DNP to PhD Overview

Fall 2025 Application Period Open Until March 15, 2025

The Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing offers a Doctor of Philosophy with Major in Nursing (PhD) degree program and a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree program. The doctoral programs are grounded in the philosophy of caring and focus on the integration and application of advanced nursing research for improved nursing practice and betterment of humankind.

The graduate of the Doctor of Philosophy with Major in Nursing (PhD) degree program is expected to expand nursing knowledge and theory and directly impact the health of clients and communities. The focus of the PhD program is to prepare nurses as scholars in conducting nursing research about practice problems and creating innovative responses to practice issues.

Admission Criteria

DNP to PhD in Nursing Admissions Criteria

Admission to the Ph.D. program will be for the fall semester each year. Applications must be submitted to the University's Graduate College before completing the application to the College of Nursing. Evidence of the following information is required in the admissions process

Doctor in Nursing Practice degree with a Major in Nursing from a university or college of nursing program accredited by the National League for Nursing or the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. Official copies of transcripts from all post-secondary institutions of education should be sent directly to the University's Graduate College.
Minimum cumulative 3.5 GPA in a Bachelors in Nursing program.
Curriculum vitae (Required Format for CV).
Two letters of recommendation from academic and professional references, one from a DNP professor holding a doctorate.
An example of work that depicts a culminating scholarly product from the BSN program. Examples: thesis, project, manuscript for evidenced-based research course, paper/manuscript for inquiry practicum.
Typed two-page statement of the applicant's goals for the PhD degree that addresses:
- Why you are interested in admission to the FAU, College of Nursing PhD program
- Phenomenon of interest consistent with at least 1 of the 4 Research Focus Areas (Healthy Aging, Holistic Nursing, Transforming Healthcare Environments, and Health Equity).
- Identification of 1-3 potential College of Nursing faculty mentors
Evidence of grade of "B" or better in a graduate statistics course that provides the student with a broad knowledge of statistical concepts and techniques necessary for critical consumption of research.
Satisfactory background check (a background check is required after conditional acceptance to the program).
Applicants will be required to have an interview with members of the doctoral admissions committee. Upon review of all the information about the applicant by the doctoral program committee, a decision for admission will be made and the applicant will be notified.

Application Process

*Application Deadline for Fall and Spring admission

March 15 for Fall admission

How to apply to the PhD degree

Complete a Florida Atlantic University Graduate Application. Please make sure to select Fall or Spring as your entry semester.

The following supporting documents must be uploaded in order to complete your application

All final conferred transcripts from previous colleges and universities.
Curriculum vitae (Required Format for CV).
Typed statement
Example of Scholarly product
Two letters of recommendation from academic and professional references, one from a BSN program professor holding a doctorate.

*You will request both letters of recommendation electronically via the GradCAS application. Therefore, be prepared with recommender names and current e-mail addresses.

Information sessions

Curriculum

DNP to PhD in Nursing Curriculum

Course Information	Class	Credits
Fall, Year 1
Evolution of Nursing as a Discipline and Practice	NGR 7111	3
Essential Statistical Methods for Nursing Science	NGR 7846	3
Caring Science I: An Essential Domain of Nursing Knowledge	NGR 7116	3
Spring, Year 1
Philosophies of Science Grounding Nursing	NGR 7115	3
Qualitative Research Methods	NGR 7815	3
Advanced Nursing Research: Applied Quantitative Design and Methods	NGR 7818	3
Summer, Year 1
Scholarship Practicum	NGR 7946	3
Applied Advanced Statistics	NGR 7845	3
Fall, Year 2
Theory Development and Application in Nursing	NGR 7121	3
Caring Science II: Developing Phenomena of Interest within Research Focus Areas	NGR 7118	3
Mixed Methods in Practice Based Research	NGR 7816	3
Spring, Year 2
Innovations in Inquiry	NGR 7853	3
Caring Science III: Innovative Methodologies to Study Caring Science	NGR 7119	3
Cognate		3
Summer, Year 2
Doctoral Synthesis (Comprehensive Examination)	NGR 7978	3
Fall, Year 3
Advanced Research	NGR 7979	3
Spring, Year 3
Dissertation (two classes over two semesters)	NGR 7980	6
Summer, Year 3
Dissertation (two classes over two semesters)	NGR 7980	6

Estimated Cost Breakdown for DNP to PhD in Nursing program

Instate (FL) tuition rate	$371.81 per credit hour
Out of State tuition rate	$1026.81 per credit hour
Credits needed to graduate	Minimum of 60 credits.
Total Estimated Tuition	Instate (FL) $22,309.20 / Out of State $61,608.60

*Cost per credit and total cost are calculated using tuition per credit and associated fees for the current academic year. It does not include course materials, textbook expenses, and other potential expenses related to individual courses.