PhD in Nursing: Curriculum

The PhD nursing research program is designed to develop knowledge through the integration of translational research methods. Students each select a clinical phenomenon that addresses diverse and changing health care needs. Core content includes courses in: theory development and philosophy of science, biostatistics, research ethics, quantitative and qualitative research design and methods, academic role development, advanced clinical research practicum, cognates, and dissertation hours. Students who do not have prior teaching experience enroll in additional education courses and a teaching practicum. The PhD student and advisor mutually define an individual program of study that includes relevant coursework focusing on translational science. The doctoral program enables the graduate to have the investigative skills of a clinical researcher and the leadership skills necessary to serve as a senior academician and influence health care systems. Completion of the PhD is expected in no more than eight years.

Advanced Clinical Research Practicum
The purpose of this preliminary in-depth study of a clinical phenomena is to develop skills as a clinical scientist. The Advanced Clinical Research Practicum provides an opportunity to acquire in-depth knowledge of a specific area of nursing science as well as to gain experience as an investigator using various research methods, and generating pilot data as a prerequisite to dissertation research. Theory-driven, research-based knowledge and the generation of a viable and relevant research question are the expected outcomes. Students systematically explore a clinical research problem that is of practical and theoretical significance to nursing science and practice.

During the first years of doctoral study, students pursue required course work and identify a relevant research problem that becomes the focus of their coursework and advanced clinical research practicum. Upon completion of their required and elected coursework, and their advanced research practicum, students engage in a comprehensive defense of their knowledge and research ability. A successful defense signifies achievement of candidacy status and qualifies the student to pursue their dissertation research. Students must successfully complete this comprehensive defense within five years of initial enrollment.

Advanced Clinical Research Practicum Guidelines

Rationale and Expectations
The goal of the Advanced Clinical Research Practicum (ACRP) hours at the PhD level is to develop student's skills as a clinical nurse scientist. The ACRP experience is designed to support the systematic investigation of clinical phenomena in the student's area of interest. Theoretically driven, research-based “hands-on” experiences that have clinical relevance are the expected outcome.

The ACRP experience is viewed as a learning experience in which the student has the opportunity to systematically explore a clinical phenomenon that is of significance to nursing science and practice. This research scholarship experience should become the basis for dissertation study. Time should be spent gaining specialized knowledge and expertise in both traditional and nontraditional settings.

All ACRP courses are individually designed courses of independent study. ACRP scholarship activities and related learning experiences should enable the student to participate in the ACRP defense when a minimum of 12 hours (NRS 691) have been completed.

Students shall not enroll in NRS 691 hours until the following courses have been successfully completed: NRS 601-603, NRS 605, and NRS 671-675.

At the completion of the NRS 691 hours, the student should be able to:

1. Identify a phenomenon through observation/participation.
2. Synthesize the relevant research and practice literature related to their clinical phenomenon, as reflected in a series of increasingly complex scholarly papers (e.g., written integrative literature reviews; in-depth analysis/synthesis of related issues).
3. Describe and place the phenomenon within the broader health care context and state of the art.
4. Demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of how to study the phenomenon (i.e., design issues).
5. Demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of data collection and analytic methods to answer their potential research questions (e.g., pilot study).

The student's advisor will complete a worksheet that addresses the following issues and to ascertain that the student has successfully addressed the following questions:

1. Is the clinical phenomenon and its significance clearly described by the student?
2. Has the student critically analyzed extant knowledge related to the clinical phenomenon under study?
3. Does the student's work represent a synthesis of knowledge related to this clinical phenomenon? Report would include: the data bases accessed (e.g. CINAHL, federal agency publication sites, state publication repositories), key words used, any qualifiers used in the search (i.e. range of years or language), inclusion/exclusion rules used for the search, number of identified publications by data base and the number after duplicates are sorted . If this information is displayed in a table format, it usually takes less than a page. Search histories can usually be recounted in two to three paragraphs at most.
4. Does the student identify gaps in what is known about the phenomenon?
5. Will the student's work potentially contribute to what is known about this phenomenon?
6. Did the clinical work performed by the student inform the ACRP defense (e.g. pilot study)?
7. Does the work presented logically lead to a scholarly dissertation question that the student can now articulate?

Guidelines for the ACRP Committee
The purpose of this committee is to advise the student about the development of the ACRP experience, guide development of the ACRP hours, and serve as the examining body. The following guidelines pertain to the overall process:

1. An outline of the student's objectives and plans for the 12 quarter hours of NRS 691 should be submitted to the advisor by the end of (and no later than) the first quarter of the ACRP experience. The 12 quarter hours of NRS 691 must be completed over a minimum of three quarters.
2. The ACRP committee should be formed by the end of (and no later than) six quarter hours of NRS 691. The composition and rationale for committee membership must be submitted when the committee is formed. There is a form to be submitted for this purpose available in the Office of the Dean.
3. The chairperson of the committee must have a research doctorate, be a member of the College of Nursing Graduate Faculty, and must have previously served on ACRP committees.
4. Committee members should have content or methodological expertise needed by the student in studying the clinical phenomenon. Two of the three committee members should have research doctorates and be members of College of Nursing faculty. Three is the minimum number of committee members. The third committee member should have a research doctorate and make a substantive contribution, but does not have to be a nurse. (*A fourth committee member may be a faculty member gaining clinical committee experience.)

Minimum Hours Required for the PhD Degree
The program of study requires a minimum of 90 quarter hours of post-baccalaureate graduate study and the completion of a dissertation. The curriculum is designed to engage the student in the generation of knowledge that will inform the practice of nursing. It combines courses in theory, research design and methods, as well as the highly individualized study of selected clinical populations and/or phenomena, secured both in course work and the advanced clinical research practicum. The advanced clinical research practicum represents the beginning of independent research and is selected and conducted by the student with guidance from the faculty advisor.

The courses in the accompanying table reflect the requirements for theory, research design and methods, role courses, and an individualized advanced clinical research practicum of a selected clinical population or phenomenon. Cognate courses are selectively chosen to provide for advanced knowledge about a clinical population or phenomenon. Completion of required course work and at least twelve hours of advanced clinical research practicum must occur before students are qualified to engage in a formal candidacy defense. The advanced clinical research practicum leads to the dissertation study.