Financial incentives for new nursing faculty
Financial incentive programs offer scholarships, loan repayment or loan forgiveness in exchange for a teaching commitment, or more competitive salaries for nursing graduate students who choose to pursue careers as nursing faculty. Programs can be initiated by the public sector, philanthropic groups, academic institutions, or the health care industry (Allan JD, Aldebron J. A systematic assessment of strategies to address the nursing faculty shortage, US Nursing Outlook. 2008;56(6):286-97.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Allan 2008). As of 2016, nursing schools report needing over 1,500 additional faculty members to meet student demand (AACN-Nursing faculty).
Expected Beneficial Outcomes (Rated)
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Increased availability of nursing faculty
Evidence of Effectiveness
Offering financial incentives to nursing graduate students who agree to teach in nursing undergraduate or graduate programs is a suggested strategy to increase the number and availability of nursing faculty (Gerolamo AM, Conroy K, Roemer G, et al. Long-term outcomes of the New Jersey nurse faculty preparation program scholars. Nursing Outlook. 2017;65(5):643-651.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Gerolamo 2017, McDermid F, Peters K, Jackson D, Daly J. Factors contributing to the shortage of nurse faculty: A review of the literature. Nurse Education Today. 2012;32(5):565-9.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)McDermid 2012, Morgan JC, Oermann MH, Pathman DE, et al. An evaluation of state-based support-for-service programs targeting nurse faculty. Nursing Education Perspectives. 2014;35(5):280–286.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Morgan 2014, Fox RL, Abrahamson K. A critical examination of the US nursing shortage: Contributing factors, public policy implications. Nursing Forum. 2009;44(4):235-44.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Fox 2009a, Rich KL, Nugent KE. A United States perspective on the challenges in nursing education. Nurse Education Today. 2010;30(3):228-32.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Rich 2010, Allan JD, Aldebron J. A systematic assessment of strategies to address the nursing faculty shortage, US Nursing Outlook. 2008;56(6):286-97.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Allan 2008, Siela D, Twibell KR, Keller V. The shortage of nurses and nursing faculty: What critical care nurses can do. AACN Advanced Critical Care. 2008;19(1):66-77.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Siela 2008, AACN-Nursing faculty). By encouraging highly educated nurses to teach, such programs may improve the teaching quality in nursing schools (Young LK, Adams JL, Lundeen S, et al. Nurses for Wisconsin: A collaborative initiative to enhance the nurse educator workforce. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2016;32(4):292-299.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Young 2016). Available evidence suggests that the cost of higher education and the salary gap between nurses working in academia and clinical settings are barriers to nurses pursuing careers as nursing faculty (Westphal J, Marnocha S, Chapin T. A pilot study to explore nurse educator workforce issues. Nursing Education Perspectives. 2016;37(3):171-173.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Westphal 2016, Oermann MH, Lynn MR, Agger CA. Hiring intentions of directors of nursing programs related to DNP- and PhD-prepared faculty and roles of faculty. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2016;32(3):173-179.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Oermann 2016, Nardi DA, Gyurko CC. The global nursing faculty shortage: Status and solutions for change. Journal of Nursing Scholarship. 2013;45(3):317–326.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Nardi 2013); the salary gap between nurses in academia and other faculty may also be a disincentive (Dreifuerst KT, McNelis AM, Weaver MT, et al. Exploring the pursuit of doctoral education by nurses seeking or intending to stay in faculty roles. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2016;32(3):202–212.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Dreifuerst 2016, Morgan JC, Oermann MH, Pathman DE, et al. An evaluation of state-based support-for-service programs targeting nurse faculty. Nursing Education Perspectives. 2014;35(5):280–286.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Morgan 2014). However, financial incentives alone may not be enough to mitigate the nursing faculty shortage (McDermid F, Peters K, Jackson D, Daly J. Factors contributing to the shortage of nurse faculty: A review of the literature. Nurse Education Today. 2012;32(5):565-9.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)McDermid 2012, Duvall JJ, Andrews DR. Using a structured review of the literature to identify key factors associated with the current nursing shortage. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2010;26(5):309-17.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Duvall 2010, Hessler K, Ritchie H. Recruitment and retention of novice faculty. Journal of Nursing Education. 2006;45(5):150-4.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Hessler 2006). Additional evidence is necessary to confirm effects, especially in the long-term (Dreifuerst KT, McNelis AM, Weaver MT, et al. Exploring the pursuit of doctoral education by nurses seeking or intending to stay in faculty roles. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2016;32(3):202–212.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Dreifuerst 2016).
Surveys of nursing faculty members suggest that financial incentives and mentoring may support recruitment, hiring, and retention of minority nursing faculty (Salvucci C, Lawless CA. Nursing faculty diversity: Barriers and perceptions on recruitment, hiring and retention. Journal of Cultural Diversity. 2016;23(2):65-75.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Salvucci 2016).
Impact on Disparities
No impact on disparities likely
Implementation Examples
Federal funding for financial initiatives to address the nursing faculty shortage include: Title VIII of the Public Health Services Act, which funds Nursing Workforce Development Programs; Nurse Faculty Loan Programs, funded through the Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program; and Graduate Assistance in Area of National Need, which awards grants to nursing programs (ANA-Title VIII, HRSA-Nurse Corps, US ED-Graduate assistance).
Philanthropic and health care groups also often contribute to scholarships and endowments (Feldman HR, Greenberg MJ, Jaffe-Ruiz M, Kaufman SR, Cignarale S. Hitting the nursing faculty shortage head on: Strategies to recruit, retain, and develop nursing faculty. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2015;31(3):170–178.
Link to original source (journal subscription may be required for access)Feldman 2015); the New Jersey Nursing Initiative (NJNI), funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), is one example (NJNI). Individual nursing schools may also establish programs such as Pace University’s Lienhard School of Nursing’s Grow our Own program (Grow our Own).
Implementation Resources
AACN-State policies - American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN). Policy & advocacy: State resources.
Benefits.gov - Benefits.gov. Nursing education loan repayment program.
WI DHS-Primary care - Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS). Wisconsin primary care office.
HRSA-Faculty LRP - Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Faculty loan repayment program (LRP).
HRSA-NURSE Corps LRP - Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). NURSE Corps Loan Repayment Program (LRP). Registered nurses (RNs), advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs), and nurse faculty are eligible for loan repayment.
BND-Nurse educators - Best Nursing Degree. Nurse educators: Becoming a nursing instructor.
Citations - Evidence
* Journal subscription may be required for access.
Allan 2008* - Allan JD, Aldebron J. A systematic assessment of strategies to address the nursing faculty shortage, US Nursing Outlook. 2008;56(6):286-97.
Duvall 2010* - Duvall JJ, Andrews DR. Using a structured review of the literature to identify key factors associated with the current nursing shortage. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2010;26(5):309-17.
Fox 2009a* - Fox RL, Abrahamson K. A critical examination of the US nursing shortage: Contributing factors, public policy implications. Nursing Forum. 2009;44(4):235-44.
Hessler 2006* - Hessler K, Ritchie H. Recruitment and retention of novice faculty. Journal of Nursing Education. 2006;45(5):150-4.
McDermid 2012* - McDermid F, Peters K, Jackson D, Daly J. Factors contributing to the shortage of nurse faculty: A review of the literature. Nurse Education Today. 2012;32(5):565-9.
Rich 2010* - Rich KL, Nugent KE. A United States perspective on the challenges in nursing education. Nurse Education Today. 2010;30(3):228-32.
Siela 2008* - Siela D, Twibell KR, Keller V. The shortage of nurses and nursing faculty: What critical care nurses can do. AACN Advanced Critical Care. 2008;19(1):66-77.
Nardi 2013* - Nardi DA, Gyurko CC. The global nursing faculty shortage: Status and solutions for change. Journal of Nursing Scholarship. 2013;45(3):317–326.
Dreifuerst 2016* - Dreifuerst KT, McNelis AM, Weaver MT, et al. Exploring the pursuit of doctoral education by nurses seeking or intending to stay in faculty roles. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2016;32(3):202–212.
Morgan 2014* - Morgan JC, Oermann MH, Pathman DE, et al. An evaluation of state-based support-for-service programs targeting nurse faculty. Nursing Education Perspectives. 2014;35(5):280–286.
Young 2016* - Young LK, Adams JL, Lundeen S, et al. Nurses for Wisconsin: A collaborative initiative to enhance the nurse educator workforce. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2016;32(4):292-299.
Oermann 2016* - Oermann MH, Lynn MR, Agger CA. Hiring intentions of directors of nursing programs related to DNP- and PhD-prepared faculty and roles of faculty. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2016;32(3):173-179.
Westphal 2016* - Westphal J, Marnocha S, Chapin T. A pilot study to explore nurse educator workforce issues. Nursing Education Perspectives. 2016;37(3):171-173.
Gerolamo 2017* - Gerolamo AM, Conroy K, Roemer G, et al. Long-term outcomes of the New Jersey nurse faculty preparation program scholars. Nursing Outlook. 2017;65(5):643-651.
Salvucci 2016* - Salvucci C, Lawless CA. Nursing faculty diversity: Barriers and perceptions on recruitment, hiring and retention. Journal of Cultural Diversity. 2016;23(2):65-75.
AACN-Nursing faculty - American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN). Nursing faculty shortage. 2017.
Citations - Implementation Examples
* Journal subscription may be required for access.
Feldman 2015* - Feldman HR, Greenberg MJ, Jaffe-Ruiz M, Kaufman SR, Cignarale S. Hitting the nursing faculty shortage head on: Strategies to recruit, retain, and develop nursing faculty. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2015;31(3):170–178.
ANA-Title VIII - American Nurses Association (ANA). Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act: Nursing Workforce Development.
HRSA-Nurse Corps - Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program, includes Nurse Faculty Loan Programs.
US ED-Graduate assistance - US Department of Education (US ED). Graduate Assistance in Area of National Need.
NJNI - New Jersey Nursing Initiative (NJNI). Support faculty development. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Grow our Own - Pace University. Lienhard School of Nursing. Grow Our Own: doctoral program in nursing with the intent to become faculty upon degree completion.
Date Last Updated
- Scientifically Supported: Strategies with this rating are most likely to make a difference. These strategies have been tested in many robust studies with consistently positive results.
- Some Evidence: Strategies with this rating are likely to work, but further research is needed to confirm effects. These strategies have been tested more than once and results trend positive overall.
- Expert Opinion: Strategies with this rating are recommended by credible, impartial experts but have limited research documenting effects; further research, often with stronger designs, is needed to confirm effects.
- Insufficient Evidence: Strategies with this rating have limited research documenting effects. These strategies need further research, often with stronger designs, to confirm effects.
- Mixed Evidence: Strategies with this rating have been tested more than once and results are inconsistent or trend negative; further research is needed to confirm effects.
- Evidence of Ineffectiveness: Strategies with this rating are not good investments. These strategies have been tested in many robust studies with consistently negative and sometimes harmful results.