Nursing: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is a doctorate in Health Sciences programme taught at Trinity Western University in Langley, Canada. The programme runs for 48 months, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition for international students is CAD 49,430 per year (CAD 45,030 per year for local students).
Trinity Western University's Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing is a doctoral program for nurses already working in, or aiming to move into, academic teaching positions or leadership roles within health-care organizations. Delivered through a mix of online study and in-class sessions in Langley and Ottawa, the program totals forty-five semester credit hours and runs over roughly forty-eight months. Students attend annual summer residencies, complete an internship in education, policy, or research, take part in graduate seminars, and finish with a dissertation. The curriculum is framed around a values-based approach to higher education, leadership, and research grounded in the university's Christian identity, with the stated aim of producing nurse scholars who both deepen their own nursing knowledge and contribute new knowledge to the field. The program responds to what the university describes as a deepening shortage of doctorally prepared nursing faculty in Canada and internationally, positioning graduates to take up academic and health-care leadership roles. It suits experienced nurses seeking to move into faculty positions, health policy work, or senior research and leadership roles within nursing.
Requirements
Minimum GPA:3.40 / 4.0
Admission Requirements: Applicants need a master's degree (MSN or equivalent) from an approved institution with clear evidence of research ability or potential, plus a minimum GPA of 3.4. Prior graduate coursework in qualitative research, quantitative research and statistics, and foundations of nursing knowledge is required, along with a graduate-level course in knowledge translation, health policy, or leadership (equivalent to NURS 750) and one in nursing education, nursing leadership, or advanced nursing practice (equivalent to NURS 760). Applicants whose first language is not English must present TOEFL iBT 5.5+ overall, IELTS Academic 7.5 or higher on every band, or Duolingo English Test 140+. The application package includes a five-page statement addressing academic and research plans, a scholarly writing sample, a current CV, and two academic letters of reference; an interview may also be required. The program admits on a periodic cycle rather than every term, with the next intake opening applications in September 2027 for a May 2028 cohort start.
Application Details
Start Date:May
Application Deadline:Trinity Western sets a Fall Early Admission target of 1 March and a Spring Regular Admission deadline of 1 November for Canadian domestic applicants, with Fall Regular Admission continuing on a rolling, space-available basis after 1 March and final high-school transcripts due by 1 August; TWU prints these as recurring annual dates without a specific year. TWU's international (non-US) admissions page states no deadline of its own and refers applicants back to the same general page, so no international-specific closing date is published; TWU does separately publish Fall (15 January early, then rolling) and Spring (15 November) dates for the distinct US-citizen applicant category. Individual graduate programs set their own separate application windows. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
