Nursing PhD Advice

[georgia88]

Hello!

I'm looking for advice from any Nursing PhD's out there. I have three specific questions in which I was hoping you could share your experiences.

1) How specific does your dissertation topic need to be when you are applying to the program? I have patient population and subject identified, just not a specific hypothesis at this time. Would your advisors be able to assist you when your start the program or should this be determined before you submit your application?

2) I have been advised by professors to return to school for the PhD program as soon as possible. There thinking is that you want to have as much time as possible to build your academic career as a nurse researcher. My only concern is that with returning to school quickly, you have less clinical experience for teaching and working in a university setting. What are your thoughts?

Thank you so much for any thoughts/advice/pearls of wisdom you can share!

[3peas]

I'm starting on my PhD in August, but I've been through the application and interview process so I can answer your first question. Before starting my application process I knew the population and general subject I wanted to study. I did not and still do not have a specific question narrowed down yet, but I know what I want to study. Professors really liked that I had an idea/area I wanted to study and population. They also liked that I wasn't completely rigid with my ideas as well, but I had direction. I spoke with six schools and specifically spoke with faculty from each school whom I thought could possibly be my advisor. Doing that helped me narrow down my school choices.

As far as your second question: each PhD director told me the exact thing regarding staring your doctoral education earlier. I'm a second career nurse, so I feared not being a 10-20 year practicing nurse would hurt me. It also would not be physically possible for me due to my age. They all explained that is why we have a nurse faculty shortage because of the misguided belief that you have to have a 20+ year clinical career then pursue higher education. No other science field does that. I do not need 10+ years of bedside experience to be a researcher. I feel comfortable teaching in my clinical field with the experience I have and will continue to gain during my program.

[llg, PhD, RN]

I used to sit an an Admissions Committee -- and I agree with the previous poster. It's best to have a general idea, but not good to be committed to a specific research question, method, etc. That is what your PhD coursework is for -- to explore you topic in greater depth and to learn all about the different types of research, etc. Through that process of taking your coursework, you should be learning more about both the topic and the research options and be developing your specific plan that will incorporate that new knowledge. If you already know all that before you start, then there is no need for the PhD courses.

As for when in your career to go -- I agree that you should not wait too long. But I also think that no one should be teaching nursing who has never actually been successful working as a nurse. If you have been successful as a nurse, then great -- go for it. But if you have never worked as a nurse (and been successful at it) -- do yourself and your future students a favor and get a couple of years of actual nursing experience before you start teaching.