Section IV. Glossary of Terms

DEFERMENT – is a delay in the start of a National Health Service Corps (NHSC) service commitment granted upon a scholar’s request by the Director, Division of National Health Service Corps, for a specified period of time to enter and complete an approved post-degree advanced training program. For multi-year programs, requests for deferment are reviewed annually, and are granted in 1-year increments.

FULL-TIME ENROLLMENT – to be eligible to receive scholarship benefits; participants must be enrolled as full-time students. Please be advised that any non-required or unrelated courses will not count toward the school’s required hours in determining full-time status.

LEAVE-OF-ABSENCE – is a period of approved absence from a course of study granted to a student by his or her training institution for medical, personal, and other reasons. The leave-of-absence is usually granted for a period of 1 year or less. When a leave-of-absence is expected, a scholar is required to notify the NHSC Scholarship Program immediately, in writing, and submit a letter from the school approving the leave-of-absence and indicating the start and end dates for the period of the absence. Payment of all benefits are discontinued when a scholar is on an approved leave-of-absence, and may be resumed when the student returns full-time to the course of study for which the scholarship was awarded. NOTE: If you are a new awardee and you plan to take a leave-of-absence prior to the start of classes for the 2007-2008 academic year and you will not begin classes on or before January 2, 2008, you must decline the award and reapply next year.

SUSPENSION – is a temporary status. The bases for a suspension would be a medical condition or a personal situation that: 1) would make it temporarily impossible to continue the service commitment or payment of the monetary debt, or 2) would temporarily involve an extreme hardship to the individual and enforcement of the service or payment commitment would be against equity and good conscience. All requests for a suspension must be submitted in writing and include full medical and financial documentation.

WAIVER – is a permanent status. The basis for a waiver would be a permanent medical condition or personal situation that: 1) would make it impossible for the individual to serve the commitment or pay the debt, or 2) would involve an extreme hardship to the individual and enforcement of the service or payment commitment would be against equity and good conscience. All requests for a waiver must be submitted in writing and include full medical and financial documentation.