The Policy and Politics in Nursing Scholarship aims to encourage qualified doctorate and post-doctorate nurses with a demonstrated interest or expertise in the study of health equity issues, including understanding the causes and interventions to address gaps in care quality, cost, and access, by providing financial support to attend two AcademyHealth conferences and access to mentoring and professional development opportunities to further develop their research and policy interests. 

The Scholarship also aims to:

  • Raise nurses’ awareness of AcademyHealth and the Interdisciplinary Research Group on Nursing Issues (IRGNI) through participation in conference proceedings and the IRGNI Emerging Diversity Leaders Initiative;
  • Provide the opportunity to network and meaningfully engage with health services researchers and policy leaders to explore key policy issues impacting health care and effective advocacy strategies to bring about better health.

This scholarship is part of the larger AcademyHealth Health Equity Scholars Program. Find more information on the Health Equity Scholars Program here.

2026 Policy and Politics in Nursing Scholar

Scholarship Information

Award

  • Travel and registration support to attend the AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting (ARM), and one additional AcademyHealth meeting, including conference fees, travel expenses, meals, and childcare, as needed.
  • Invitation to participate in the IRGNI Emerging Diversity Leaders Initiative

Eligibility Requirements

The scholarship opportunity is open to all individuals regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, socioeconomic background, or other aspects of identity. We encourage applications from individuals whose professional goals are aligned with those of the Annual Research Meeting.

Eligibility Criteria:

  • Current full-time or part-time, graduate-level students; post-doctoral fellows; or clinical fellows.
  • A demonstrated interest or expertise in the study of health equity issues, including understanding the causes and interventions to address gaps in care quality, cost, outcomes, and access.
  • Nurse enrolled in doctorate or post-doctorate programs
  • Availability to attend the ARM on the specified dates.
  • U.S. Citizen. Due to program requirements, applicants who are not U.S. citizens are not eligible to apply.

Application Instructions

To apply, applicants must upload and submit the following materials to the online application system:

  • A completed online application form, including in the submission:
    • Current Résumé or Curriculum Vitae
  • Statement of Interest (500 words max). The essay should address your personal learning objectives, and/or past or current research and work in the field of health services/systems research, and understanding of the causes and research into gaps in health, health care access, quality, cost, and outcomes. The essay should also clearly connect your stated learning objectives and professional goals and your interest in being a scholar. We strongly suggest you write the essay in a Word document and then copy and paste it into the form.
  • Supporting documentation, including:
    • If applicable, documentation of student status (e.g., scanned copy of student ID, departmental letter)
    • A signed letter of recommendation from your faculty advisor or work supervisor on official letterhead

Selection Criteria

The selection committee will review applications based on the following criteria:

  • Demonstrated commitment to the field of HSR or health equity research through past or current research/work experience in either field
  • Clear connection between the stated learning objectives and the reason for attending the conference
  • Quality of the essay
  • Level of faculty advisor’s or work supervisor’s support for the applicant

The Policy and Politics in Nursing applications will also be reviewed based on the following additional criteria:

  • Evidence of interest in policy and/or health services research.
  • Professional objectives align with the program's opportunities.
  • Clear description of why the scholarship would benefit the applicant.
  • CV shows evidence of engagement of research- and policy-related work

Race/Ethnicity Standardized Questions

AcademyHealth is collecting voluntary, self-reported data on the gender, ethnic, and racial identities of our speakers and presenters. Your responses do not affect the review of your submission in any way and are not included in the information provided to reviewers. AcademyHealth will use this data to understand how overall representation in the final program reflects population trends and inform AcademyHealth efforts to identify and feature a broad selection of high-quality work across all of our programming.

2025 Policy and Politics in Nursing Scholar

Ayo_Bodunde_headshot

Ayo Bodunde

Ph.D. Candidate - University of Illinois Chicago’s College of Nursing

Ayo Bodunde is a PhD candidate at the University of Illinois Chicago’s College of Nursing and a mental health ... Read Bio

More Information

The Policy and Politics in Nursing Scholarship is funded by the Co-Editors of the 8th Edition of Policy and Politics in Nursing and Health Care and its publisher, Elsevier, on behalf of its more than 100 contributing authors in recognition of their commitment to developing the next generation of policy leaders in nursing.

If you need additional assistance for scholarship-related questions, please contact us here.