Graduate Course Descriptions

Parts I and II (1.5 cr, 1.5 cr) A two part course offered each spring (early summer) on the Immaculata campus and focusing in the following scholarly and professional development areas. Grading is pass or fail.: Part I: Introduction to Doctoral Competencies and Professional Ethics Part II: Development of Doctoral Competencies and Professional Ethics (Pre-requisite HED 766 Part I)

This course gives students the opportunity to focus on the cyclical systematic process of program planning and assessment. Major topics include conducting a needs assessment and analysis, establishing program goals and student learning outcomes, planning of the program assessment, and setting up processes for evaluation and improvement that involve external and internal stakeholders at all levels in the context of all appropriate accreditation and licensing bodies in both Higher Education and Nursing. The course will culminate in the simulated experience of presenting a complete new Nursing program proposal delivered to a college board of trustees.

This course offers students an exploration of theory and practice of the systematic instructional design of nursing curriculum in the context of current institutional, professional, and regulatory environments at the local, state, national, and international levels.

In this course, students study and apply theory-based practices of teaching and learning in classroom and clinical nursing education courses utilizing face-to-face, hybrid, and online delivery models. Collaborative strategies for designing student learning outcomes, assessments, and activities are emphasized.

Within this course, students will apply advanced research design, instrumentation, data collection and analysis to questions and topics in the area of nursing and health care with an emphasis on quantitative methods and consideration of mixed methodologies. Methods of disseminating research findings will also be discussed. (Pre-requisite HED 703)

This seminar is designed to prepare students for beginning the dissertation in the subsequent semester. Students review the Dissertation Handbook, including dissertation requirements, formatting, information technology, committee selection, ethical issues in research, and the department’s timeline for completing the dissertation process. Students work in seminar format to refine dissertation topics and methodology, and to complete a dissertation proposal prospectus. Grading is “Pass” or “Fail.” (Prerequisite: all required course work prior to the Dissertation Research Seminar with a GPA of at least 3.3 and also must secure the approval of the chair/program director)

In-depth exploration of research related to the dissertation topic culminating in a comprehensive literature review suitable to serve as Chapter 2 of the dissertation; pro and con arguments from the literature are explored; student’s written work, the qualifying paper, serves as the basis for an oral defense of the need for the study. The defense fulfills the requirement of the qualifying examination for candidacy; the student is only permitted to participate in the qualifying hearing twice. In order to be eligible for HED 794, the student must have completed all required course work with a GPA of 3.3 or higher, and also must secure the approval of the Program Director. (See Dissertation Handbook for guidelines.) Grading is “pass/fail.”

In-depth preparation of dissertation prospectus; purpose, methods, significance of study explored; preparation and presentation of the proposal that includes dissertation Chapters 1, 2, 3; committee formation. Students completing HED 795 should be ready to submit their proposals to RERB. (Pre-requisite: HED 794; see Dissertation Handbook for guidelines.) Grading is “pass/fail.”

This examination is a culminating experience which reflects the student’s synthesis and integration of knowledge. A two-part examination (oral and written) will serve to determine the student’s synthesis of the academic content of the program. This examination will also provide the opportunity for students to apply the theoretical knowledge obtained to practical situations. Grading is Pass/Fail with the student needing to pass all components of the examination in order to receive a “Pass” for the entire examination. The student is allowed to take the examination twice. In order to be eligible for the comprehensive examination, the student must complete all required course work prior to the Dissertation Research Seminar with a GPA of at least 3.3 and also must secure the approval of the chair.

Working with committee to complete dissertation, students must register for consecutive semesters of dissertation. HED 798 involves completion of the dissertation proposal. Normally, HED 799 involves data collection/analysis, and HED 800 involves preparation of the final document and the dissertation defense. See Dissertation Handbook for further details. (Pre-requisite HED 790)