Become a leader in the field of nursing

Our PhD program prepares you for a career in nursing education, research, health systems, or clinical science to enhance the care of individuals and families across the lifespan. PhD-prepared nurses lead the profession, teach the next generation of nurses, and expand nursing’s impact on health policy and public health.

Is a PhD right for you?

The PhD program is available through the IUPUI campus, but it is distance-accessible, using videoconferencing technology that synchronously places you in the classroom with your classmates. You can also choose in-person classes (if available) if you prefer to learn in a face-to-face setting. We attempt to schedule the required PhD courses across one day each week so that students know in advance which day to plan to be available for class.

PhD students attend two required, on-campus, multi-day intensives during the first two years of the PhD program. These intensives are typically held in early June of the first two years of the PhD program and give you the opportunity to interact with other students and with faculty, attend professional development sessions, meet with faculty mentors, and network.

This program is also available through an accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing to Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing (BSN-PhD) track, which can be accomplished in four years as a full-time student, or six years as a part-time student.

As a PhD student, you are linked with faculty researchers who provide supportive mentoring throughout your entire PhD program. There is one core curriculum, but you can choose to work with faculty experts on one of two tracks: Clinical Nursing Science or Health Systems, which includes Nursing Education.