Dissertation Completion in Doctoral Nursing Education Ellen B. Daroszewski PhD, APRN College of Graduate Nursing Western University of Health Sciences Joint Southern California STTI Chapters Nursing Odyssey 2011
Dec 25, 2015
Dissertation Completionin Doctoral Nursing Education
Ellen B. Daroszewski PhD, APRN
College of Graduate Nursing
Western University of Health Sciences
Joint Southern California STTI Chapters Nursing Odyssey 2011
Doctoral Nursing Program Components
“Easy” part Courses Research/lab/clinical experiences Qualifying or other exams
“Hard” part Final “project”
Most significant work of the program Dissertation
PhD - original research DNP – practice-based project with many
forms
Dissertation Definition Cambridge dictionary
"long piece of writing on a particular subject"
Oxford dictionary
"long essay, especially one written for a university degree or diploma”
Britannica Encyclopedia
"an extended usually written treatment of a subject specifically:
one submitted for a doctorate"
Dissertation Essence(The Academic Research Group, 2010)
Simply put, a doctoral dissertation is a scholarly document
Ultimate demonstration of the student’s competency in their field/discipline
Generally lengthy Trend is toward shorter documents Unusual does not exceed 300 pages
Focused on a narrow topic
Contains extensive references to other work and experts in the field
The Future of Nursing(IOM, 2010)
Recommendation 5
Double the number of nurses with a
doctorate by 2020
The Registered Nurse PopulationThe 2008 National Sample Survey
of Registered Nurses (USDHHS HRSA, 2010)
Registered Nurses With Doctorates
Series1, 1, 3063162
Series1, 2, 15229
Series1, 3, 13140
1 2 3
RNs with Doctorates 0.9%
28,369
All RNs 3,063,162
Nursing 0.4%
Non Nursing 0.5%
The Registered Nurse Population
with Double the Number of Doctorates
All RNs 3,063,162
Double the Number of RNs with Doctorates
1
2
RNs with Doctorates 1.8%
56,738
All RNs 3,063,162
Number of Nursing Doctoral Programs and Students 2010
(AACN, 2011)
DNP 153 programs 7, 034 students (2010)
PhD (in nursing) 124 programs 4,611 students (2010)
Total RN Doctoral Students 2010
11,645 (nursing)
+ 11,645 (estimate non nursing)
23,290
11,645
Potential Increase in Doctorally Prepared RNs by 2020
(5 years to graduation)
Nursing 11, 645 students X 5 = 58,225
Non nursing 11, 645 students X 5 = 58,225
New RNs with Doctorates by 2020
116,450 !!! From 0.9% to 3.8%
QuadrupleSo what’s the
problem?
Problem: Doctoral Completion Rates 20-50% of nursing doctoral students finish
their degree (Cohen, 2011) Dissertation completion is the major obstacle
to doctorate completion
Takes a LONG time Women and minorities take the longest Students who works on their dissertation for
more than 2 years likely to never finish
Cohen found completion MOST affected by Program problems
Conflicts Delays
Life demands Parental responsibilities Work
52 Nursing PhD Programs 6 Year Graduation Rate
PhD Graduation in 6 Years
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Series1
PhD.org, 2011
Mean = 51.8%
Mitchell-Kernan, 2008, www.phdcompletion.org/resources/CGSNSF2008_MitchellKernan.pdf-
me
Mitchell-Kernan, 2008, www.phdcompletion.org/resources/CGSNSF2008_MitchellKernan.pdf-
6-10 years
Mitchell-Kernan, 2008, www.phdcompletion.org/resources/CGSNSF2008_MitchellKernan.pdf-
Mitchell-Kernan, 2008, www.phdcompletion.org/resources/CGSNSF2008_MitchellKernan.pdf-
All-But-Dissertation (ABD) DNP Student Survey
Study aim
To describe the
helpfulness of program supports
and
affect of lifestyle factors
on dissertation completion
ABD Survey Methods Two part 25 item self-report
15 internal program support (PS)
10 external life factors (LF)
Written comments
Distributed using Qualtrecs software 53 ABDs 37 (70%) completed the survey
Very Helpful (+2) Somewhat Helpful (+1) Not Helpful (-2) Did Not Use(0)
Very Helpful (+2) Somewhat Helpful (+1) Negatively Affected My Dissertation Progress (-2)
Did Not Affect My Dissertation Process (0)
Results: Internal Program Supportmean=42.8, SD=9.2, range =29, 24-53 (74 to -74 possible)
Ranking Score Internal Program Supports
1 53 Dissertation guidelines
1 53 Dissertation proposal tips
1 53 Course paper (vulnerable populations)
4 51 Lit review throughout program
5 50 Dissertation seminars
6 48 Chair feedback
6 48 Dissertation Website
8 44 Course paper (research)
9 40 Faculty feedback
9 40 Other student feedback
9 40 Course paper (theory & philosophy)
12 34 Other support
13 33 Committee feedback (Academic member)
14 31 Committee feedback (Community member)
15 24 Other college & university support
Very Helpful
Somewhat Helpful
Not Helpful
Results: External Life Factors mean=28 SD=21.6, range=60, -5-55 (74 to -74 possible)
Ranking Score External Life Factors
1 56 Computer
2 55 Skill in using technology
3 53 Motivation to complete
4 35 Friends/colleagues
5 33 Time management
6 17 Employer/Employment
7 14 Health
8 12 Family/family obligations
9 10 Finances
10 -5 Other life factors
Very Helpful
Somewhat Helpful
Negative Affect
Council of Graduate SchoolsPhD Completion Project
7 year, 2 phase study of doctoral completion and attrition
Main factors that contributed to completion
Mentoring/advising
Family support
Financial support
Ph.D. Completion and Attrition: Findings from Exit Surveys of Ph.D. Completers (2009)
Discussion ABD survey results supported the
findings of Cohen & the PhD Completion Project
Life demands were found to be least helpful and have the most negative affect on dissertation completion Family & financial support important for
completion
Doctoral programs supports help ABDs
Mentoring is important Dissertation Chair
Recommendations
“Everyone” has to get better at supporting doctoral completion Programs have to build in steps
and support for students Students have to learn to manage
their live demands
Respect and support for the difficulty of the dissertation process Advisors/Chairs
Questions …?
Dissertation or Die