You do the research. NIH will repay your student loans. That is the idea behind the National Institutes of Health Loan Repayment Programs (LRPs).

NIH wants to encourage outstanding health professionals to pursue careers in biomedical, behavioral, social, and clinical research. If you commit at least two years to conducting qualified research funded by a domestic nonprofit organization or U.S. federal, state, or local government entity, NIH may repay up to $35,000 of your qualified student loan debt per year, including most undergraduate, graduate, and medical school loans. Loan repayment benefits are in addition to the institutional salary you receive for your research.

If you are or will be conducting qualified research at a domestic nonprofit institution outside NIH, you may be eligible for one of the five extramural LRPs:

• Clinical Research
• Pediatric Research
• Health Disparities Research
• Contraception and Infertility Research
• Clinical Research for Individuals from Disadvantaged Backgrounds

You may submit only one LRP application to NIH in any fiscal year, even though your research may be appropriate for more than one of the programs.

For more information, visit the NIH Loan Repayment Program site:

http://www.lrp.nih.gov/index.aspx

Read the latest information and funding opportunity notices:

• Extramural Loan Repayment Program for Clinical Researchers (LRP-CR): Program Specific Information - NOT-OD-09-108
• Extramural Pediatric Research Loan Repayment Program (LRP-PR): Program Specific Information - NOT-OD-09-109
• Extramural Loan Repayment Program for Health Disparities Research (LRP-HDR): Program Specific Information - NOT-OD-09-110
• Extramural Loan Repayment Program for Contraception and Infertility Researchers (LRP-CIR): Program Specific Information - NOT-OD-09-111
• Extramural Clinical Research Loan Repayment Program for Individuals from Disadvantaged Backgrounds (LRP-IDB): Program Specific Information - NOT-OD-09-112

Applicants must meet the eligibility requirements!  Read about the eligbility requirements here:

http://www.lrp.nih.gov/eligibility/index.aspx

LRP Process:

Applicants are required to apply online. For step-by-step instructions, go to:

LRP Application Guide