The Early Assurance PhD Program offers the opportunity for current, qualified baccalaureate of science in nursing students to gain early acceptance to University at Buffalo's PhD in Nursing program.
The Early Assurance Program allows motivated students to begin working on their PhD while simultaneously obtaining work experience as an RN. Undergraduate students (at UB and other nursing schools) can apply to the PhD program after the fall semester of their senior year. Accepted applicants must complete the remaining degree requirements to attain their bachelor's degree in nursing and pass the NCLEX-RN before entering the PhD program on a part-time basis the following fall. Applicants admitted through the Early Assurance Program will receive full consideration for scholarships and federal traineeship awards upon matriculation.
Applications for the 2023 cohort are due by April 15, 2023.
Applicants must have progressed to the final semester of undergraduate study in nursing and achieved a minimum nursing GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. Minimum GPAs are strictly enforced in the application review; no rounding and no exceptions.
To apply, applicants must be enrolled in their final semester of a nursing BS/BSN program.
Applicants must have completed at least 100 credit hours of undergraduate study prior to application to the program.
Students must work full time as a nurse starting in their fall semester after graduation.
The application process is now entirely online. In order to be considered for fall or summer admission, all of the following must be uploaded by the deadline:
Qualified applicants being considered for PhD acceptance through the Early Assurance Program may be invited for an admissions interview with School of Nursing faculty.
Applicants not accepted through the Early Assurance Program will not be precluded from applying to the School of Nursing through the standard application process, nor will it disadvantage the candidate in any way.