Education & Student Aid · Surprise rank #269
Registered Nurse Going Back for a Graduate Degree? NY Offers Up to $20,000 a Year
The Senator Patricia K. McGee Nursing Faculty Scholarship pays New York-licensed RNs up to $20,000 a year toward a graduate nursing degree, in exchange for teaching nursing in New York afterward. It is competitive and depends on available funding.
Who
Registered nurses licensed to practice in New York State who are enrolled in an accredited master's or doctoral nursing program in New York and intend to teach nursing.
Where: New York State — study at a New York nursing school and teach in New York afterward.
What to do
Start here: Check HESC's McGee Nursing Faculty Scholarship page for the next application opening and file the FAFSA and TAP application, which are required each year for payment. Your nursing school's financial aid office can tell you when the cycle typically opens.
Eligibility: Licensed New York RN; legal New York resident for at least one year; U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen; matriculated in an accredited graduate nursing program in New York State leading to a nursing faculty or adjunct clinical faculty career; not in default on a student loan or NYS award, and in compliance with any prior NYS award service condition.
What you get
The scholarship supports licensed registered nurses enrolled in a graduate program that leads to a career as nursing faculty or adjunct clinical faculty, with the goal of easing New York's nursing-instructor shortage. Recipients take on a service obligation to teach nursing in New York State after finishing.
Benefit: Up to $20,000 a year, or the average cost of attendance for a graduate program at a state-operated SUNY, whichever is less.
Possible value: Up to $20,000 a year while enrolled, but this is a competitive award subject to funding, so applying does not mean receiving. Renewal is not automatic and priority goes to students who already hold the award.
Good to know
Important: This is a competitive, funding-limited award, not an entitlement — meeting every requirement does not guarantee an award, and renewals are prioritized over new applicants. There is also a post-graduation service obligation to teach nursing in New York; failing to meet it converts the scholarship into a repayable loan. The application was not open on HESC's scholarship index as of August 10, 2026.
Availability: Active but application-cycle dependent and funding-limited; not shown as accepting applications on HESC's scholarship index as of August 10, 2026.
Why people miss it: Working nurses assume graduate school is self-funded or employer-reimbursed, and the scholarship is aimed at a narrow career path that most bedside nurses never consider.
Sources reviewed: Aug 10, 2026