Academic Programs

PhD Programs

The University of Oklahoma College of Nursing offers the PhD in Nursing Program at the OU Health Sciences Center Oklahoma City. Students in the program are enrolled in and obtain their degree from the Graduate College of the University of Oklahoma.

The PhD Program in Nursing is designed to prepare nurse scholars to advance the science, art, and practice of the discipline. Doctoral preparation in Nursing promotes knowledge development, organization, and application of theory and evidence-based scholarly nursing practice.

Our collaborative PhD program prepares nurses to develop and utilize knowledge in many roles, including:

  • Researcher
  • Educator
  • Administrator
  • Clinician
  • Health care policy maker

PhD students’ research will fall alongside one or more faculty member’s expertise, some place within the continuum of vulnerabilities across diverse populations. See Faculty Research. Courses are competency-based. The intent is for the PhD program to be distance accessible. Presently, the curriculum of the PhD program has courses available in traditional classroom, online, and IP video.

Available Tracks

Plan of Study

The research coursework builds on describing the existing science surrounding a problem, identifying a testable research question, testing instruments or analyses, and fleshing out a coherent proposal. One of the final courses is the prospectus seminar, whereby the actual dissertation is developed.

It is anticipated that a full-time student entering with a Master’s degree in Nursing will take four to six years to complete the program. Coursework can be completed in three years of full-time study. PhD students will complete required course work, successfully complete the general examination, and successfully defend the results of their original dissertation research during this period.

The Graduate College has specific time limits for achieving milestones in the educational process. A doctoral student who enters with a bachelor's degree is expected to pass the departmental general examination within five calendar years of the student's first graduate enrollment in the department and a student who enters with a master's degree is expected to pass the departmental general examination within four calendar years of the student's first graduate enrollment in the department. A doctoral candidate is normally expected to complete all the degree requirements within five years after admission to candidacy.

The BSN-to-PhD track is also offered to encourage nurses wishing to conduct research in an academic environment to go directly into a PhD program and emerge at an earlier age and stage in their careers.

Combining both formal coursework and hours of dissertation research, the minimum required number of semester hours for the PhD degree is 90 post-baccalaureate hours. No more than six hours of NURS 5980 Research can be included in the 90 hours [Graduate Bulletin, 4.6.1.9.]. A minimum of 12 credits is required for NURS 6980 dissertation research but it is anticipated that 21 hours will be the norm.

Scholarship Opportunities

The University of Oklahoma College of Nursing Dean, faculty, and staff are committed to helping doctoral students find sources of financial support for their education.   Students interested in the PhD program may be eligible to receive pre-doctoral financial support for their program of study and/or dissertation.   For full eligibility of scholarship opportunities, please apply to the doctoral program by January 15th or before.

View list of financial aid and scholarship opportunites

 

Updated MR: 01/31/11

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