Advising

Prospective graduate students may contact the Office of Student Services with questions about graduate programs at 309-438-7400 or e-mail mcninfo@ilstu.edu.

Current students in the graduate programs will be contacted via ISU email from the Graduate Program Academic Advisor every semester prior to early registration to verify intended course enrollment for the upcoming term. September registration is scheduled for the spring semester and March registration is scheduled for the summer and fall semesters. Students must be in compliance with all health and safety requirements in order to register for upcoming terms. 

In the PhD program, students are assigned a Faculty Advisor based on mutual research interests. The Director of Graduate Programs makes the initial link between student and potential advisor based on the knowledge of faculty research and the doctoral student's essay.

The student and Faculty Advisor will meet at least twice per year. The meetings should focus on the student's professional development.

The meetings will generally be as follows:

• Fall meeting (September) - Purpose is to establish goals for the academic year
• Spring meeting (April) - Purpose is to review progress toward the achievement of annual goals and begin planning for the next academic year

 

Out-of-State Policies Related to Program Enrollment and Clinical Experiences

There are policies set by the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement and the individual State Boards of Nursing around participating in out of state, online programs as well as participating in clinical outside of the state in which you live.  Students will be required to have a clinical site agreement for their proposed clinical experience.  ISU will work with students on proposed out of state placements but may not be able to guarantee ability to meet practice requirements from states other than Illinois.  It is necessary that students consult the applicable licensure boards in their state of residence or in the state where they intend to practice a profession before beginning an academic program or beginning a clinical or practicum experience to identify any requirements that impact the student’s ability to obtain a license, certification, or complete a clinical or practicum experience.  Please know that there could be additional costs incurred by the student based on that State's requirements.  

Illinois State University maintains a list of our programs that customarily lead to licensure or certification which is available at Provost.IllinoisState.edu/planning/nc-sara/state-information.  This list includes information on whether a program:

1. Does meet licensure/certification standards in a specific state;
2. Does not meet requirements for licensure/certification in a specific state; or
3. Illinois State University has not determined whether the program leads to licensure/certification in a state.

The list also includes contact information for many state licensing boards.

Student Responsibilities

The student bears substantial responsibility to assure that advisement occurs in a timely and appropriate manner. The student is responsible for:

1. Initiating contact with Faculty Advisor

2. Communicating regularly with his/her Graduate Program Academic Advisor and Faculty Advisor regarding progress, plans, goals, and any problems that might occur

3. Being aware of College of Nursing policies and requirements
4. Following the plan of study and goals as agreed upon with Faculty Advisor
5. Participating in annual review
6. Reporting any problems that might delay the completion of coursework, comprehensive examination or dissertation progress
7. Requesting and completing all appropriate documents consistent with the completion of the doctoral degree
8. Participating in the selection of committee members for the comprehensive exam and dissertation
9. Following the plan of study and goals as agreed upon with advisors

Forms

All of the necessary exam, advising, or degree progress forms from MCN are available below for download.

• PhD Student and Faculty Advisor Checklist
• Dissertation Guidelines
• Plan of Study
• Change of Advisor
• Admission to Candidacy
• Request for Appointment of Dissertation Committee
• Change of Dissertation Committee
• Dissertation Research Grant Guidelines and Application
• Preliminary Exam and Dissertation Proposal Defense Registration Form
• Report of Preliminary Exam and Dissertation Proposal Defense
• Student Recommendation Request Form
• Dissertation Proposal Review Rubric
• Dissertation Evaluation Rubric
• PhD Student Annual Evaluation

• Required: ISU Graduate School Forms
  • Copyright Checklist
  • Proposal Approval Form
  • Right to Defend Form
  • Commencement Data Form
  • Outcomes of Dissertation Defense Form