
About This Program
Become a Leader in Nursing Research with Kent State's Ph.D. Program. The Nursing Ph.D. program provides you with the opportunity to contribute to the field of nursing through research, scholarship and teaching. Read more...
Contact Information
- Student Services: Teresa Adams | tadams27@kent.edu | 330-672-8761
- Connect with an Admissions Counselor: U.S. Student | International Student
Program Delivery
- Delivery:
- In person
- Location:
- Kent Campus
Examples of Possible Careers and Salaries*
Nursing instructors and teachers, postsecondary
- 17.6% much faster than the average
- 72,900 number of jobs
- $75,470 potential earnings
* Source of occupation titles and labor data comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook. Data comprises projected percent change in employment over the next 10 years; nation-wide employment numbers; and the yearly median wage at which half of the workers in the occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less.
For more information about graduate admissions, visit the graduate admission website. For more information on international admissions, visit the international admission website.
Admission Requirements
- Active, unrestricted U.S. registered nurse license (international students need to show proof of legal ability to practice as a registered nurse in country of origin)
- Bachelor's or master's degree in nursing or related field, or a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree, from an accredited program1
- Minimum overall 3.000 graduate GPA on a 4.000-point scale
- Official transcript(s)
- Résumé or curriculum vitae
- Essay (two pages, single-spaced) addressing the following questions:
- Why do you want to pursue a Ph.D. in nursing?
- What are your professional goals?
- How have you been involved in research, publications and professional presentations?
- How have you been involved in professional organizations?
- What are your research interests?
- Why are you interested in these research areas?
- How could research—and specifically your research—in these areas advance science?
- Three letters of reference from health care professionals or academic faculty members who can speak to the applicant's professional and academic abilities (two of the three references from doctoral-prepared individuals are preferred)
- Interview
- English language proficiency - all international students must provide proof of English language proficiency (unless they meet specific exceptions) by earning one of the following:2
- Minimum 560 TOEFL PBT score
- Minimum 83 TOEFL IBT score
- Minimum78 MELAB score
- Minimum 6.5 IELTS score
- Minimum 55 PTE score
- Minimum 110 Duolingo English score
- 1
A bachelor's degree in a closely related health field may be considered if the applicant has a master's degree in nursing or a D.N.P. degree from an accredited program. A master's degree in a closely related field may be considered if the applicant has a bachelor's degree in nursing from an accredited program.
- 2
International applicants who do not meet the above test scores may be considered for conditional admission.
Application Deadlines
- Fall Semester
- Priority deadline: March 1
- Spring Semester
- Priority deadline: November 1
- Summer Term
- Priority deadline: March 1
Applications submitted by these deadlines will receive the strongest consideration for admission.
Program Requirements
Major Requirements
Code | Title | Credit Hours |
---|---|---|
Major Requirements (min B grade in all courses) | ||
NURS 70710 | HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING SCIENCE | 2 |
NURS 70711 | SCIENTIFIC WRITING | 2 |
NURS 70712 | RESEARCH DESIGN FUNDAMENTALS | 2 |
NURS 70713 | ADVANCED STATISTICS I | 2 |
NURS 70714 | LEADERSHIP FOR NURSING SCIENCE | 3 |
NURS 70715 | THEORY CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT IN NURSING | 3 |
NURS 70740 | ADVANCED STATISTICS II | 3 |
NURS 70741 | ADVANCED STATISTICS III | 3 |
NURS 70742 | ADVANCED QUALITATIVE METHODS FOR HEALTH SCIENCES | 4 |
NURS 70743 | ADVANCED QUANTITATIVE METHODS FOR HEALTH SCIENCES | 4 |
NURS 70744 | PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT | 3 |
NURS 70753 | DATA SCIENCE AND NURSING | 3 |
NURS 70798 | RESEARCH IN NURSING (taken twice) 2 | 3-5 |
Post-Baccalaureate Requirements | ||
NURS 70716 | INNOVATION AND INTERVENTION RESEARCH | 3 |
NURS 70718 | ROLES AND EVALUATION | 3 |
NURS 70739 | RESEARCH IN HEALTH DISPARITIES | 3 |
Nursing Science Electives, choose from the following: 2 | 6-12 | |
SPECIAL TOPICS IN BIOLOGY | ||
MEDICAL GENOMICS | ||
MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS IN PUBLIC HEALTH | ||
EXPERIMENTAL DESIGNS IN PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCH | ||
APPLIED REGRESSION ANALYSIS OF PUBLIC HEALTH DATA | ||
FUNDAMENTALS OF CURRICULUM | ||
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS IN COMMUNICATION | ||
SPECIAL TOPICS IN CULTURAL FOUNDATIONS | ||
OBSERVATIONAL DESIGNS FOR CLINICAL RESEARCH | ||
LEARNING THEORIES | ||
APPLIED THEORY IN HEALTH EDUCATION RESEARCH AND PRACTICE | ||
HEALTH BEHAVIOR | ||
EMERGING ISSUES IN PUBLIC HEALTH POLICY AND MANAGEMENT | ||
CLINICAL ASPECTS OF HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY | ||
PSYCHOBIOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY | ||
SEMINAR IN CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY | ||
BASICS OF QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWING | ||
INTRODUCTION TO NARRATIVE INQUIRY AND ANALYSIS | ||
SURVEY DESIGN AND APPLIED RESEARCH IN EDUCATION | ||
STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELING | ||
HIERARCHICAL LINEAR MODELING | ||
MIXED METHODS RESEARCH | ||
GROUNDED THEORY AND PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH | ||
ETHNOGRAPHY AND CASE STUDY RESEARCH | ||
THEORIES OF PREVENTION SCIENCE | ||
METHODS OF PREVENTION SCIENCE | ||
CODING FOR QUALITATIVE RESEARCH | ||
TRANSCRIBING INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP INTERVIEWS FOR QUALITATIVE RESEARCH | ||
EMERGING ISSUES IN PREVENTION SCIENCE | ||
QUALITATIVE METHODS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCH | ||
QUALITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS | ||
QUALITATIVE METHODS IN SOCIOLOGY | ||
ADVANCED QUALITATIVE METHODS IN SOCIOLOGY | ||
Culminating Requirement | ||
NURS 80199 | DISSERTATION I 1 | 30 |
Minimum Total Credit Hours for Post-Baccalaureate Students | 90 | |
Minimum Total Credit Hours for Post-Master's Students | 73 |
- 1
Each doctoral candidate, upon admission to candidacy, must register for NURS 80199 for a total of 30 credit hours. It is expected that a doctoral candidate will continuously register for Dissertation I, and thereafter NURS 80299, each semester, until all requirements for the degree have been met.
- 2
Elective courses support the student's research interest and are selected with the approval of the student's academic advisor. Two 3-credit hour doctoral-level courses will supplement the student's program of study in a substantive area of research or specific method of research, including advanced statistical approaches, or assist the student with career goals following graduation.
Candidacy Examination
At the conclusion of coursework, students sit for the candidacy examination. The examination provides the basis for evaluation of the student’s readiness for completing the dissertation. Students must successfully pass candidacy and a proposal defense before beginning dissertation work.
Progression Requirements
- Students who do not earn a minimum B grade in a course must repeat it and cannot take other courses that require that course as a prerequisite until the course is successfully retaken. Students who do not earn a minimum B grade in the second attempt may be dismissed from the Ph.D. degree.
Graduation Requirements
- Minimum B grade required in all courses to earn the Ph.D. degree.
- Passage of the candidacy examination
- Submission and successful defense of a dissertation
Students with a D.N.P. degree may receive permission to have coursework waived if supported by the appropriate and recent coursework; however, maximum 12 credit hours may transfer to the Ph.D.. The waiver of each specific course will be determined by the relevant academic department. These students may graduate with less than 72 credit hours but no fewer than 60 total credit hours.
Roadmap
This roadmap is a recommended semester-by-semester plan of study for this major. However, courses designated as critical (!) must be completed in the semester listed to ensure a timely graduation.
Semester One | Credits | |
---|---|---|
NURS 70710 | HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING SCIENCE | 2 |
NURS 70711 | SCIENTIFIC WRITING | 2 |
NURS 70712 | RESEARCH DESIGN FUNDAMENTALS | 2 |
NURS 70713 | ADVANCED STATISTICS I | 2 |
Credit Hours | 8 | |
Semester Two | ||
NURS 70715 | THEORY CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT IN NURSING | 3 |
NURS 70740 | ADVANCED STATISTICS II | 3 |
NURS 70742 | ADVANCED QUALITATIVE METHODS FOR HEALTH SCIENCES | 4 |
NURS 70798 | RESEARCH IN NURSING | 2 |
Credit Hours | 12 | |
First Summer Term | ||
NURS 70714 | LEADERSHIP FOR NURSING SCIENCE | 3 |
NURS 70716 | INNOVATION AND INTERVENTION RESEARCH | 3 |
Credit Hours | 6 | |
Semester Three | ||
NURS 70741 | ADVANCED STATISTICS III | 3 |
NURS 70798 | RESEARCH IN NURSING | 3 |
Nursing Science Elective | 3 | |
Credit Hours | 9 | |
Semester Four | ||
NURS 70718 | ROLES AND EVALUATION | 3 |
NURS 70739 | RESEARCH IN HEALTH DISPARITIES | 3 |
NURS 70753 | DATA SCIENCE AND NURSING | 3 |
Nursing Science Elective | 3 | |
Credit Hours | 12 | |
Second Summer Term | ||
Nursing Science Elective | 3 | |
Credit Hours | 3 | |
Semester Five | ||
NURS 70743 | ADVANCED QUANTITATIVE METHODS FOR HEALTH SCIENCES | 4 |
Nursing Science Elective | 3 | |
Credit Hours | 7 | |
Semester Six | ||
NURS 70744 | PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT | 3 |
Credit Hours | 3 | |
Semester Seven | ||
NURS 80199 | DISSERTATION I | 15 |
Credit Hours | 15 | |
Semester Eight | ||
NURS 80199 | DISSERTATION I | 15 |
Credit Hours | 15 | |
Minimum Total Credit Hours: | 90 |
Program Learning Outcomes
Graduates of this program will be able to:
- Generate new knowledge that contributes to the advancement of health, healthcare and nursing science.
- Disseminate advances in scientific knowledge.
- Use collaborative, interdisciplinary and innovative approaches to advance nursing science.
- Assume leadership roles in healthcare and education as researchers, educators and advanced clinicians.
- Serve as stewards of the diversity within the body of knowledge for the discipline of nursing.