BSN-PhD interview advice

saheckler, PhD, RN · Mar 24, 2022

I'm in a PhD program right now and am happy to talk with you if you'd like! Just send me a message.

I think the answers to some of these questions depend on the type of program you're interviewing with. If you are interviewing with a school that really prides itself on NIH funding, churning out publications, etc., then they will want to hear that your goal is to become nursing faculty at a research-intensive institution, pulling in NIH grants for your program of research in XXX topic. You don't have to have an exact research idea, but the more specific you can be, and the better that research idea fits with the school's priorities and their faculty's research interests, the better.

If you have some steps laid out that you plan to take on the way to that goal, even better, because it shows you know what you're getting into and are committed to this type of career. Examples include that you are hoping to write a grant (an F31 if you're going to NIH) on XXX topic so you can then write your dissertation on XXX topic (should match your grant topic) and secure a post-doctoral fellowship in XXX area, during which you will write a K (another NIH grant) to start you out on the right foot in a faculty position, because you want to ultimately be an expert on XXX and build your own independent program of research in this area.

The one faculty member in your interview is likely there as a prospective faculty advisor for you (that's usually, but not always, how it works), so keep that in mind. If you think that might be the case (I.e., maybe you mentioned this faculty member in your essay or they have some overlapping research interests), then make sure you are very familiar with that faculty member and their research and be able to say how you would fit with them as a mentor.

I don't think this is necessarily the time to be extremely forthcoming with all of your research interests. I think it's find to have a couple of different areas of interest or research ideas, but it will not look good if you seem all over the place or unfocused -- they'll want you to have a clear idea (or a couple of clear ideas) about what you want to study and build expertise in. Yes, students change topics all the time, and it may be fine to give them like more than one research interest, but just realize this might be a risk.

I would be prepared to talk about how your previous experiences have informed your research interests and prepared you for this program -- especially if you have research experience, but don't be worried if you don't have research experience yet (they wouldn't have called you for an interview if they didn't already decide that you were qualified). Think about your transferrable skills and what you bring to the program through your experiences. How do your clinical and other skills uniquely situation you to do the kind of research you want? Also, maybe think about what are some skills or areas of expertise you hope to gain or build on in the program? (Be careful with that part -- any skills or expertise you wish to gain should fit in the narrative of how you're hoping to become nursing faculty at a research-intensive institution running an independent program of research in XXX).

Overall, you want to give them a nice, neat little narrative about how your previous experiences have given you XXX skills and have informed your research interests in XXX ways, and so you hope to do XYZ on your way to becoming an expert independent faculty researcher in XXX. You can have some breadth to your interests, but they should all have some tie back to this narrative.

In terms of what makes a candidate mentorable -- I guess I would say similar research interests, being driven, being a self-starter and self-motivator, taking responsibility for driving the mentorship relationship, having similar goals and vision for your career as your mentor, taking harsh feedback well, grit and determination and perseverance. I'm sure there are more.

Again, I'm super happy to talk with you or meet with you if you'd like -- just send me a message. Happy to answer any questions in this thread as well.

Good luck!

Miranda90 · Apr 10, 2023

Thank you so much for sharing the information. I'm planning to apply for the nursing phd program in 2024 and your information is so helpful.

Will previous publications make me more competitive? I have 2, one is published and the other one is under review by International journal of nursing studies.

Thanks