The University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing has been awarded $150,000 from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing to support 15 incoming students in the June 2010 cohort of the Accelerated Program, each of whom will receive scholarships of $10,000.

Launched last year, the RWJF New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program aims to address the national nursing shortage and increase diversity in the nursing profession through supporting students in fast-track nursing programs who have already earned degrees in other fields. This is the second year Penn Nursing has received $150,000 in scholarship funds.

"In addition to the University's generous no-loan policy for undergraduates, this grant has been a great recruitment tool to ensure the best and brightest students interested in nursing are able to pursue their educational goals at Penn," says Carol Ladden, assistant dean of admissions and financial aid.

At the University of Pennsylvania, students whose families earn less than $60,000 annually are eligible for no-loan packages. In the incoming 2009 Second Degree cohort, approximately two-thirds of students who applied for financial aid received grants of $30,000 or more.

The recipients of the New Careers in Nursing Scholarship will be selected in the spring of 2010.