Allied Health
This program has been suspended for the 2010-2011 academic year and is no longer available.
The Allied Health Career Program provides service cancelable loans to students preparing for professions in which there is a personnel shortage in Georgia.
Your loan amount will depend on your field of study and the appropriation of funds for this program.
Value
The maximum loan amount per academic year, including both subsidized and unsubsidized amounts is $2,000 except as noted below.
- Ladders In Nursing Careers (LINC) $3,000
- General Dentistry $3,500
- Department of Human Resources (DHR) Nursing $4,000
- Nursing and Nurse Anesthesia annual amounts are graduated awards as follows: $2,500 freshman year, $3,500 sophomore year, $4,000 junior year, $4,500 senior year.
You may not borrow more than an amount equal to the cost of attendance minus any other financial aid received.
Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible for a service cancelable loan, you must be accepted for admission or enrolled in an approved program of study.
If you are enrolled in a "pre-field" program such as pre-pharmacy and pre-dentistry, you are not eligible.
In addition, students must also meet the following:
- Be a United States citizen, United States national, or eligible non-citizen;
- Be a legal resident of Georgia as defined by GSFA;
- Be accepted for admission or enrolled as at least a half-time student in a GSFA-approved postsecondary educational institution;
- Be accepted for admission or enrolled in good academic standing as determined by the school and maintain at least a C average, except where otherwise specified;
- Not owe a refund on any Federal Pell Grant, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), or Student Incentive Grant (SIG);
- Not be in default on any federal education loan; and
- Have completed core curriculum and be accepted for admission in an approved critical field of study.
Service Commitment
After graduation, you may repay your loan by working in your field of study.
For each calendar year of full-time qualifying service, you may cancel one academic year of assistance.
One-half credit will be given for half-time employment.
If you are unable to repay your loan through service, the loan must be repaid in cash with a minimum monthly payment of $50.00 after your grace period has expired.
Click here 
to obtain the forms necessary to start your loan cancellation.
Application Procedure
For the Allied Health Application, click here 
.
You must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and have the results sent to the college you plan to attend.
The college will then determine your eligibility for financial aid including this loan program.
You should check with the financial aid office to make sure you do not need to do any other paperwork.
The only lender in Georgia that participates in the Federal Stafford Loan Program with the Service Option is the Georgia Student Finance Authority, 833624.
View the current Stafford Loan interest rates.
Origination and federal default fees are set by federal statute and are deducted from loan proceeds.
The origination fee is currently 0.5% for Stafford loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2009 and the federal default fee is currently 1.0% for Stafford loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2009.
Loan Disbursement
Upon approval, you will receive a Loan Guarantee and Disclosure Statement outlining the anticipated disbursement schedule, as determined by your school, for each loan guaranteed.
You will also receive a Service Loan Contract, which details the service loan information and repayment information.
Loans are disbursed directly to your school usually in at least two disbursements.
You must contact the Financial Aid Office to make arrangements to receive your loan proceeds.
Critical Fields
The approved critical fields of study are listed below.
Some fields are approved for graduate or upper level undergraduate studies only.
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Undergraduate/Health
- Dental Hygiene
- Dietetics (Food and Nutrition)
- Health Information Management (formerly Medical Records)
- Laboratory Technology
- Medical Technology
- Nurse Anesthesia
- Nursing, licensed Practical
- Nursing, Registered (Associate Degree, Bachelor's Degree, and Diploma)
- Occupational Therapy
- Pharmacy
- Physician Assistant
- Radiologic Technology
- Respiratory Therapy
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Graduate Health Fields
- Dentistry (General)
- Optometry
- Pharmacy
- Veterinary Medicine
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Master's Degree
- Dietetics (Food and Nutrition)
- Health Information Management (formerly Medical Records)
- Nursing
- Physical Therapy
- Radiologic Technology
- Respiratory Therapy
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Other:
- Agriculture Education
- Gerontology
- DHR Nursing
- LINC Nursing
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To learn more about these and other career fields, please visit our Explore Careers section.
If you are interested in a specific school and want to determine what fields of study they offer, please visit our Explore Schools section.
More Information
To download our General Information Guide on Service Cancelable Loans, please click here .
For further details, you can see the Federal Stafford Loan with Service Cancelable Loan Option regulations .