, underrepresented in the profession and more.
University of Kentucky Medical Center DNP Wright Scholarship for Nursing Students	University of Kentucky	This renewable scholarship award is for recruiting outstanding DNP students.

Application Information Graduate Scholarships

Applicants must meet the minimum requirements for admission to the UK College of Nursing MSN, DNP, PhD and Postgraduate APRN Certificate programs and be in good academic standing. Priority in awarding scholarship funds is given to currently enrolled students who have a proven MSN, DNP, PhD or Postgraduate Certificate academic success record. Scholarships are awarded for one academic year and disbursed in equal amounts in the fall and spring semesters, unless otherwise stated in the award letter. Scholarships are renewable provided the recipient continues to meet the terms of the scholarship and make reasonable academic progress. View UK’s Reasonable Academic Progress Policy. Even if the scholarship is renewable, students must apply annually for continued support.

The College of Nursing Scholarship Committee reviews all completed applications and attachments submitted by the May 10, 2024 deadline. Applicants are considered for all scholarships for which they are eligible and both the scholarships and amounts available to award vary from year to year. The scholarship amount, when added to other sources of financial aid, may not exceed the total annual cost of attendance as determined by the UK Office of Student Financial Aid. Award recipients and non-recipients will be notified in June or July prior to the start of the academic year via email. All recipients must complete a Scholarship Acceptance Form by the deadline listed to confirm acceptance of the award or they forfeit their scholarship.

The College adheres to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

How to Apply

To be considered, students must complete the College of Nursing graduate scholarship application online through Qualtrics and submit the required curriculum vitae (CV).

**Please note: Qualtrics uses a cookie to save the response by page (not by specific question). If you exit the survey early, you must come back to the same computer and use the same browser to complete the application.

Your application will not be reviewed unless you have:
1. Completed the online application AND
2. Sent all required documents to the College of Nursing by May 10, 2024.

It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure all the attachments are received by the College of Nursing. Applications will be reviewed for any other UK College of Nursing Graduate Scholarships that may become available after the deadline.

Apply today for College of Nursing scholarships!

Apply Now

Scholarship Brunch

Hosted annually by the College of Nursing and emeriti faculty, this event provides an opportunity for donors and their families to meet the recipients of the scholarships they have established. All scholarship award recipients are expected to attend.

Scholarship Opportunities Outside the College of Nursing:

The College of Nursing receives notification throughout the academic year of additional external scholarships. Announcements are made in the Graduate Student Newsletter, the College’s monthly student e-newsletter, direct emails, on bulletin boards and on the wall monitors throughout the College.

Plan to spend time researching scholarships online by searching for “nursing school scholarship.” Check with the armed forces (any branch — UK has Air Force ROTC and Army ROTC on campus), employers, hospitals (nurse recruitment), non-profit organizations, nursing organizations (including your specialty area), private lending institutions and local, state or federal agencies.

UK Graduate School Fellowships, Assistantships and Support Funding

Kentucky Board of Nursing Incentive Scholarship Fund

Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority Loan Repayment Program

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Loans & Scholarships

National Health Service Corps, HRSA, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Loan Repayment

American Association of Colleges of Nursing

Discover Nursing

Minority Nurse

US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps

Jonas Nurse Leaders Scholarship Program

National Institutes of Health and National Research Service makes awards to pre‐doctoral (PhD) and post‐doctoral students. These scholarships are for MSN, Post MSN, and PhD students only.

The Delta Psi Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International, Sigma Theta Tau International and the American Nurses Foundation have annual competitions for research grants and scholarships.

Many specialty organizations, such as the American Cancer Society, American Association of Critical Care Nurses and others provide such awards.

Graduate Scholarships Contact

Whitney Kurtz-Ogilvie

Email: whitney.ko@uky.edu