The US Department of Health and Human Services has made funding available to the University to loan to master’s and doctoral degree candidates who are committed to becoming nurse educators in an academic setting. The program offers partial loan forgiveness for borrowers that graduate and serve as full-time nursing faculty. Awards are made by the Department of Nursing in consultation with the Financial Aid Office and are offered to eligible students on a first come, first served basis; renewal of the award in subsequent academic years is made on a funds available basis and is conditional upon the recipient having maintained Satisfactory Academic Progress (i.e., having earned a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 for all coursework completed at Monmouth University). Award amounts will not exceed the per semester value of tuition, fees, and books less any other grant, scholarship, or assistantship funding. To be eligible for the loan, students must be a US citizen or eligible non-citizen, enrolled as a student in good standing (i.e., registered for at least 3 credits per term) in the Nursing Education MSN program or the DNP program and must not have judgment liens against him/her based on the default of a federal debt. Once the loan offer has been made, the Financial Aid Office will provide to the student loan documents (i.e. loan application, promissory note, rights and responsibilities, and self-certification) to be completed each year in which the loan is awarded. Samples of all loan related documents are available for review.
The NFLP loan will accrue interest on the unpaid balance of the loan beginning three (3) months after the student graduates, withdraws from the program or the University, or fails to return to the University after an approved Leave of Absence of no longer than 9 months. Interest will accrue at the rate of 3% per annum for students who graduate from the program, while students who fail to complete the program will be assessed interest at the prevailing market rate.
The NFLP loan is repayable over a 10-year period beginning 10 months (9 month grace period and 1 monthly billing cycle) after the borrower completes the program, ceases to be enrolled, or ceases to be employed as full-time nurse faculty (i.e., enters repayment). Loan repayment is billed on a monthly cycle and, as such, the first payment is due one month after the student enters repayment following a 9 month grace period; students who re-enroll after withdrawing from the University or who return after a LOA and who register for at least 6 credits will have payments suspended until such time as they again meet the requirements to enter repayment.
Once the student graduates, it is expected that they will be employed as a full-time faculty member at an accredited school of nursing, and upon completion of each of the first, second, and third consecutive years of employment 20% of the remaining principle and interest will be cancelled. Starting with FY2022, under NFLP, “Full-time” nurse faculty employment is defined as being employed as a full-time faculty member at an accredited school of nursing, being employed as a part-time faculty member at an accredited school of nursing in combination with another part-time faculty position or part-time clinical preceptor/educator position affiliated with an accredited school of nursing that together equate to full-time employment, or employment as designated joint-appointment nurse faculty serving as full-time advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) preceptor within an academic-practice partnership framework affiliated with an accredited school of nursing. Upon completion of the fourth year of employment 25% of the remaining principle and interest will be cancelled. (Note that if the borrower fails to complete the fourth consecutive year of employment, the interest rate will revert to the prevailing market interest rate.) The student is responsible for repayment of any remaining principle and interest balance.