Milestones & Examinations

Scholarship and Research Integrity (SARI) for D.N.P. Students

The SARI program at Penn State is designed to offer graduate students comprehensive multilevel training in the responsible conduct of research in a way that is tailored to address the issues faced by individual disciplines. The program is implemented by Penn State colleges and graduate programs in a way that meets the particular needs of students in each unit. The SARI program has two parts:

All Graduate students are required to complete an online Institutional Review Board (IRB) training program provided by the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI).

Graduate students will also be required to engage in an additional 5 hours of discussion-based Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) education. These discussions will encompass both universal and discipline-specific material. The Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing will incorporate the additional 5 hours of RCR education within NURS 587, Ethics in Health Research, for doctoral students.

Access the CITI Portal

1.    To access the CITI courses, go to: http://citi.psu.edu.

2.    Choose “University Park, Commonwealth, and other non-Hershey personnel” log in button. Log in with your Penn State credentials.

Choosing the Appropriate Curriculum/Training Modules

1.    Click “View Courses” beside “Pennsylvania State University.” Click on “Add a Course.” NOTE: ALL students will access these courses by choosing “Pennsylvania State University” (second option), do not use the “Pennsylvania State Univ-Hershey” option, even if you are a student at the Hershey campus.

2.    From the list of choices, select “Institutional Review Board (IRB) training for Human Subjects Research.” Then click the Next button.

3.    Select “NO, I have Not completed the Human Subjects Research (IRB) Course through CITI. I need to complete the Human Subjects Research (IRB) Course.” Click Next.

4.    Select “Social Science Research.” Click Next.

5.    A list of several topics will appear; these are your elective choices. Choose the course of most interest to you. Click Next.

6.    You should then see a list of 2 courses: 1) your IRB Course (Social Science) and 2) your elective course. Click on “Start Now” to get started.

7.    Once you have registered, you may enter and leave the course at any time while completing the modules.

Once the CITI courses are complete, it is the student’s responsibility to upload a copy of the completion (completed) certificates to American DataBank for review.  Please upload the completed elective and IRB certificates to your ADB account.  The third course - Good Clinical Practice (GCP) is no longer required for the Ph.D. program.  All Graduate students are required to complete the online training and any refresher courses necessary throughout the program to keep IRB training current. Students may not graduate if these courses are not completed.

What happens after you complete your training? 

The Graduate Program Coordinator will assure the  milestone completion in Lion Path is updated by the semester prior to graduation.  Students who have questions on what is reflected in LionPath should reach out to gradnursing@psu.edu.

A student who has been admitted to the Graduate School and has been accepted by the department or committee in charge of a major program in which the doctorate is offered may begin working toward a doctoral degree. However, the student has no official status as a doctoral student and no assurance of acceptance as a doctoral candidate until the qualifying examination has been passed. This is administered by the major department or graduate program and is given early in the student's program.  

Successful completion of the qualifying examination review indicates the student’s potential for successfully completing the D.N.P. study although it does not ensure a D.N.P. degree will be granted. 

Criteria set by the Graduate School:   

https://gradschool.psu.edu/graduate-education-policies/gcac/gcac-700/gcac-704-qualifying-examination-professional-doctorate/

1. All students must complete qualifying examination administered by the Graduate Faculty in the graduate major program. 

2. The purpose of the qualifying examination is to: assess whether the student is capable of conducting doctoral work based on evidence of critical thinking or other measures that the graduate faculty of the program view as important to a successful doctoral student. 

3. The decision passes the student on the qualifying examination must be made by the graduate faculty or a designated committee of graduate faculty in the program. 

4. The qualifying examination must be taken within three semesters (summer sessions do not count) of entry into the doctoral program. 

5. The student must be registered as a full-time or part-time degree student for the semester (excluding summer session) in which the qualifying examination is taken.  

COLLEGE OF NURSING PROCEDURE: QUALIFYING EXAMINATION 

In the College of Nursing, the Qualifying Examination Review for D.N.P. students will be used to evaluate the student’s past performance and potential for successfully completing the program. 

Timing: Post-M.S.N. to D.N.P. students complete qualifying examination after the completion of their first semester of full-time doctoral work (10 credits) or three semesters of part-time study (20 credits). For the B.S.N. to D.N.P. students, the process will occur after semester III of full-time study. Qualifying examination will be offered at the end of the fall semester. If a student is not successful in the first attempt, then the student will be offered one rereview during a specified timeline. The timeline will be defined by the Graduate program.

Prerequisites: The D.N.P. Program Director determines those students who are eligible for qualifying examination based on courses completed in consultation with the D.N.P. adviser. The Qualifying Examination Review is administered by the Qualifying Examination Committee (3 members). The members are appointed by the Associate Dean for Graduate Education.  

Goals: Doctoral student demonstrates the potential to be successful by: identifying a local need or weakness, describing a project idea consistent with the D.N.P. Essentials, presenting a firm understanding of the literature supporting the background and project intervention, and verbalizing the role of the D.N.P. with plans for implementation of the D.N.P. Essentials into future program and career goals. 

Portfolio: The portfolio is a scholarly product that demonstrates the student’s capacity to express original ideas in a logical, coherent style. The writing style employed in the portfolio should demonstrate the student’s command of written communications for the purpose of scientific review. Page limitations purposefully direct a concise presentation of each section of the portfolio. The portfolio must be submitted according to the due date provided to the student by the Graduate program.  Please note, the advising team must already review the portfolio prior to submission, but advisors may only provide broad suggestions, not specific edits. 

Components of the portfolio include:  

1. Title Page

2. Table of Contents

3. Curriculum Vitae/Resume/
   Evaluate Criteria:  The approved template is used in the development of the curriculum vitae/resume.

4. Video of Narrative Statement/Career Goals
   Evaluative Criteria: The student will articulate his/her area of interest and career goals clearly and concisely. He/she will discuss how the D.N.P. Essentials apply to his/her D.N.P. project, practicum hours, and future goals. This should not be a recitation of the D.N.P. Essentials, but a discussion of how the content connects to the student’s project and goals. (Maximum length: five minutes).

5. Annual Year-end Review (IDP) 
   Evaluative Criteria: achievements are documented clearly to provide evidence of the student’s development. The standardized CON format for the POS is complete. The student must provide an updated IDP, regardless if he/she has had a year of review. 

6. Project Plan
   Evaluative Criteria: Identification of a problem that is significant to practice or patient outcomes; a brief description of the proposed plan to address this problem and the setting in which the project will be implemented.  The proposed project should be feasible and sustainable.  The proposal should demonstrate that the student has a grasp of current literature on the topic of interest including the practice gap at the project site. It should include a brief description of the proposed evaluative measures.  In text reference citations are included in the 2-page plan.  Title and reference pages are required.  APA format is required.  (Maximum length: 2 pages, double spaced).  NOTE: In the circumstance in which the student completing Qualifying Examination is not yet beginning the D.N.P. Project, this component of the Qualifying Examination will be modified with instructions developed by the Qualifying Examination Committee. 

QUALIFYING EXAMINATION DECISION 

Pass: The portfolio meets or exceeds evaluative criteria for a student at this phase of development and provides evidence of critical thinking: recommendations for continued development may be offered. 

Fail: The portfolio does not meet evaluative criteria; required and/or recommended remedial actions will be specified. Reasons for failure includes poor articulation, evidence not demonstrated, poor writing skills, vague responses, does not adhere to instructions/deadlines, and/or does not follow APA format; re-evaluation will be scheduled. 

Note: Students may be permitted one failure on qualifying examination. Subsequent reviews will be evaluated as pass/fail with no option to repeat when the portfolio fails to demonstrate the student’s capacity or potential for doctoral work and the student receives a second failure. This recommendation results in dismissal from the D.N.P. program in Nursing. 

Decision-making: The majority vote of the Qualifying Examination Committee (three graduate faculty members) will determine the final disposition of the qualifying examination review (Pass; Fail). The Qualifying Examination Committee will submit a confidential report to the Director of the D.N.P. Program within one week of the review.  

Student Feedback: Students will be provided a written summary of the Qualifying Examination Committee’s evaluation to support their continued development toward achieving career goals.  The student is accountable for providing his/her advising team with the evaluation and setting goals to fulfill recommendations.   

The Comprehensive Examination marks the candidate’s progression into the project after the completion of the appropriate course work. 

Criteria set by the Graduate School: (excerpted from:https://gradschool.psu.edu/graduate-education-policies/gcac/gcac-700/gcac-706-comprehensive-examination-professional-doctorate/. 

1. The examination is intended to evaluate the candidate’s mastery of the major (and if appropriate, minor) field. 

2. The exam is administered when the student “has substantially completed coursework.” 

3. A candidate for a doctoral degree must have satisfied the English competence and the communication and foreign language requirement before taking the comprehensive examination. 

4. All candidates are required to have a minimum grade-point average of 3.00 for work done at the University at the time the comprehensive examination is given and may not have deferred or missing grades. 

5. The student must be registered as a full-time or part-time student for the semester in which the comprehensive examination is taken. 

6. The examination is scheduled and announced officially by the Office of Graduate nrEollment Services upon recommendation of the department or program head. Two weeks’ notice is required by the Office of Graduate Enrollment Services for scheduling this examination.  

7. A favorable vote of at least two-thirds of the members of the committee is required for passing. In case of failure, it is the responsibility of the doctoral committee to determine whether the candidate may take another examination. Students who are provided an opportunity to take the examination a second time but who fail the examination on the second attempt are terminated from the program. 

8. The results are reported to the Office of Graduate Enrollment Services.  

9. Comprehensive Examination Attendance: 

a. Leadership students - the Comprehensive Examination is held in-person at a University approved facility.

b.  NP option students are held via interactive, synchronous videoconferencing. Remote participants will use University-supported web-conferencing technology.

c. Programs may restrict the conditions for attendance at the Comprehensive Examination within the parameters..

d. The mode of participation for each participant will be indicated on the Examination Request form and will be included in the notification that the examination has been scheduled.

10. Special arrangements, i.e., requirements for meeting participation via distance, should be communicated to the student and the doctoral committee members well in advance of the examination. 

For D.N.P. students, the Comprehensive Examination occurs during the second Intensive, when students present their project proposal. The Comprehensive Examination must be successfully completed prior to the submission of the proposal for human subjects’ review (See Review for the Protection of Human Research Subjects section below) or project implementation.  

Related Policies 

1. Comprehensive Examinations are administered and evaluated for each individual by the student’s doctoral committee. 

2. Comprehensive Examinations are taken at the completion of 20 credits of coursework for full-time post-M.S.N., 26 credits for part-time post-M.S.N., and 39 credits for BS to D.N.P., including successful completion of the NURS837. 

3. The student’s doctoral committee must adhere to all policies of the Graduate School (See Graduate Bulletin at: http://www.psu.edu/bulletins/whitebook.)

4. Comprehensive Examination consist of both written and oral components. 

5. Students will submit a written project proposal to their doctoral committee including letters of support from the agency where they plan to implement their project. 

6. Students will complete an oral presentation of their proposal to an open forum of faculty and students. The oral presentation is followed by an open question and answer period and a private consultation with the doctoral committee. 

7. The doctoral committee will determine the outcome.  

Outcome 

1. The comprehensive process results in a pass-fail determination. 

2. The results must be approved by vote of the doctoral committee. 

3. Students who fail the Comprehensive Examination on the first attempt may, on approval of the committee, repeat it once. 

4. Students who fail on the second time are terminated from program. 

Presentation of Completed Project

GCAC-707 Professional Doctoral Culminating Experience - Professional Doctorate

The final oral presentation marks the student’s completion of the program and is administered by the doctoral committee. The presentation will be done synchronously using distance technology. The student and doctoral committee will connect via this technology. The public will be invited to join at University Park or connect via distance technology. The presentation consists of a public oral presentation of the project by the student, a period of questions and responses from the public, and a private period with the doctoral committee.  

The final oral presentation of the project will be evaluated by their doctoral committee. This evaluation will use the same scale as the present Graduate School’s Report of Doctoral Final Oral Examination, with the decision being pass or fail. Students who fail on the first attempt may repeat the process once. The doctoral committee must also approve the student’s final project paper.  

Following approval of the final project paper by the doctoral committee, the D.N.P. Program Director will review it for formal approval. The student should upload the final paper to ScholarSphere: https://scholarsphere.psu.edu/  within one week of approval so the paper is publicly available.

The student must be registered as a full-time or part-time degree student for the semester in which the final oral presentation is delivered. Students should allow at least 2 weeks for the committee and D.N.P. Program Director to read and comment on the project whenever it is sent out for review. 

Revised 2/09/2023