PhD in Nursing Program Admissions

Applicants should complete Part 1 by April 15.

All application materials, including transcripts, must be submitted to NursingCAS, not the University of Cincinnati. Once in NursingCAS, you will be required to enter the following information:

• NursingCAS fee of $80
  
• Resume or CV
• Names of three to six leaders who worked directly with you in a service or academic setting to provide a recommendation letter (You will enter their names and email addresses in NursingCAS and they will receive a request to write a letter for you.)
  
• All higher education institutions attended and dates
  
• Coursework entry: Either complete your coursework entry from official or complete unofficial transcripts, or submit payment for optional Professional Transcript Entry (PTE) service.
  
• Personal statement: Respond to the five prompts below in separate documents with a maximum of 300 words per response. Please include the prompt you are addressing at the top of each document.
  • Career Goals: What are your career goals and how do you see the PhD program contributing to meeting them? 
  • Significant Area of Research: Within your particular area of interest, identify some problems you see as offering promise for research.
    
  • Personal Strengths: What particular strengths do you think you bring to this program that would enrich the learning environment of your peers? 
  • UC Faculty Research Match: Identify one or two potential advisers from our college scientists who may be a good match for your research interests and provide a rationale for your choice. Visit our Researchers page to view our current PhD program faculty.
• Writing sample: In a separate document no longer than three to four paragraphs, address the following statement: "Differentiate between the research scholar (PhD, or a Doctor of Philosophy) and the practice scholar (DNP, or a Doctor of Nursing Practice)." Use APA formatting and include citations, if used.
• Other documents:
  
  • Optional — copy of RN License, or equivalent for international applicants
  • Test scores:
    • English Proficiency Score: International applicants who are not originally from a country where English is the first language or have not completed a higher education degree (bachelor's, master's or doctorate) in a country where English is the first language must upload their scores into their application and have official scores reported to the University of Cincinnati Graduate School. Required scores:
      • Internet-based TOEFL: 100 or higher
      • Computer-based TOEFL: 250 or higher
      • Paper-based TOEFL: 600-603
      • IELTS: 7.0 or higher overall score
      • Duolingo: 120 or higher
    • Optional — GRE Score: The GRE is NOT required for our PhD program, but applicants who feel it may strengthen their application may upload an official score report and have scores sent to the University of Cincinnati Graduate School (code 1833).

The NursingCAS application includes instructions for ordering electronic transcripts for submission, which most institutions allow.

If your institution does not allow this, request the issuing institution mail your transcripts directly to NursingCAS, P.O. Box 9201, Watertown, MA 02471. Materials must be received by the posted deadline.

Applicants should complete Part 2 by May 15.

The following must be received by NursingCAS by the Part 2 deadline:

• Official transcripts from all schools previously attended
  • International applicants (except Canadian applicants with transcripts in English) must have their transcripts translated and certified by the World Education Service (WES) or another NACES member. Please start this process at least three months before the Part 2 deadline to ensure that the documents arrive on NursingCAS or the Graduate School on time
• Recommendation letters from individuals providing recommendations

A couple of days after your NursingCAS application reaches verified status, you will receive an email with a link to pay the UC Graduate School fee of $65 ($70 for international applicants).

The UC College of Nursing requires qualified PhD Nursing Research applicants to undergo an interview for admission. Qualified applicants will be informed of this offer, with details of the interview provided at the time of the offer. Applicants are reviewed on a rolling basis and not guaranteed interviews.