Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Accepting Applications

June 13, 2012 — 

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is announcing the release of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) Request for Applications (RFA). The FY 2012 VMLRP application package will be available at http://www.nifa.usda.gov/vmlrp on Monday, April 16, 2012 and applications are due by Friday, June 15, 2012.

This USDA program, authorized by the National Veterinary Medical Services Act (NVMSA), helps qualified veterinarians offset a significant portion of the debt incurred in pursuit of their veterinary medicine degrees in return for their service in certain high-priority veterinary shortage situations. The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) will carry out NVMSA by entering into educational loan repayment agreements with veterinarians who agree to provide veterinary services in veterinarian shortage situations for a determined period of time.

If you commit to at least three years to providing veterinary services in a designated veterinary shortage area, NIFA may repay up to $25,000 of your student loan debt per year. Loan repayment benefits are limited to payments of the principal and interest on government and commercial loans you received for the attendance at an accredited college of veterinary medicine resulting in a degree of Doctor of Veterinary Medicine or the equivalent. Be sure to review the eligibility requirements to determine if you and your loans are eligible for the VMLRP.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gary Sherman; National Program Leader, Veterinary Science; National Institute of Food and Agriculture; U.S. Department of Agriculture; STOP 2240; 1400 Independence Avenue SW.; Washington, DC 20250-2240; Voice: 202-401-4952; Fax: 202-401-6156; Email: gsherman@nifa.usda.gov.