Determinants of career attainments of doctorates in nursing

The career attainments of graduates of doctoral programs in nursing during two academic career stages after the doctorate were examined. Educational associations and work experiences were the most important determinants of postdoctoral career attainments. The quality of the doctoral program attended and predoctoral work experiences significantly influenced initial institutional quality, which in turn influenced current institutional quality. The current institutional quality, then, had direct effects on current attainments in the areas of professorial rank, publication productivity, and income. Graduate school quality was the most important factor in first institutional quality, as it tracked faculty into certain strata of the higher educational hierarchy. Consistent with the academic stratification system in higher education, those in high quality programs attained lower professorial ranks but higher publication productivity and higher recognition than those who gained employment in unranked schools.