General Admission Requirements

The following requirements must be fulfilled for admission to the Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing program:

• One of the following credentials:
  • Bachelor’s degree in nursing
  • Associate’s degree in nursing with bachelor’s or advanced degree in any field
  • Advanced degree in nursing
  • Advanced degree in health-related field
• Current nursing license (nurses only)
• Minimum GPA from all academic work: 3.0
• Research interests aligned with the College of Nursing’s mission
• Completion of upper-level statistics prerequisite course within five years prior to application deadline (see /academics/phd/prerequisites)

GRE scores are NOT required.

English Proficiency Requirements for International Applicants

International applicants that do not meet the Graduate College requirements for a waiver are required to submit English proficiency scores prior to the January 15 application deadline. The minimum requirements are:

• TOEFL iBT:  Total score of 81
• IELTS:  Overall score of 7 with no subscore less than 6
• DuoLingo (DET):  Score of 105+

Review the English Proficiency Requirements on the Graduate College website for additional information, including details on the English Proficiency Evaluation and instructions on how to submit your scores.

PhD Application Requirements

You will need to apply to the Graduate College as part of the process for admission to the College of Nursing PhD program. The first step is to complete the online application through the Graduate Admissions Nursing (PhD) webpage and pay the appropriate fee. As part of the second step, Graduate Admissions will contact you by email to provide instructions on uploading supporting documents and submitting letters of recommendation.

Health and Clinical Requirements

The University of Iowa requires all health science students to provide documentation of the following immunizations. In addition, College of Nursing students participate in many clinical experiences and must comply with the standards agreed upon by our clinical partners. Students are expected to provide documented proof of the following health requirements upon acceptance into the college. College of Nursing contracts with Castle Branch, a service that allows students to order their own background checks online and to store all requirement documentation.

Criminal Background Check and Abuse Registry Checks

Ordered by student upon acceptance into the program

MMR
Proof of 2 vaccination dates or 3 positive titers showing immunity of each of the following: measles, mumps and rubella.

Varicella
Varicella vaccination series OR titer showing positive immunity.

Td/Tdap (tetanus/diphtheria)
Tetanus/diphtheria/pertussis: 1 Td at least every 10 years. Must have documentation of 1 Tdap vaccine.

Hepatitis B Vaccine and Titer:

• Vaccine series completed at the appropriate intervals, followed by an antibody titer.  The titer is REQUIRED, even if series was completed as a child.
• If the Hep B titer is negative, you will need to repeat the Hep B series and have a titer drawn 4-6 weeks after the final vaccine.
• If you do not have Hep B vaccination records but believe you got them, you can get the titer to check for immunity.

TB Skin Test or Chest X-Ray or IGRA Gold Blood Test

• TB Skin Test (2 step skin test required)

  • If you have documentation of (1) negative TST in the past 12 months, or documentation of (2) negative TSTs in your past, you need one more TST to meet the two-step requirement. A TST or IGRA is also required annually, after the two-step is completed initially.

• IGRA (Interferon Gamma Release Assay- Quantiferon Gold or T-Spot) is an alternative. If you have never had any TB skin testing, the two-step TST is done as follows: The first test is placed, and results are read in 48-72 hrs. The second test is placed at least 7 days after the reading of the first test, and read at 48-72 hrs. Send documentation of both tests, and include placement date, reading date, result and mm induration.

• Those with a history of a positive TST or IGRA must provide a copy of the CXR (Chest x-ray) report. If treated for LTBI (Latent TB Infection), provide medication treatment dates. Students with a history of a positive TST are also required to complete a symptom assessment initially and annually.

RN License
Current RN License, including expiration date

Compliance Training
Online training provided by the College of Nursing to be completed previous to matriculation.

For any questions regarding clinical requirements, please contact Angela Melsa Worrell at 319-335-7069 or by email at angela-melsa-worrell@uiowa.edu.