Health Information Technology Scholarships

Programs That Lead to Well-paying Jobs

Digital record-keeping has generated a new range of vocational training opportunities, including studies in health information technology (health IT). The U. S. Department of Health & Human Services is promoting the use of health IT at all medical providers’ facilities, with the goal of enlarging the collection and sharing of medical histories in order to improve heath care nationwide. For privacy reasons, data security is a critical part of health IT efforts, and the best place to keep up with the latest developments in the field is a website called HealthIT.gov.

As a health information technician, you will maintain the electronic health records (EHRs) to which old paper files containing patient records are being moved. Your entire medical life will eventually be available as an EHR, and all the information contained therein will be accessible at every visit to a provider. Many health information technicians are trained in community colleges, and that’s where you’ll find most of the available scholarship aid. Employment in this field is growing quickly, and with the growth comes more financial aid.

Scholarships From Colleges

Rochester Community and Technical College

The Health Information Technology Program developed by Rochester Community and Technical College (RCTC), located in the same town as the Mayo Clinic, includes an associates degree in health IT. The RCTC Foundation administers most of the school’s scholarships, and here are some examples of what you will find:

• The Hoffman Technical Scholarship is given to a new student seeking a two-year degree in a technical field, including health IT. You must show passing grades and financial need.
• The Dalsbo Family Scholarship, for students in medical fields, looks for a student with at least a 2.5 GPA and financial need, or a student who did not attend college during the four years after high school graduation. Local residents are preferred.
• The 40 & 8 Cabane Scholarship is open to students in medical fields who are pursuing two-year degrees.
• The Dr. Harold and Loraine T. Perry Scholarship is for students seeking medical or health careers.

Tarrant County College

The Tarrant County College Foundation has created the Texas Health Resources Scholarship for students in the allied health program, which includes health IT. You must take at least nine semester hours, a GPA of 3.0 is desirable but 2.75 is accepted, and the information on your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) must qualify you for financial aid.

This award will be renewed automatically as long as you meet the guidelines, and the time limit is six semesters for an associates student and three for a certificate student. It is worth $500 per semester.

Oakton Community College

Oakton Community College, with campuses in Des Plaines and Skokie, awards the Health Information Technology Scholarship to a student in the associates program. You may attend full-or part-time, and a GPA of 3.0 is required. Health IT students may also apply for the Skokie Hospital Health Careers Scholarship, for which part-time enrollment is also permitted.

Central Piedmont Community College

Central Piedmont Community College provides scholarship aid through the REACH IT program for underemployed workers who have two-year degrees and want to switch to health IT. The program’s name is an acronym for Regional Effort to Advance Charlotte Information Technology, and it is a workforce development program.

Scholarships From Private Organizations

In addition to community colleges, the other usual sources for scholarships in health IT are medical facilities (local doctors, hospitals) and professional organizations, both of which have an interest in training future professionals. The following information illustrates that point.

Virginia Foundation for Community College Education

The Virginia Foundation for Community College Education is now advertising the Kathy Camper Commonwealth Legacy Scholarship, reserved for community college students, which specifies information technology as one of the targeted majors and brings $2,500. The foundation also offers numerous other awards for Virginia students in local community colleges, for many of which health IT students are eligible.

Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare

Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare sponsors the Covenant Medical Center Auxiliary and Sartori Memorial Hospital Auxiliary Scholarships, usually referred to as the Covenant-Sartori Scholarships. These are distributed to graduating high school seniors who will enter health-related degree programs, including health IT. The three main criteria for these awards are your academic history, financial need, and citizenship, and you must also reside in one of eight nearby counties: Black Hawk, Benton, Bremer, Buchanan, Butler, Fayette, Grundy, or Tama.

American Health Information Management Association

The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) and its many regional chapters underwrite scholarships to support their student members in obtaining their health IT credentials. Its philanthropic arm, the AHIMA Foundation, lists four merit scholarships by educational level, beginning with the $1,000 award for associates students. Here are a few examples of the states whose chapters hand out scholarships: Washington, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Texas.

More information about scholarships for the closely related field of health informatics can be found here.