Diversifying the Pipeline Into Doctoral Nursing Programs: Developing the Doctoral Advancement Readiness...

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Higher Education

Background:

• Doctoral nursing education requires specific predictors and barriers for student success.
• Nurses considering doctoral programs need a structured self-assessment to evaluate their readiness.
• Existing mentoring platforms lack comprehensive readiness evaluations for aspiring doctoral students.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and psychometrically analyze the Doctoral Readiness Self-Assessment (DRSA) for nurses.
• To identify predictors and barriers influencing success in doctoral nursing education.
• To create a foundational tool for a web-based mentoring platform for prospective doctoral students.

Main Methods:

• Development of the Doctoral Readiness Self-Assessment (DRSA) survey.
• Psychometric analysis including factor analysis and internal reliability testing (Cronbach's alpha).
• Identification of practical (e.g., finances, time) and personal (e.g., motivation, perceived ability) factors.

Main Results:

• Factor analysis identified three distinct factors: interest, readiness, and support.
• Internal reliability analysis showed Cronbach's alpha increased from 0.75 to 0.80 after item refinement.
• The identified factors explained 51.25% of the variance in doctoral study readiness.

Conclusions:

• The DRSA is a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing doctoral study readiness in nurses.
• The identified factors (interest, readiness, support) can predict future enrollment in doctoral nursing programs.
• Self-assessment results can guide faculty in mentoring students through doctoral program applications and admissions.