Applicants for PhD study in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences–College of Nursing must meet the following requirements:
LICENSE
Hold current unencumbered licensure as a registered nurse.
Degrees/Prerequisites
Hold a master’s degree in nursing from an NLNAC- or CCNE-accredited program and show documentation of a minimum GPA of 3.65 in all coursework for the master’s degree. (Applicants desiring admission with only a BSN, or a master’s degree in another field, will be considered. If admitted, these students will be required to complete selected prerequisite coursework in nursing.)
TOEFL
If English is not the applicant’s first language, provide documentation of TOEFL test scores. A TOEFL score of at least 550 on the paper-based or at least 213 on the computer-based exam is required. A minimum score of 20 in each section of the iBT is required. The exam must have been taken within the last two (2) calendar years prior to admission. Only TOEFL test scores received directly from ETS will be accepted as valid. Testing information is available at https://www.ets.org/toefl.html
Application and Transcripts
Complete the application process of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Graduate School. All official transcripts must be sent to the Graduate School. IMPORTANT NOTE about electronic transcripts: If sending an official electronic transcript, make sure it goes to the Graduate School, rather than any of the other colleges at UAMS (such as the College of Medicine).
Please note: If you have undergraduate or master’s transcripts with another name other than the name under which you are applying to the program, please indicate both your current name and your previous name(s) to the UAMS Graduate School Office. Otherwise, the application process will be delayed until you have relayed this information.
Interview
As part of the admissions process, all applicants will participate in an interview with two or three UAMS College of Nursing faculty members. During the interview, you will be asked to respond to questions that help us understand your educational goals, research interests, and vision for your future scholarly career. Below are the topics you will be asked to address.
- Reasons for graduate study: Share your reasons for pursuing a PhD in Nursing and what motivates you to advance the science of nursing. We encourage you to describe the experiences — clinical, academic, or personal — that prepared you for doctoral training. Help us understand how your background has shaped your passion for leadership and research and your vision for making an impact through your future scholarly work.
- Please provide a balanced assessment of your personal characteristics including strengths, weaknesses, and challenges. Describe how these characteristics influence your individual and group interactions, with particular emphasis on your interpersonal style and leadership qualities, and those characteristics that influence the way others view you. Also, describe any memberships that are important to you.
- Briefly describe a health care problem or a population problem within the scope of nursing science that you might want to focus on in your research. You are not expected to have a fully developed research question at this point, but offering a clear area of interest is encouraged. This information enables us to connect you with faculty members who share similar research interests and can help guide your development as an emerging nurse scientist.
- What contribution do you expect to make to the nursing profession after earning this degree?
- Why did you specifically select the PhD program in Nursing at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS)? How do you expect doctoral study at UAMS to facilitate your career goals?
- How have your background and life experiences including cultural, geographical, financial, educational, or other opportunities or challenges motivated your decision to pursue the PhD at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences?
Written Work
You will be asked to submit an example of your scholarly written work. You will also be asked to write a short essay on a selected topic prior to your interview.