Student Loan Repayment

Physician must make a four-year service commitment to practice full-time in a designated medical shortage area in NM.
Awards up to $75,000 a year
Applications open June 1 and close on July 31, 2026
NM professional license required by the date funding begins

Must come from disadvantaged background
Must make a two-year service commitment to serve at eligible health professions school.
Awards up to $40,000 for loan assistance

Up to $120,000 of tax-exempt loan repayment funds
Eligibility requirements:
- U.S. Citizen or U.S. National
- Full-time student in final year: medical, nursing, or dental school
- Pursuing MD/DO, DDS/DMD, NP, CNM, or PA
Requires three years of full-time clinical practice at an NHSC-approved site in a HPSA. (Full-time clinical practice means at least 40 hours per week, for at least 45 weeks each service year.)
Up to an additional $40,000 for those specializing in obstetrics, gynecology, or family medicine physicians regularly practicing obstetrics, and certified nurse midwives

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Several different loan repayment programs and stipends administered by the Health Resources and Services (HRSA)
Participation in NHSC programs must be performed in Health Professional Shortage Areas/Populations (HPSA/Ps). HPSA scores as well as amount of support will be determined by the NHSC each year.

Loan forgiveness program available for direct loans or federal loans consolidated into a direct consolidated loan. Must be employed full-time and have made 120 loan payments.

The New Mexico Department of Health administers the Tax Credit Program for Health Care Professionals. Eligible health care practitioners who have provided health care services in a designated rural health care underserved area can apply for an income tax credit up to $5,000 per year.

The IHS LRP funds IHS assists clinicians to repay their eligible health profession education loans — up to $50,000 — in exchange for an initial two-year service commitment to practice in health facilities serving American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

The above programs are competitive. Application does not guarantee funding. Awards and programs are subject to legislative appropriation.

For more information on programs contact: