PhD Curriculum

Each student completes a core curriculum and works closely with faculty advisors to complete an individualized course of study that fulfills the student's goals and develops the basis for a program of research.

PhD Sample Full-time Curriculum Plan

Each student completes a core curriculum and works closely with faculty advisors to complete an individualized course of study that fulfills the student's goals and develops the basis for a program of research.

** A grade of "B" or better is required in each course for progression in the PhD Program.

* Some SON elective courses are offered every other year. Please check with the Doctoral Program Administrator regarding course offerings.

Independent study credits do not count toward required elective credits.

Students may apply up to 6 credits of a 500 level course offering (in or outside the SON) toward their doctoral program requirements.

NR 100.800 Philosophical Perspectives in Health
This course draws from and integrates the literatures of nursing theory and science studies (specifically philosophy of science, sociology of science and history of nursing science) to provide a comprehensive understanding of the nature of nursing science and the knowledge it provides. The course explores several central topics in the philosophy of science: (1) the nature of scientific method, (2) what are scientific explanation, and (3) probability and the related concept of evidence. Contrasting theoretical and methodological viewpoints will be discussed and applications made to nursing science theory, research and practice.

NR 100.804 Combining Qualitative and Quantitative Data in Healthcare Research
This course examines various approaches to interpretive and critical research methodology along with a variety of strategies for combining qualitative data with quantitative data in the same study. Ethical, gender, ethnic, funding, and research quality issues in the conduct and presentation of such research will also be addressed. There will also be hands on experience in conducting interviews and data analysis.

NR 100.809 Advanced Research Design I
Co-requisite: PH100.621 and PH100.622 or special permission of instructor
This course will provide an in depth exploration of the design and conduct of research in the health sciences. Students will evaluate common quantitative research designs, sources of bias and how to minimize bias in all steps of the research process across designs, and assess major concepts and principles relevant to research design and analytical approaches. Students will learn the strengths and weaknesses as well as when and how to use these designs and methods by studying and critiquing relevant examples from the literature and ongoing research by faculty. Special issues in the analysis and interpretation of data from various research designs and the critical evaluation of measurement techniques will be addressed. Discussions also will cover the ways in which the nursing perspective shapes the conduct and results of research.

NR 100.810 Theories and Concepts of Health Behavior and Health Promotion
This course focuses on the theoretical foundations of health behavior and health promotion as a basis for nursing research. The theory and principles of how health behavior patterns of individuals, families, and communities are acquired, maintained, and changed are emphasized. The influence of social and psychological factors such as ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender and social support is included. Selected research applications of theories and models of health promotion will be analyzed and relevant research methodologies will be discussed.

NR 100.811 Symptom Evaluation and Management
This course focuses on the theoretical and empirical foundations of common symptoms as a basis for nursing practice. Each symptom is approached from bio-behavioral and socio-cultural theoretical perspectives emphasizing the state of the science with regard to definitions, theoretical models, assessment/measurement, and clinical management strategies. Symptoms such as pain, fatigue, anxiety, and cognitive changes will be examined as responses to illness/disability and/or its treatment across the lifespan.

NR 100.812 Evidence Based Nursing Practice
This course focuses on the relationship between nursing interventions and patient outcomes. The conceptualization, definition, theoretical rationale and measurement of nursing interventions and patient outcomes will be evaluated, and related research will be described. Common nursing interventions, as well as the need for additional innovative nursing approaches, are discussed in relation to specific patient outcomes. Classification schemes of nursing interventions and their relationship to cost reimbursement also are analyzed. Practice guidelines, databases and funding for outcome research being developed by public and private organizations are critiqued.

NR 100.813 Physiologic and Biologic Nursing Science
A selection of the pertinent empirical knowledge and theories regarding research in nursing and the basic sciences, and its role in the broader content of nursing research. Readings and discussion center on basic science research from the student's area of interest and its relationship to the discipline of nursing. Students will prepare a critique of a body of nursing research in relation to the presence or absence of physiologic or biologic research or lead a class discussion as well as documenting their position.

NR 100.814 Scientific Perspectives in Nursing
This seminar is a synthesis of concepts of philosophy, theory, and research used in the development and testing of nursing knowledge. Concept analysis and construction, theory development and the relationships among conceptual frameworks, theories, and empirical referents are critically analyzed. The course considers nursing and related sciences with regard to the theories and research and teaches critical evaluation from the perspective of the contemporary philosophy of science and research methodology. Students are guided to consider the philosophic assumptions upon which specific theories are based and how the nature of the research problem and theory guides the choice of research method. They are also guided in the process of a critical review and synthesis of nursing and other knowledge in their own area of concentration and in the identification of key concepts and relationships for their own planned research.

NR100.818 Seminar in Violence Research (1 credit)
This seminar examines current topics and issues on violence prevention, intervention and policy research using an interdisciplinary perspective. It will include faculty from the Schools of Nursing, Medicine and Public Health at Johns Hopkins and other leading experts on violence research. Topics will include the physical and psychosocial factors in the perpetration of violence, physical and mental health effects of family and stranger violence, complex interrelationships of substance abuse and violence and the efficacy of health care individual and system interventions. Community level violence policy, prevention, interventions, and health care access for violence related health effects will also be examined. Research design, cultural factors, interdisciplinary collaboration and bioethical issues specific to violence research will be examined. Topics will span two years and the course may be taken up to four times.

NR100.819 Seminar in Health Disparities of Underserved
Populations Research (1 credit)
This seminar examines current topics and issues on health disparities of underserved populations, intervention and policy research using an interdisciplinary perspective. It will include faculty from the Schools of Nursing, Medicine and Public Health at Johns Hopkins and other leading experts on health disparities of underserved population’s research. Topics will include the relative contribution of structural, financial and personal barriers to health care and mediators that contribute to health disparities by impeding the achievement of optimal health of underserved populations. Students will learn to design and test culturally appropriate interventions to address the most influential barriers that hinder the achievement of optimal health outcomes of underserved populations. Students will discuss translating research findings into practice and policy through a variety of mechanisms working with clinicians, educators, communities, and policy makers. Additionally, interdisciplinary collaboration and bioethical issues specific to health disparities of underserved population’s research will be examined. Topics will span two years and the course may be taken up to four times.

NR100.821 Advanced Nursing Health Policy
This course uses a framework of policy analysis to examine the processes by which national health and nursing policies are determined. The influence of economics on health and nursing care delivery is considered as are factors that influence the acquisition and use of nursing resources and the regulation of professional practice. Specific policy areas relevant to nursing that reflect the contemporary health care environments are selected for discussion. Secondary sources of data for the study of nursing policy are identified.

NR 100.823 Addressing Health Disparities Through Transcultural Nursing Research
This course is designed to introduce the student to theoretical and research approaches useful to the discovery of nursing knowledge related to health disparities for underserved populations. Leininger’s nursing theory of culture care diversity and universality as well as Kleinman’s work in culture, health and illness will be explored. Concepts of ethnicity, race, marginalization, caring, and culture will serve as the basis for in-depth exploration of cultural dimensions of health care. The philosophical, epistemic, and historical dimensions of the culture care theory will serve as the foundation for the exploration of health disparity research. Research methodologies appropriate to the discovery of the context of health disparities will be introduced with respect to a variety of scientific paradigms.

NR100.824 Stress and Stress Responses
This seminar is a synthesis of concepts of philosophy, theory, and design used in the development and testing of knowledge regarding the phenomenon of stress, responses to stress, and interventions to ameliorate stress. Multiple dimensions of these phenomena are to be considered, including spiritual, psychological, biological, behavioral, social and environmental. Factors and units of analysis encompass the individual, family and community.

NR100.825 Discipline and Science of Nursing and
Parameters/Determinants of Health
The overall purpose of this course is to guide the student in acquiring an understanding of the discipline of nursing and its science base, including the evolution of the science. Covered in this course are the existing state of scientific knowledge, types of scientific research, research perspective, relationship to other disciplines, and relationship to the profession and practice of nursing. The value system of nursing and conceptualizations of health will be explored as to their influence on research designs and the nursing definition of parameters and determinants of human health. The components of a scientific research proposal, designed within the discipline of nursing and employing appropriate presentation of quantitative information, will be explored as a written scholarly paper and an oral presentation. In this course, the students will be guided in: selecting a significant health problem for scientific study, stating the overall purpose of the proposed research as related to nursing, stating the specific aims of the proposed research, and writing the background / scientific justification for the proposed research objectives.

NR100.826 Advanced Research Design II
Prerequisite: Completion of NR100.800, PH140.621 and PH140.622
This course will provide an in depth exploration of advanced research design in the health sciences. This course is comprised of inductive and deductive approaches to theory building and theory testing. Qualitative research approaches, community based participatory research (CBPR) and combining methods will be critically analyzed for their theoretical underpinnings, methods, assumptions, data collection processes and methods of analysis. Issues related to the rigor of these designs and methodologies will also be examined. Causal modeling will also be a focus of this course.

NR100.827 Grant Writing Seminar (1 credit)
This seminar course provides a foundation upon which to build skills for writing grant applications from seeking appropriate mechanisms for accomplishing the dissertation through the completion of the application. Included in this continuum is the articulation of the background and significance, methods, plans for analysis, and discussion regarding human subjects or vertebrate animals. In applicable cases, the National Research Service Award (NRSA) mechanism is to be the focus.

NR100.828 Measurement in Health Care Research
This course presents both qualitative and quantitative approaches to analyze reliability, validity, and sensitivity of measurements in the health research field. Selected measurement theories and models of health research will be discussed. Classic measurement theories and principles of psychometrics, including reliability and validity, and latent variable-based measurement models, including exploratory factor analysis will be discussed and employed in evaluating data for instrument reliability, validity and sensitivity. This course is designed for doctoral students in nursing, public health and medicine.

NR100.829 Structural Equation Modeling
This course focuses on applying the theoretical basis of measurement in the evaluation of an instrument or a measurement protocol for a selected concept of relevance in health care research. A variety of measurement issues will be discussed. In addition, advanced analytic strategies for an instrument validation using causal modeling techniques are presented. This course is designed for doctoral students who have basic knowledge in measurement theories and psychometrics analysis.

NR100.830 The Evolving Roles of the Nurse Educator
The purpose of this course is to provide the learner with an overview of the evolving roles of the nurse educator within the context of an ever-changing health care system and educational environment. The focus is on the educator as a teacher, collaborator, researcher/scholar, and practitioner/scholar. It is anticipated that, at the end of the course, the learner will have formulated a personal working philosophy of nursing education.


NR100.831 Issues and Trends in Global Health (1 credit)
This course presents contemporary issues in global health with a focus on research in the industrialized world. Seminar topics include health care systems, measurement and indicators of health status, and emerging health problems in different countries, internationally focused intervention studies, and bioethics in international health research. This course provides opportunities to students with immersion experience that broaden and deepen their understanding of health needs globally.

NR100.832 Writing for Publication (1 credit)
This course is designed to introduce students to issues relevant to scholarly scientific writing and the publication process. Seminar topics will include factors to be considered in selecting a journal, authorship guidelines, challenges to successful writing (writer’s block, procrastination, time management), scientific impact factor, reference managing software, literature searches and scientific documentation, steps in critiquing one’s own and others’ writing. This course provides opportunities to students to revise and prepare a paper to the point of submitting it for publication to an appropriate professional journal.

Permission of the instructor is required for students not enrolled in a doctoral program in the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing.

NR100.880 The Global Health Care Professional (2 credits)
The theoretical aspects of the course focus on models of health care or collaborative research in selected countries, the European Community and the United States. Health care needs of people of different cultures and countries are examined and the measurement of quality and cost of care are analyzed and evaluated. The major emphasis of this course is to assist students in acquiring a global perspective of health care and a deeper understanding of interactions between culture and health. In addition the students will gain a greater understanding of quality and cost of health care delivery within and between countries and cultures. The programs and activities of the WHO and other international health care organizations will be discussed.

NR100.890 Dissertation Seminar (1 credit)
This seminar provides a means by which progressing PhD students can gather to present and critique each other regarding progress through their dissertation, have a forum for problem-solving and solution-sharing, and to remain up to date regarding regulations in health care and research, and career development.

NR100.891 Responsibilities and Activities of the Nurse Scientist (2 credits)
This seminar addresses the responsibilities and activities of a scientist in the health professions, including ethical issues; scientific freedom and social responsibility; collaboration and negotiation; interdisciplinary research; peer review; development of a research plan, program of research and research career; research funding and grantsmanship; presentations and publications.

NR100.899 Dissertation Research (1 credit)

NR200.806 Health Informatics I – National Outcomes (2 credits)
This course will examine the application of health informatics to health care research. The course content is designed to provide a set of skills necessary to find, select, evaluate, and analyze different types of health related data. Students will use the skills they acquire to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of databases for specific health research topics.

NR200.807 Health Informatics II – Managed Care Outcomes (2 credits)
This course will examine the application of health informatics concepts in outcomes research. The course content is designed to facilitate the acquisition of a set of systems skills that can be applied to clinical informatics, outcomes management, and health-related databases. A case study approach will be used to assist students in applying this skill set to outcomes management.

NR200.809 Practicum in Data Base Structure, Management and
Access for Clinical Informatics (2 credits)
This practicum will provide the student with an opportunity to comprehensively explore database development and analysis through working with experts of a selected health-related database. The student will examine issues related to creation of the database; collection of the data; and the steps involved in preparing data files for the user and secondary data analysis. The student will interact with researchers using the database to gain an understanding of the issues they had to address.

PH140.621 Statistical Methods in Public Health I
Introduces the basic concepts and methods of statistics as applied to diverse problems in public health and medicine. Demonstrates methods of exploring, organizing, and presenting data, and introduces fundamentals of probability, including probability distributions and conditional probability, with applications to 2x2 tables. Presents the foundations of statistical inference, including concepts of population, sample parameter, and estimate; and approaches to inferences using the likelihood function, confidence intervals, and hypothesis tests. Introduces and employs the statistical computing package, STATA, to manipulate data and prepare students for remaining course work in this sequence.

PH140.622 Statistical Methods in Public Health II
Presents use of likelihood functions, confidence intervals, and hypothesis tests to draw scientific inferences from public health data. Discusses null and alternative hypotheses, Type I and Type II errors, and power. Develops parametric and non-parametric statistical methods for comparing multiple groups (ANOVA). Also introduces measures of association and simple linear regression. Addresses methods for planning a study, including stratification, balance, sampling strategies, and sample size.

PH140.623 Statistical Methods in Public Health III
Presents use of generalized linear models for quantitative analysis of data encountered in public health and medicine. Specific models include analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, multiple linear regression, logistic regression, and log-linear regression for incidence rates.

PH140.624 Statistical Methods in Public Health IV
Expands students’ abilities to conduct and report the results of a valid statistical of quantitative public health information. Develops more advanced skills in multiple regression models, focusing on log-linear models and on techniques for the evaluation of survival and longitudinal data. Also presents methods for the measurement of agreement, validity, and reliability.