Healthcare students and graduates living or seeking employment in rural, regional and remote NSW can now apply for 9 types of scholarships designed to support their studies and boost the state's regional health workforce.
Minister for Regional Health Ryan Park today opened the first round of the NSW Government's $5 million Rural and Regional Health Career Scholarships Program for 2025, which support Students of Nursing, Midwifery, Medicine, Dentistry and Allied Health.
Applications are now open for the Diploma of Nursing Rural Travel Support Incentive, which provides financial travel assistance for Diploma of Nursing students from a rural area (Modified Monash Model locations 3 or above) and live more than 100km (one way) from the Registered Training Organisation. Eligible students can apply for a travel incentive of $5,000 to go towards the cost of travel and accommodation related to their Diploma of Nursing studies.
Applications are also open for the New Graduate Nursing and Midwifery Rural Support Incentive, which provides a one-off payment of $1,000 to support relocation costs for non-local graduate registered nurses and midwives seeking employment in identified rural or remote LHD locations.
These scholarships are expected to support more than 1,100 healthcare workers.
The full list of scholarships include:
- Diploma of Nursing Rural Travel Support Incentive
- New Graduate Nursing and Midwifery Rural Support Incentive
- Allied Health Rural Generalist Program (Level 1) Scholarship
- Allied Health Rural Generalist Diploma Rural Practice (Level 2) Scholarship
- Rural Allied Health Assistant Scholarship
- Aboriginal Rural Allied Health University Student Scholarship
- Supporting Entry into University Medicine or Dentistry Scholarship (GAMSAT)
- Supporting Entry into University Medicine or Dentistry Scholarship (UCAT)
- Getting Started in Medicine Scholarship for First Year Students
For more information on the $5 million Rural and Regional Health Career Scholarships Program, including eligibility criteria and opening dates, visit the NSW Health website.
These scholarships build on a series of measures The Minns Labor Government has introduced to strengthen the state's health workforce including:
- Implementing the Safe Staffing Levels initiative in our emergency departments
- Providing permanent funding for 1,112 FTE nurses and midwives on an ongoing basis
- Abolishing the wages cap and delivering the highest pay increase in more than a decade for nurses and other health workers
- Investing an additional $200.1 million in key worker accommodation
- Beginning to roll out 500 additional paramedics in regional, rural and remote communities
- Boosting subsidies for regional health workers.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Regional Health Ryan Park:
"Staffing our regional, rural and remote healthcare facilities is a major challenge.
"This year the program is expected to support 150 nursing and midwifery students, 100 medical and dentistry and 35 allied health students from regional, rural and remote locations while they undertake their healthcare studies.
"This Program is helping to strengthen our regional, rural and remote health workforce in NSW, which will result in improved experiences for patients living in these locations."
Quotes attributable to Minister for Regional NSW Tara Moriarty:
"Ensuring rural and regional communities have access to the best healthcare is a key priority for the Minns Government and also a significant challenge.
"These scholarships are not just a great opportunity for regional and rural students looking for a career in healthcare, but they will also play a part in helping recruit and retain healthcare workers in our regional communities."
