Tennessee Offers Behavioral Health Scholarships to Build the Treatment Workforce

Behavioral Health Scholarships for Tuition

Tennessee is confronting a serious shortage of behavioral health professionals—therapists, counselors, clinical social workers, psychiatric nurses, psychologists, and addiction treatment specialists—especially in more rural and underserved areas. In response, TDMHSAS has launched a bold scholarship initiative called the Pathways Behavioral Health Scholarship (aka Tennessee Behavioral Health Pathways Scholarship) to help build and sustain the state’s treatment workforce.

The core design of the program is straightforward but powerful: provide financial support for graduate students who are committed to entering behavioral health professions, and in exchange, require those recipients to serve in community behavioral health agencies under contract with the state.

Key Features

The scholarship provides up to $30,000 over two years (i.e. up to $15,000 per academic year) for eligible Tennessee residents pursuing a master’s degree in counseling, psychiatric nursing, social work, psychology, or similar behavioral health fields.

College of Social Work

To qualify, applicants must be Tennessee residents and enrolled (or preparing to enroll) in an accredited graduate program in the state.

In return for receiving the scholarship, each student agrees to work post-graduation at a community behavioral health agency that contracts with TDMHSAS (or is funded through the state or the Tennessee Opioid Abatement Council) for the same duration they received support.

The eligible agencies are typically those that serve Tennesseans with the greatest behavioral health needs and lowest ability to pay; and they must be members of the state’s partner organizations (TAMHO or TAADAS) or be part of the state’s behavioral health network.

Funding & Scale

Since its launch, Tennessee has invested significantly in this scholarship program. In its first release in spring 2024, the state committed around $3 million, later supplemented with nearly $900,000 more.

For the next fiscal year, Gov. Bill Lee proposed—and the Legislature approved—over $4.4 million (non-recurring) in state funding, and the Tennessee Opioid Abatement Council added $2 million more to the fund.

Altogether, the state plans to invest more than $10.3 million across the early years of the program. As of mid-2025, the program has awarded over 130 scholarships totaling more than $1.75 million

College of Social Work

Of those, a notable share went to University of Tennessee (UT) students: 33 in the UT College of Social Work and one for psychiatric nursing. The program administrators expect to expand the number of scholars and reach up to 300 new students with fresh funding.

Impact & Challenges

By offsetting the high cost of graduate education and tying funding to service in public or community settings, Tennessee hopes to “grow its own” behavioral health workforce in places that struggle to recruit and retain practitioners.

Recipients often report that the scholarship made the difference in their ability to pursue advanced professional credentials. However, the program is not without challenges. Some of these include:

• Retention beyond the service obligation: While scholars are required to serve for a defined period, ongoing retention in community behavioral health roles (which can be demanding, lower paid, and prone to burnout) remains a concern.
• Geographic imbalance: Ensuring that new professionals choose to serve in regions with the greatest shortage (often rural counties) is difficult, particularly when many prefer urban or suburban areas.
• Administrative burden: Coordinating scholarship disbursement, tracking compliance with service commitments, and managing relationships with many community agencies can tax the agencies and state systems.
• Sustainability: The program has been heavily reliant on “non-recurring” funds and opioid settlement money; durable, recurring funding mechanisms will be essential to maintain and expand the initiative.

Tennessee’s behavioral health scholarship program reflects a strategic investment in workforce development. By coupling financial support for graduate students with service commitments to community behavioral health agencies, the state aims to narrow the workforce gap, improve access to treatment especially in underserved areas, and build a sustainable pipeline of qualified professionals. Continued oversight, retention strategies, and stable funding will be key to translating scholarship awards into long-term gains in Tennessee’s behavioral health system.

Similar Programs in Other States

Massachusetts — Behavioral Health Scholarships Workforce / Grants

Massachusetts recently launched a $25 million scholarship program aimed at graduate students in behavioral health (e.g. social work, mental health counseling, substance use counseling, mental health nursing).

Recipients may receive up to $12,500 per year (tuition, fees, stipend) for up to two years (i.e. up to $25,000 total). In exchange, scholars commit to practicing in Massachusetts for up to two years post-graduation.

The state also provides funding to colleges and universities to support unpaid field placements, internships, and practicum experiences, helping offset training costs for students.

The Behavioral Health Workforce Scholarship is administered via the Massachusetts Office of Student Financial Assistance and tied to eligibility rules (residency, financial aid standing, enrollment in eligible behavioral health degree or certificate programs). This model combines upfront aid + service obligation and also supports the “training pipeline” via placement subsidies.

Illinois — Community Behavioral Health Care Professional Loan Repayment (CBHCP)

Illinois’ approach emphasizes loan repayment (versus upfront scholarships): the Community Behavioral Health Care Professional Loan Repayment Program offers debt repayment assistance to mental health and substance use professionals in exchange for working in underserved or rural areas.

Key features:

Eligible practitioners include licensed clinical social workers (LCSW), licensed professional counselors, psychologists, marriage & family therapists, certified alcohol & drug counselors, etc.

Applicants must have worked at least 12 consecutive months immediately before applying in qualifying community behavioral health settings (e.g. community mental health centers, substance use treatment, behavioral health clinics) located in underserved or rural areas (HPSAs).

Award amounts vary by profession and are subject to annual appropriation. Scholars may receive assistance for up to four years. Maximum annual awards: up to $40,000 for psychiatrists, up to $20,000 for psychologists and advanced practice providers, lower caps for other clinicians.

This model leverages service-incentive repayment rather than preemptive scholarship, reinforcing retention and targeting existing providers.

Georgia — Behavioral Health Professions Service Cancelable Loan (BHP SCL)

Georgia has established the Behavioral Health Professions Service Cancelable Loan Program to encourage residents to pursue advanced behavioral health degrees with an obligation to practice in Georgia afterward.

GA Futures

Main points:

• Graduate students in eligible behavioral health advanced degree programs may qualify for a service-cancelable loan, which effectively functions like a conditional scholarship if service requirements are met.
• Recipients must commit to full-time employment in Georgia providing behavioral health services to Georgia residents after licensure.
• This “loan-with-cancellation-upon-service” approach bridges between scholarship and loan repayment models.

Massachusetts — Expanded Behavioral Health Loan Repayment (EBH / MA Repay)

In addition to its scholarship program, Massachusetts runs a loan repayment initiative for behavioral health professionals via the Expanded Behavioral Health (EBH) Student Loan Repayment program. The program targets recruitment and retention of behavioral health providers across the Commonwealth, offering financial assistance to professionals who commit to practicing in high-need areas.

The exact repayment amounts, and service commitments, vary depending on role and geographic need. This complements the scholarship pipeline by helping mid-career providers stay in underserved settings.

Lessons & Considerations for Tennessee’s Planning

• A hybrid model (both scholarship + later loan repayment) can create a fuller pipeline: attract new graduate students and also support retention for existing providers.
• Tiered award schedules help optimize scarce funds by aligning support with role and cost magnitude.
• Embedding support for clinical training, field placements, and internships (unpaid work) strengthens the educational infrastructure and reduces hidden costs for students.
• Robust monitoring, compliance, and retention strategies are critical to avoid scholars reneging on service obligations or leaving early.
• Ensuring sustainable, recurring funding (beyond nonrecurring or settlement dollars) is vital to maintain trust in the program’s stability.
• Offering incentives or bonus enhancements for working in high-need or hard-to-fill rural areas ensures alignment with workforce distribution goals.

Have These Scholarships for Behavioral Health Actually Had an Impact On the workforce Availability?

While in some cases it is still early to draw definitive, long-term conclusions about the impact of many state behavioral health scholarship or conditional service-award programs, but existing evidence and early reports suggest they can make a positive difference—if designed well and sustained. Below is what the research and program evaluations (or available anecdotal data) reveal so far, along with caveats and lessons learned.

Evidence from Federal & Academic Programs

Studies of federal programs that tie scholarship or loan repayment to service in underserved communities show that they do increase provider presence in those areas. For example, analyses indicate the NHSC’s mental health provider programs lead to measurable increases in the number of behavioral health practitioners in shortage areas.

Many such providers continue practicing in underserved settings even after their obligatory service period ends—a retention effect often cited in literature.

State and institutional scholarship initiatives

Many state behavioral health workforce programs are relatively new, so published empirical evaluations are limited. Massachusetts, which has a Behavioral Health Workforce Scholarship program, requires annual reporting and evaluation of outcomes—such as enrollment, graduation, post-program placement, and geographic distribution of service. But as of the latest public documents, comprehensive outcome data is not yet widely published.

Institutional “Scholarships for Behavioral Health Impact” Stories

Some colleges and universities receiving workforce development grants or scholarship funding publish narratives of transformation: for example, William James College notes that HRSA-funded scholarships helped retain students from underrepresented backgrounds and allowed them to continue into community practice. These are useful for illustrating potential but do not provide rigorous causal evaluation.

Early Reports & Anecdotal Outcomes from State Programs

Tennessee

Even though Tennessee’s Pathways Behavioral Health Scholarship is still new, state leaders claim that graduates “are already having an impact on their workforce challenges.” While these statements are encouraging, they are not yet backed by external independent evaluation or quantitative data on statewide workforce changes.

California

California’s Behavioral Health Scholarship Program has dispersed substantial funding (e.g., $38M in awards) to support training and placement of behavioral health professionals.

Journalistic coverage notes that the program “broadens the scope” of placements (clinics, community settings) and seeks to reduce financial barriers.

However, published data establishing that provider-to-population ratios in underserved communities have measurably improved because of these scholarships is not yet widely available in peer-reviewed form.

Challenges to Measuring Impact

• Time lag between scholarship award and workforce entry
• Graduate training, licensure, and placement take months to years. Many programs are only a few years old, so full effects on workforce counts are just beginning to emerge.
• Attribution

Behavioral health workforce growth is influenced by many variables—state-level reimbursement rates, Medicaid expansion, telehealth adoption, retirement and turnover rates, licensure rules, and broader economic trends. Disentangling how much of a workforce increase is attributable to scholarship programs is methodologically difficult.

Retention Beyond Service Obligations

Some practitioners may leave public or community-based settings after fulfilling their service requirement, which weakens long-term gains. Persistence in underserved regions is a known challenge in many health workforce programs.

Geographic Distribution

Even when new professionals enter the workforce because of scholarship programs, whether they locate in the highest-need rural or frontier areas is not guaranteed. Many choose more urban or suburban settings after their obligation is met.

Data Collection and Evaluation Capacity of Scholarships for Behavioral Health Scholarships

Many state programs have not yet built robust longitudinal tracking systems to measure placement outcomes, retention, and outcomes by region or population. Some, like Massachusetts, mandate reporting infrastructure.

Verdict & Key Conditions for Success

Overall, evidence suggests that scholarship and service-commitment models can contribute to improved workforce availability, especially in underserved communities, but success depends heavily on:

• Strong accountability systems and tracking
• Incentives to retain providers beyond minimum service
• Support for rural or hard-to-staff placements
• Stable, recurring funding
• Complementary policies (like reimbursement, telehealth, scope-of-practice reforms)

As more cohorts from newer programs graduate and settle into practice, more rigorous evaluation will become possible—and that will yield clearer answers about true impact over time.

In Conclusion

State-sponsored behavioral health scholarship and loan repayment programs—like Tennessee’s Behavioral Health Pathways Scholarship—aim to combat the nationwide shortage of mental health and substance use professionals by reducing financial barriers and tying education funding to service in community or underserved settings. Tennessee’s model offers up to $30,000 over two years for master’s-level students who commit to working in state-contracted behavioral health agencies after graduation.

• Similar initiatives exist across the U.S.:
• Massachusetts provides scholarships up to $25,000 and supports unpaid internships.
• Illinois offers loan repayment for licensed clinicians serving in shortage areas.
• Georgia runs a service-cancelable loan program for graduate students in behavioral health.

These programs combine tuition support, debt relief, and service commitments to strengthen the workforce.

Early evidence—particularly from federal models like the National Health Service Corps—shows these scholarships for behavioral health can increase provider availability in underserved communities and, in some cases, encourage long-term retention beyond the required service period. However, comprehensive state-level data remain limited due to the recency of many programs, time lags in training and licensure, and challenges with tracking outcomes and retention.

Key success factors include stable funding, robust data collection, incentives for rural placements, and retention strategies post-obligation. While these scholarship programs show strong potential to alleviate workforce shortages and expand access to care, ongoing evaluation is essential to determine their long-term effectiveness and to guide policy adjustments for sustainable impact across states like Tennessee and beyond.

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Resources: Tennessee Behavioral Health Pathways Scholarship Benefits UTCSW MSSW Students | College of Social Work