For students who want a seat at the table — especially in academia or research — having a PhD can help them advance their career and meet their personal goals.
“Many of our PhD students are already leaders or are on the cusp of becoming great leaders in their own professions,” says Paula Jo Belice, PhD, OTR/L, assistant professor, Department of Health Sciences. “Our program gives them that added push to develop as leaders, often by challenging their assumptions. Our curriculum is designed to help students examine their beliefs and explore other perspectives.”
Flexibility and camaraderie
Students value the flexibility of Rush’s fully online PhD in Health Sciences program but still benefit from collaborative activities, assignments and discussions with other students working in a variety of allied health disciplines across the country.
“Our PhD students develop as leaders by fostering innovation and contributing research to their field."
They also improve their leadership competencies, in part by providing encouragement to their fellow classmates. “Our PhD students support and motivate each other because nobody understands what it takes to go through a PhD program except another PhD student,” Belice says.
Personal and professional advancement
The intellectual and personal growth that students experience while pursuing their doctorate can be profound. “You don’t go into our PhD program and come out the same person,” Belice says.
For example, working on their dissertation is often transformative for students. “Our PhD students develop as leaders by fostering innovation and contributing research to their field,” Belice adds.
Many leaders who graduate from the program not only achieve their own ambitions but also make it their mission to help the health care industry address ongoing issues like quality and equity. “Health care requires strong, skilled leaders right now to navigate the challenges that existed before and after the pandemic,” Belice says. “Leaders must have a vision that guides people toward solutions.”