COMPARATIVE COMPARISON OF IRANIAN NURSING PHD CURRICULUM WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO IN CANADA, UC DAVIS IN CALIFORNIA, AND MANCHESTER IN THE UNITED KINGDOM

Ensuring the quality of higher education, especially doctoral education, is one of the concerns and priorities of higher education planners. Adapting, comparing, and analyzing different dimensions of educational programs with other countries are very effective in addressing this concern. Therefore, this study tried to comparethe Iranian Nursing PhD program with the University of Toronto in Canada, UC Davis in California and Manchester in the United Kingdom.

This descriptive-comparative study was conducted in 2020. The four-stage Beredy model of description, interpretation, neighborhood, and comparison was used to compare the Iranian nursing education system with the Nursing Faculty of Toronto in Canada, UC Davis in California and Manchester in the United Kingdom. Data were collected by the reputable websites of the universities. Then, the data were compared according to the aim of the research.

The program of all four universities has mission, vision, and values based on the principles of strategic planning. In Iran, entering the doctoral program requires an entrance exam. But this is not the case in other universities. Most face-to-face research methods and seminars are held at UC DAVIS. University of Iran and UC DAVIS in California provide financial support for students, but at the University of Manchester, official approval of student financial support and funding must be provided to the university. The University of Manchester has the most research time, but the other three universities offer face-to-face and research courses. The University of Manchester also offers part-time and distance learning courses.

One of the strengths of the doctoral program in Iran is the compatibility of the values and beliefs of the program based on the system of Islamic values. However, it is not clinically oriented, and emphasizes only theory and research and requires the student to attend classes in person. Therefore, based on the experiences of developed countries and the needs of Iranian society, we should correct the weaknesses and strengthen the strengths.