When you begin your employment search, you will need to review the steps on this page:
- Understand Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) scores
- Understand your practice requirements
- Use the Health Workforce Connector to identify eligible sites
- Explore other resources to find eligible sites
- Contact sites
- Understand extension requests
Understand Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) scores
As a Nurse Corps scholar, you must complete your service requirement at a health care site in an underserved area.
You will use HPSA scores to help you identify eligible health care facilities.
- HPSA scores are calculated for three disciplines: primary care, mental health, and dental health.
- HPSAs are federally designated in conjunction with each state and county, subject to change, and range from 0 (least need) to 26 (highest need).
- You must serve at a site that has a primary care or mental health HPSA score of 14 or higher.
- Use the Find Shortage Areas page to look up HPSAs by address and by state/territory or county.
- Message your assigned analyst to get answers to your HPSA questions.
Understand your practice requirements
- Full-time clinical practice is 32 or more hours per week, with at least 26 hours per week spent providing clinical services or direct patient care at the approved site.
- Part-time clinical practice is a minimum of 16 hours and up to 31 hours per week.
- With Nurse Corps approval, you may work less than 32 hours weekly. This will extend your length of service.
- You may start a job at less than 32 hours then adjust to full-time work. To request a switch to full-time work, submit a request in the BHW Customer Service Portal.
Use the Health Workforce Connector to identify eligible sites
The Health Workforce Connector is the primary tool to search for Nurse Corps jobs.
The Health Workforce Connector lists Nurse Corps Scholarship Program sites. Each site record contains details on the site point of contact, site status (active or inactive), Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) scores, and job opportunities.
Recommended search in the Health Workforce Connector:
- Keyword: Leave blank.
- Location: Enter the zip code in a location you are interested in working.
- HPSA Scores: Select 14 for the minimum HPSA score for primary care or mental health.
- Additional Filters: Select Show Sites to maximize your search results.
- Select Search.
- Under Search Results you will see two tabs: Opportunities and Sites. Select Sites to view a list of sites.
- Select a site to view its profile.
- On the profile:
- Under Site Status, ensure that Nurse Corps Active Site appears.
- If a site is not active for Nurse Corps, but is an eligible site type, the site can be activated. Check with your analyst.
- Under HPSA and Other Scores, refer to the Nurse Corps HPSA Scores.
- Under Site Details tab, some sites list their point of contact information. If so, contact the point of contact directly to learn about opportunities that may not be posted.
Explore other resources to find eligible sites
Not all eligible sites are listed in the Health Workforce Connector. In addition, not all Nurse Corps sites post their employment opportunities using the Health Workforce Connector. For that reason, we encourage you to use other job search engines and check websites for eligible Critical Shortage Facilities. Also, review the websites of Nurse Corps active locations. Sites may post on their facility website and not in the Health Workforce Connector.
Refer to the Application and Program Guidance (PDF - 546 KB) for definitions of each Critical Shortage Facility site type.
Eligible Critical Shortage Facility Site Types
- Community-Based Settings
- Ambulatory Surgical Center
- American Indian Health Facility
- Community Mental Health Center
- End Stage Renal Disease Dialysis Center
- Federally Qualified Health Center
- Free and Charitable Clinic
- Home Health Agency
- Hospice Program
- Native Hawaiian Health Center
- Nurse-Managed Health Clinic/Center
- Outpatient Facility
- Residential Nursing Home
- Rural Health Clinic
- School-Based Clinic
- State or Local Health Department
- Urgent Care Center
- Hospitals
- Disproportionate Share Hospital
- Public Hospital
- Private Hospital
- State Psychiatric Hospital*
*Must use facility HPSA to determine site eligibility
- Ineligible Site Types and Employment Statuses
- Clinics in prisons and correctional facilities
- Any entity that is not located in a HPSA
- Nurse Staffing Agency/Travel Nurse Agency or equivalent Contracting Agencies
- Nurses working Pro Re Nata (PRN) or on an as needed basis
Contact sites
You are responsible for connecting with potential employers at Nurse Corps-approved sites that meet your HPSA requirement.
- Create a personalized profile on the Health Workforce Connector.
- You can choose to make your profile searchable in different states so that site points of contact can find you. You can also use the "Connect with Site" feature after you have a personalized profile created. Be sure to follow up through a phone call or email to the site.
- Communicate with potential employers to obtain an interview and a job offer at an eligible active Nurse Corps site with a primary care or mental care HPSA of 14 or higher.
- You may be employed at multiple work sites if they are within a single network or employer. All sites must be Active Nurse Corps sites with a primary care or mental health HPSA of 14 or higher.
Understand extension requests
If you obtained your license but are unable to secure employment within nine months of graduation, you may request a one-time six-month employment search extension through the BHW Customer Service Portal.
- Submit your request in the BHW Customer Service Portal under Request Employment Search Extension. This option will populate in the portal 45 days before your employment search deadline.
- We review extension requests and will notify you of the final decision.
- If approved, the extension is for six months from the end of your nine-month employment search, for a total 15-month employment search.
- If you exceed the 15-month employment search deadline, you will be in breach of contract and recommended for default.
Contact us
Call 1-800-221-9393
(TTY: 1-877-897-9910) M – F, 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. ET
(except federal holidays)
Email us or GetHelp@hrsa.gov
BHW Customer Service Portal, select Ask a Question