Four Western Valley Regional Service Commission scholarships available
Last year, the New Brunswick Medical Education Foundation had 205 applicants and awarded 177 scholarships. With its four new scholarships, Alyssa Long, the foundation’s Executive Director, says the foundation expects to receive more applicants this year.
The new scholarships are worth $10,000 and come with a return-to-service agreement—in which a student pledges to return to New Brunswick for work. If they don’t, the scholarship becomes repayable, specific to the area served by the Western New Brunswick Valley Regional Service Commission.
The registered charity’s goal is to improve health care across the province by using its return-to-service scholarships for New Brunswick medical and allied health students who commit to practicing in the province after graduation.
“It’s really making an incredible impact, not just for the students themselves, but for the communities and patients who will benefit from their care in the years to come,” said Long
The foundation was started in 2010 by New Brunswick physicians. Long says Dr. Donald Craig, in particular, was worried about the decline of physicians, nurses, and other health care providers in the province as he approached retirement.
“He’d been in practice for about 40 years, and he didn’t see young doctors coming into the province. So he began thinking about how we spend a lot of resources on bringing in physicians from out of province, but what are we doing to support the next generation,” said Long.
Today, the New Brunswick Medical Education Foundation awards over $1.4 million in annual tuition support, with its support rate for eligible applicants sitting at 80 per cent. However, Long says their long-term goal is to increase it to 100 per cent.
Their scholarships range from $2,500 to $25,000 per year, depending on donor contributions.
Long says she hopes more students in Western New Brunswick apply.
Students interested can apply to the official New Brunswick Medical Foundation website, under the “Scholarship” tab.
The application deadline is May 31.
