35+ Top Medical School Scholarships in 2024
/A list of medical school scholarships, including full-ride scholarships, so you can become a physician without worrying about student debt
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Introduction
Attending medical school is a dream for many. But achieving that dream comes with a high price tag. According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, 73 percent of students graduate with debt; in 2021, the average medical school debt is $215,900.
If you’re applying to med school and wondering what you can do to lighten the financial load of your education, read on. We’ve compiled a comprehensive list of medical school scholarships so you can spend more time thinking about your future as a doctor and less time thinking about how to afford it.
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List of general medical school scholarships
Below, we’ve listed medical school scholarships that are generally available to most medical school students or are available to a variety of minority and underserved populations (scholarships aimed towards specific populations are listed in the next section).
Nevertheless, many scholarships require applicants to meet certain criteria, such as demonstrating interest in serving a specific community or holding a particular citizenship or residency status. We encourage you to read through each scholarship and its corresponding website carefully to determine if you meet the eligibility requirements. Doing even just a bit of research on the organization or program granting the scholarship can give you an edge during the selection process.
Once you have identified which scholarships you’re eligible for, you’ll want to apply to all of them. This may sound like a lot of work, and it certainly won’t be easy, but it’s important to keep in mind that many of the requirements for each scholarship will overlap, reducing the total workload necessary to apply to as many scholarships as you can.
For example, almost all of these scholarships require letters of recommendations. If you know what type of school faculty member or community leader you’ll need a recommendation letter from, you’ll be able to get those letters early and can easily reuse them for multiple scholarships.
AAMC Herbert W. Nickens Medical Student Scholarships
Dollar amount: $5,000
Application process: Students must be nominated by their medical school. Medical schools can nominate one student a year. After nomination a student must provide a number of application materials: a full checklist can be found here.
Eligibility: This scholarship is for students entering their third year of medical school who have “shown leadership in efforts to eliminate inequities in medical education and health care. They also should have demonstrated leadership initiative in addressing educational, societal, and health care needs of racial and ethnic minorities in the United States.” Applicants must be U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or DACA recipients. Additionally, every school can only nominate a single student each year.
Deadline: April 1
Key Strategy: Write the personal statement required by the scholarship that showcases the leadership efforts mentioned above. This short essay should be no more than two pages long and will essentially work as your argument for why you should be awarded this scholarship. This essay will not only serve as part of your application, but at the end of your second year you can submit it to each of the school faculty members that you’ll need a recommendation from to promote yourself as a nominee.
American Medical Women’s Association Scholarships
Dollar amount: Various
Application process: Online application.
Eligibility: Varies for different specific scholarships. Here’s a full list of the different fellowships and scholarships awarded by AMWA. They range from offering assistance for travel abroad to awards for poster presentations. Most ask for a short essay, although some ask for project reports or third-party nominations.
Deadline: Varies by specific scholarship.
Key Strategy: Apply with a specific project in mind. This will allow you to write essays, show your work, and request nominations from advisors with ease. If you can spare the $55 premed or $75 med student fee, becoming a member of AMWA makes you eligible for more scholarships and gives you access to a robust network of women in medicine.
The Brown Medical and Educational Society Healthcare Scholarships
Dollar amount: $5,000
Application process: Physical application must be mailed.
Eligibility: Must be an undergraduate or graduate student attending an U.S. four-year college or university pursuing a degree in healthcare (medical, nursing, allied health, etc.). Must be Black/African American, Native American/American Indian, Hispanic/Latin American, or Asian/Pacific Islander. U.S. citizenship is required. Applicant must have a cumulative equivalent GPA of 2.5 or higher on a 4 point scale.
Deadline: April 30
Key Strategy: This application often asks for an essay about your leadership skills. Try to apply for this scholarship alongside other leadership-focused awards, such as the AAMC Herbert W. Nickens scholarship so that you can reuse the required essay(s) on this application.
Chinese American Medical Society Scholarships
Dollar amount: $5,000
Application process: Email application, including a letter from your school’s dean verifying your good academic standing; full details can be found here.
Eligibility: First-, second-, and third-year medical or dental students. Applicants must be current or pending CAMS Student members.
Deadline: March 31
Key Strategy: Request the recommendation letter from your school’s dean early in the calendar year so that you can submit the fairly simple application as quickly as possible and move on to more involved scholarship applications.
Chinese American Physicians Society Scholarships
Dollar amount: $2,000–5,000
Application process: Online application available here.
Eligibility: The fellowship is open to any student of any race/ethnicity. “Special credit” will be given to those with an interest in serving Chinese American communities post-graduation.
Deadline: May 1
Key Strategy: This is a great opportunity if you have an interest in osteopathic medicine and serving community needs. If you already have experience working within the Asian American community specifically, you will have a distinct advantage when applying to this scholarship. Consider whether the CAMS values align with your own before applying.
Dollar amount: Tuition coverage and an $18,000 living expenses stipend
Application process: Students must request an application through their school’s financial aid or fellowship office. Applications must be submitted through the dean of the school the student is attending. Students must reapply annually and may not receive funding for longer than three years.
Eligibility: Students must be U.S. citizens attending one of the fellowship’s designated institutions. You can find a list of institutions here.
Deadline: January
Key Strategy: The required essay for this fellowship award asks you to draw connections between your education and your career goals. Try to combine your efforts with another scholarship that focuses on supporting post-graduation work, such as the CAPS scholarship (above).
The Hispanic Health Professional Student Scholarship
Dollar amount: Varies
Application process: Online application; full requirements listed here.
Eligibility: U.S. permanent residents, citizens, and DACA recipients are all eligible. Applicants are not required to be Hispanic, but an “affinity for the health of Hispanic communities and an interest in participating in NHHF Scholars Alumni activities is required.” In addition, applicants must be premier members of the National Hispanic Medical Association and have a GPA of 3.0 or higher. Finally, applicants must be enrolled full-time in one of the following U.S.-based accredited graduate programs:
Medicine: allopathic or osteopathic
Dentistry
Pharmacy
Nursing (including BSN)
Master of Public Health or Health Policy
Physician Associate
Deadline: September 24
Key Strategy: This is another scholarship opportunity that prioritizes community-focused applicants, particularly those who are invested in the Hispanic community. Again, you should apply for this scholarship alongside other Hispanic or community service focused awards, such as the Hispanic Scholarship Fund (below) to maximize your essay writing efforts.
Japanese Medical Society of America
Dollar amount: Not currently listed, but in the past awards have ranged from $2,500–$12,000
Application process: Online application form, available here, including a proposal for a project that supports the mission of the JMSA. Examples of past projects include “a service to connect elderly Japanese patients with health care” and “a medical blog in Japanese detailing the experiences of a medical student in America.”
Eligibility: Applicants must be JMSA members and must either be currently enrolled in a healthcare-related graduate school or be a postgraduate medical professional who is in training, such as a resident, fellow, or postdoc. Applicants should also be familiar with Japanese Kanji and/or Katakana.
Deadline: December 31
Key Strategy: This scholarship asks applicants to write their names in Kanji or Katakana and will likely expect them to have some Japanese language skills in order to effectively prove an applicant’s interest in furthering the goals of JMSA. Japanese kanji is notoriously difficult to master and many native Japanese people don’t know the kanji used in highly technical industries, such as medicine. Highlighting your medical Japanese language skills throughout your application will make you stand out.
Joseph Collins Foundation Fellowships
Dollar amount: $10,000
Application process: Institutions must request an application and students must fill it out.
Eligibility: Students must have a variety of interests, and evidence of having pursued those interests, outside the medical field. Examples include involvement in arts and literature, theater, or other “cultural pursuits.” They must be attending a college east of the Mississippi, ranked in the top half of their class, and planning to specialize in neurology, psychiatry, or general practice. For more information about the fellowship, you can see its listing here (which also includes a variety of scholarships for students in the state of North Carolina and for students interested in particular specialties).
Deadline: March 1
Key Strategy: Although the essay for this application asks for a broad autobiography, make sure to stay focused on achievements in the arts and artistic experiences you’ve had while also studying medicine.
Leopold Schepp Foundation Scholarship
Dollar amount: Up to $9,000
Application process: Mail in a request for a formal application. If your request is approved, you will be sent a formal application. You can find a full explanation of the application process here.
Eligibility: The scholarship website notes that the Foundation grants fewer applications to students in professional school than they do to other graduate students. Applicants must be younger than 40, have “a minimum 3.3 GPA on a 4.0 scale,” and be citizens or permanent residents of the U.S.
Deadline: There is no specific deadline for requesting an application. However, there are a limited number of applications sent out each year and they are exhausted quickly. Find more details here.
Key Strategy: This scholarship opportunity has a unique requirement: an in-person interview. By properly preparing to speak about yourself in a professional manner, you will be more competitive as an applicant. Many of the strategies discussed in our med school interview guide can be used in this interview as well.
MPOWER Global Citizenship Scholarship
Dollar amount: $10,000 grand prize; $2,000 given to a runner up and honorable mention.
Application process: Online application.
Eligibility: International students who are legally permitted to study in the U.S. or Canada are eligible (includes DACA recipients and Green Card holders).
Deadline: January 15
Key Strategy: This scholarship isn’t open to just medical students; any type of student can apply. This can be a great advantage to med students, as studying medicine leaves plenty of opportunities to make a tangible impact in your home country and on the global stage, which is the focus of the required essay prompt. Be sure to combine your efforts on this application with similar community-minded scholarship prompts.
The National Health Service Corps Scholarship Program
Dollar amount: Tuition and fees coverage for up to four years
Application process: Online application; full details can be found here.
Eligibility: Students must be training in preparation to enter primary care health professions and be willing to work in underserved areas after graduation for two years. Students must be U.S. citizens or nationals and eligible for federal employment. Full eligibility requirements can be found here.
Deadline: May 11
Key Strategy: This is another scholarship with a focus on community service, so when answering the three essay prompts on the application, be sure to combine your efforts with multiple other community-focused scholarship awards to make the most of your essay writing.
Dollar amount: Various
Application process: Online application. Application processes may vary by specific scholarship: see website for full details. Awards range from offering support for students pursuing rural healthcare to ophthalmology.
Eligibility: Students must be an underrepresented minority in medicine (see the NMF website for full list). Students also must be U.S. citizens or have DACA documentation, and must be enrolled in a graduate-level U.S. healthcare program.
Deadline: Varies by scholarship.
Key Strategy: The application for these scholarships is fairly straightforward and largely based on your performance. Ask for recommendation letters from professors and community leaders that have a personal connection to you and your work, as they will write the best review of your character.
The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans
Dollar amount: $90,000 over two years
Application process: Online application; full details can be found here.
Eligibility: Students must be under 31 years old and be the child of parents born outside of the U.S as non-U.S. citizens.
Deadline: October 28
Key Strategy: Review the essay guide provided on the fellowship’s website. This scholarship opportunity is another one that is open to the general student population, meaning your premed path will naturally help you stand out from the crowd if you focus on your passion for medicine in your writing.
(Further reading: How to Become a Soros Fellow: The Ultimate Guide)
Dollar amount: $10,000
Application process: Students must be nominated by their medical school.
Eligibility: Students must be nominated by their medical school dean’s office or the dean’s designate and be full U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or have DACA status. Third-year med students (the fellowship is for students in their final year) who fit one of the 10 different sub-categories. Many of the categories are based on region (e.g. med students in the New York area), identity group (e.g. African American cardiologists), or academic interests (e.g. students interested in children’s health). A full list of subcategories can be found here.
Deadline: March 31
Key Strategy: Many of the available scholarships ask for very specific types of students. Carefully review each scholarship and only apply to those that match your background and experiences. Try to find scholarships that are similar to other opportunities that you are already writing essays for.
Pisacano Scholars Leadership Program
Dollar amount: Debt reimbursement: up to $28,000
Application process: Physical application must be mailed.
Eligibility: Students must be entering their fourth year in medical school and must have declared family medicine as their specialty.
Deadline: March 1
Key Strategy: This highly competitive scholarship is perfect for overachievers. Due to the high-performing pool of applicants, you’ll do best by staying hyper-focused on the tangible results of any leadership roles you’ve had and any family medicine experience you’ve gained when writing essays and answering questions.
Dollar amount: Unknown
Application process: Apply online.
Eligibility: Students must be “‘out’ as a person who identifies as a member of the LGBTQ community,” and enrolled as a full-time student in the U.S. Citizens of any country are eligible. A full list of eligibility requirements can be found here.
Deadline: January 18
Key Strategy: This foundation aims to support LGBTQ+ and minority students from a wide variety of programs, not just medicine. Focus on how your diversity has affected your life and how your passion for medicine will help you work towards making healthcare better for members of the LGBTQ+ and minority communities. Keep in mind that you may be able to use your essay for other diversity-based scholarships.
Tylenol Future Care Scholarship
Dollar amount: Ten $10,000 & Twenty-five $5,000 awards
Application process: Online application. Full details and application FAQs can be reviewed here.
Eligibility: Students with at least one year of school remaining, who are U.S. residents and who are or will be enrolled in a graduate program in medical school, nursing, and/or pharmacy.
Deadline: August 1
Key Strategy: The essay prompts for this scholarship change slightly every year, but they are typically very straightforward questions about your academic goals. Review the newest prompt and check your other scholarship work for essays that can be easily adapted to this application.
United Health Foundation/NMF Diverse Medical Scholars Program
Dollar amount: $7,000 (renewable)
Application process: Online application; an application checklist can be found here.
Eligibility: 2nd, 3rd, or 4th year medical students may apply. Students must identify as “African American, Latino, Native American, or Asian American (Vietnamese and Cambodian only).” Applicants must also be U.S. citizens or provide DACA documentation, and show “[c]ommitment to serving medically underserved communities.” Full eligibility requirements here.
Deadline: October 17
Key Strategy: This scholarship program is very time-consuming and requires a number of steps to apply, including 200 hours of community service-learning. Be sure to schedule your application alongside other extracurricular activities you need to complete so you can make the most of your time.
Wellesley College M.A. Cartland Shackford Medical Fellowship
Dollar amount: Up to $11,000
Application process: Email application; instructions can be found here.
Eligibility: Women of any nationality who have graduated from any American college or university are eligible to apply. Applicants must be interested in general medical practice, not psychiatry.
Deadline: January 20
Key Strategy: This scholarship focuses on helping women advance in the medical field through education. Try to combine your application work with other scholarships that focus on the unique challenges that women face.
The White Coat Investor Scholarship
Dollar amount: The scholarship awards upwards of $70,000, split equally among ten students. All winners also receive a White Coat Investor online course.
Application process: Online application, including an 800–1200 word essay on a topic of your choice.
Eligibility: Students cannot come from an online school background and must be enrolled full-time in a medical school or other professional program (law, dentistry, pharmacy, and others). While schools must be located in the U.S., students of any citizenship appear to be eligible.
Deadline: August 31
Key Strategy: This application asks for an essay that is 800-1200 words long about any topic. If you feel you are qualified for this scholarship, simply use another application essay when applying; just be sure not to go over the 1200-word limit, as it’s strictly enforced.
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List of medical school scholarships for specific populations
In addition to the general scholarships listed above, there’s also a plethora of options open to students who affiliate with specific cultural, ethnic, racial, religious, and cultural identity groups. As we mentioned a few times above, do your best to combine your efforts when writing essays, just as you did when applying to college and med school. Here’s a quick list of additional scholarships that you may qualify for:
African American: Empire State Medical Association Scholarship Award (NY)
Armenian descent: Armenian Students Association (ASA) Scholarships
Greek descent: Hellenic Medical Society of New York
Hispanic: Hispanic Scholarship Fund
Iranian descent: Iranian-American Scholarship Fund
Italian descent: The National Italian American Foundation Scholarship
Jewish: Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago Vocational Service Scholarship (IL); Albert Strickler Memorial, Samuel F. and Sara G. Feinman, and Dr. Hirsch Herman Funds
Korean descent: Ryu Family Foundation Seol Bong Scholarship
LGBTQ+: Women in Medicine Scholarships (WIM). See also Point Foundation Scholarships above.
Methodist Church members: World Communion Program
Native American: Indian Health Service Health Professions Scholarship (additional opportunities can be found here and here)
Polish descent: Dr. Marie E. Zakrzewski Medical Scholarship
South Asian Indian descent: Endowment for South Asian Students of Indian Descent Scholarship Fund
There are also many scholarships available for students based on their hometown, home state, or state in which they attend school or plan to practice. Brown University keeps a great database for medical school scholarships with regional and specialty affiliation. They also catalogue a number of additional scholarships in the ethnic/religious/cultural affiliation category.
Final thoughts
In conclusion, it’s valuable to search for awards generally, but also to take stock of your identity and your goals when applying for medical school scholarships. In what field do you hope to specialize after graduation? Which communities are you passionate about serving? Where do you hope to practice? By answering these questions, you can open up a whole new world of fellowship opportunities and begin a well-considered, targeted search for financial help.
About the Author
Dr. Shirag Shemmassian is the Founder of Shemmassian Academic Consulting and one of the world's foremost experts on medical school admissions. For nearly 20 years, he and his team have helped thousands of students get into medical school using his exclusive approach.
