Texas Loan Repayment Program for Mental Health Professionals

LoanRepaymentPrograms@highered.texas.gov
833.597.0454

The Texas Loan Repayment Program for Mental Health Professionals provides loan repayment assistance for certain mental health professionals practicing in mental health professional shortage areas (MHPSAs) of Texas.

Participants must agree to provide 3 consecutive years of service in an eligible area.

Eligibility criteria:

• Currently working in an eligible practice specialty
• Completed at least one year of qualifying service
• Be a US citizen or a legal permanent resident
• Provide direct mental health services in an MHPSA to one of the following:
  • Medicaid recipients
  • Texas Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollees
  • Persons committed to a secure correctional facility operated by or under contract with the Texas Juvenile Justice Department
  • Persons confined in a secure facility operated by or under contract with any division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
  • Students in a public school, school district which is located partially or completely in an MHPSA, an open enrollment charter school located in an MHPSA, or a Title I school
  • Patients in a state hospital
• Not currently fulfilling another obligation to provide mental health services as part of a scholarship agreement, a student loan agreement, or another student loan repayment program
• Agree to provide 3 consecutive years of service at an eligible practice site

Eligible practice specialties:

• Psychiatrists
• Psychologists
• Advanced practice nurses who are board certified in psychiatric or mental health nursing
• Licensed professional counselors
• Licensed clinical social workers
• Licensed marriage and family therapists
• Licensed chemical dependency counselors
• Licensed specialist in school psychology
• Licensed master social workers
• Licensed professional counselor associates
• Licensed marriage and family therapist associates
• School counselors with at least a masters degree related to counseling

Amounts are determined by a percentage of the original loan balance. Recipients cannot exceed the following maximum award amounts over a period of 3 years. Maximum assistance allowed is determined by date eligibility first established. See the Assistance Amount table on the program website to determine the amount you are eligible for.

• Psychiatrists: up to $180,000
• Psychologists and licensed clinical social workers and licensed professional counselors who hold doctoral degrees: up to $100,000
• Advanced practice nurses: up to $80,000
• Licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, licensed specialists in school psychology, licensed marriage and family therapists (without doctoral degrees), licensed master social workers, licensed professional counselor associates, licensed marriage and family therapist associates, and certified school counselors: up to $60,000
• Licensed chemical dependency counselors licensed within 12 months of receiving a degree: $50,000
• Licensed chemical dependency counselors who hold associates degrees: up to $15,000

Those with established program eligibility on or after September 1, 2025 are eligible for the following additional assistance:

• Fluency in an identified critical need language: $5,000 one-time increase
• Practicing in a county with a population of 150,000 or less: $10,000 one-time increase
• Extending service period for 2 additional years: $15,000 per year

An individual's total loan repayment assistance, including one-time increases and assistance payments for additional years, may not exceed the individual's applicable assistance amount (see above) plus 10%.

Links to additional information and the online application are available on the program website.

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, but employment verification is due July 31, 2026.