Coverdell

Paul D. Coverdell Peace Corps Fellowship

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The Paul D. Coverdell Fellows Program provides scholarships to returned Peace Corps volunteers who complete a degree-related internship in an underserved American community while they pursue their studies. The fellowship program is based in the School of Nursing's Lillian Carter Center for Global Health & Social Responsibility.

Coverdell Fellows will receive up to a 25% fellowship to study full-time in the MN, MN Pathway to MSN, or MSN program. The fellow is required to complete internships/clinical hours with organizations working with underserved communities in the United States and to model cultural humility throughout their degree program(s). To date, returning Peace Corps volunteers have worked in clinics for refugees and other immigrant populations, homeless, and at-risk-youth.

Benefits of the Coverdell program include: 

  • Financial Assistance: Fellows selected for the program will receive up to a 25% fellowship that covers tuition and fees
  • Working with low-resource communities: Emory Coverdell Fellows will participate in a Lillian Carter Center immersion experience and complete an internship(s) at Atlanta-based organizations that serve low-resource communities in the United States.
  • Furthering the Peace Corps Mission by sharing their Peace Corps experience and global perspective with the communities they serve here in the United States.
Coverdell

Advancing Care Delivery

"My experience in the Peace Corps and as a Coverdell Fellow changed the way I view and provide health care. It also shaped my research, which focuses on access to sexual and reproductive services. I love working with the Coverdell Fellows at the School of Nursing and I am excited to hear from prospective students."

Helen Baker

Coverdell Fellows Program Director

Requirements

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Eligibility

To qualify for the program, applicants must:

  • Satisfy completion of Peace Corps Service.
  • Meet School of Nursing admissions requirements.
  • Be enrolled as a full-time student in either the MN, MN Pathway to MSN, or MSN programs.
  • Maintain full-time student status and a 3.5 GPA.
  • Fellows are expected to actively participate in community of scholarship and service.

Fellows must also:

  • Intern/complete clinical hours at an Atlanta-based organization that serves low-resource communities in the United States that matches the fellow’s interest and experience (minimum 100 hours/year)
  • Organizations include, but are not limited to:‍
    • Free Clinics: Community Advanced Practice Nurses, Good Samaritan Health Center, BP SOS, Clarkston Community Health Center‍
    • Mentoring: Health Career Academy‍
    • Teaching: Refugee Family Literacy and Fugees Academy
  • Participate in a LCC immersion experience and be a peer mentor to other students in the immersion course.
  • Take on leadership roles and provide guidance when working in underserved clinical settings.
  • Support the Peace Corps’ third goal: “To help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans”

Applications

Applications for the 2027 enrollment cycle will be available soon.

Contact nursingquestions@emory.edu with questions.

Contact Us

We are here to help if you have questions or need additional information about the Coverdell Fellows program. 

Contact: Helen Baker, Assistant Dean for Pre-Licensure helen.baker@emory.edu