Kiribati Medical Scholars
Training the islands’ own doctors, nurses & health professionals
A visiting team can treat hundreds of patients in a week. A home-grown clinician can serve their community for a career.
The Need
Kiribati has one of the world’s lowest densities of doctors and nurses. Fanning and Washington have no doctor, and Kiritimati has no specialist. Visiting missions can relieve immediate suffering, but long-term capacity depends on I-Kiribati health professionals trained to return and serve their communities.
The Program
Oceans of Gratitude is developing scholarships for promising I-Kiribati students pursuing medical, nursing and allied-health training at regional institutions, with a commitment to return home. Support must cover more than tuition: international travel, visas, housing and years of living away from family.
Candidates would be identified through local schools, with mentorship from volunteer clinicians throughout training.
Potential Partnership: BYU-Pathway
OOG is exploring BYU-Pathway as a low-cost academic on-ramp already available in the Pacific. Students could begin foundational coursework and English-language preparation from their home islands before a larger scholarship commitment is made.
Pilot Cohort Funding
- $50–105KScholarships for 2–3 students at $25,000–$35,000 each, including tuition, housing, travel and visas
- $5–10KCandidate identification, academic on-ramp, mentorship and partnerships
- $55–115KTotal annual pilot
Ways to Help
- $5,000Fund foundational coursework for the next cohort
- $25–35KSponsor one scholar for a year
- First cohortHelp put the islands’ future health professionals in the classroom
To direct your gift to this program, note the program name with your donation.
2026 — Program in development. Candidate pathways and institutional partnerships are being designed; the first cohort launches with funding.