Quick Links:

Reynolds Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence

Two African American Women One Old, One Young, smiling

PhD Education with Geriatric Focus

The Donald W. Reynolds Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence provides a rich academic and research environment for PhD students interested in academic geriatric nursing. The program is designed to develop clinical scholars, faculty and researchers who provide leadership through clinical science inquiry and prepare future nurses for innovative practice. Benefits of being linked to the Center include program and career mentoring, colleagueship with fellow students, interdisciplinary and community-partner research opportunities, linkages with geriatric-focused national experts and support for attendance at national meetings and institutes.

In order to increase the number of new highly qualified geriatric nursing faculty in the state, the Center offers Reynolds Predoctoral Scholarships each year to PhD doctoral candidates planning academic careers. These Reynolds Scholars are mentored by College of Nursing faculty with strong and diverse research programs and by faculty outside the discipline in order to provide a grounded view of current healthcare issues and viable solutions with a focus on community-based aging in place. A monthly Reynolds Scholars Geriatric Workgroup for students and mentors aids in career development and research planning. In addition, Reynolds Scholars participate in campus-wide interdisciplinary research opportunities with an emphasis on translational research and meet with national gerontology experts, who are brought to campus as Reynolds Distinguished Scholars in Aging.

Interdisciplinary engagement is essential to preparing highly qualified geriatric nurse faculty. University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center resources available to PhD students in geriatric nursing include the Interdisciplinary Geriatric Interest Group, sponsored by the College of Medicine; the Oklahoma Geriatric Education Center; the Interdisciplinary Graduate Certificate in Geriatrics/Gerontology Program; and the Oklahoma Palliative Care Resource Center.