Pathways to the PhD in Nursing: An Analysis of Similarities and Differences.

New educational pathways are needed to increase the number of doctor of philosophy (PhD)-prepared nurses. To address this need, an early-entry PhD option designed to engage students in PhD coursework and research during the undergraduate nursing major was developed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. An evaluation comparing the early-entry option with two more conventional entry points was conducted.

Early entry to a doctoral degree in nursing program: analysis of student experiences.

Educational innovations that encourage younger students to pursue doctoral research training are timely and important. To this end, an evaluation of an early-entry doctoral (PhD) program in nursing was conducted. One component of this evaluation examines qualitative data from students admitted to the PhD program as undergraduates or immediately upon graduation from the undergraduate program.

A prebaccalaureate PhD option: shaping the future of research-focused doctoral education.

The future of PhD education in nursing is at a crossroads. Our current practice of primarily enrolling post-master's students with years of clinical experience is not producing an adequate number of graduates who are able to make significant and sustained contributions to nursing research. Therefore, it is timely to consider educational innovations that encourage a different population of students to consider doctoral research training.

Women living with a history of physical and/or sexual abuse, substance use, and mental health problems.

Most researchers have studied physical and/or sexual abuse, substance use, and mental health problems separately or as a dual diagnosis, and from a theory-driven, empirical perspective. In this study, the authors examined these three phenomena together and from a phenomenological perspective. Thirty women each participated in an individual interview about living with a history of physical and/or sexual abuse, substance use, and mental health problems.

Community-driven nursing transforming nursing curricula and instruction.

The aim of this study was to evaluate an innovative approach to teaching and learning community-based nursing. A hermeneutic research procedure was used to analyze data from individual interviews with undergraduate nursing students, faculty, and community preceptors. Two themes, or common meanings, of participation were identified: 1) Forming new partnerships: Experiencing community-driven nursing, and 2) Creating new visions: Thinking about community-driven nursing.