Learning, leading and looking ahead

Ingrid Parry, alumna, looks forward to what the future holds following her PhD degree from the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis.

After more than 20 years as a practicing physical therapist, Ingrid Parry felt a stronger calling toward research. Her growing interest in solving clinical problems led her to the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis’ interdisciplinary Doctor of Philosophy program, a decision that she says reshaped her career and herself.

“I had no idea that it was multidisciplinary until I started looking into it,” Parry recalled. “That was one of the features that really attracted me.”

From day one, she found herself surrounded by students from social work, public health and education.

“We were looking at the same problems from different angles,” she said. “It helped us see things in a 360 view.”

“I’ve had a lot of peers go through a PhD program where they felt like they were on their own…I’ve never felt that, where it was academic, emotionally, socially or career-wise.” – Ingrid Parry, PhD alum

Parry says this mix of perspectives was more than just interesting — it was essential. Her work in burn care had already shown her that collaboration between disciplines could lead to better outcomes.

“What we do together will be something different than what we can each do on our own,” she explained. “That really rang true for improving patient care.”

The program’s structure also impressed her. Assignments were designed to be meaningful and applicable and spanned not only the School of Nursing in Sacramento but other disciplines on the main campus in Davis.

“You could take what you learned and use it right away,” she said.

Parry even took advanced modeling and computational social science classes to expand her skills. But perhaps the most unexpected gift of the program was the support she received.

“The faculty are brilliant—but more than that, they’re dedicated to the students,” she said. “I never felt alone.”

Along the way, Ingrid discovered a new passion: leadership. With encouragement from her mentors, she took on leadership roles, presented her work and even pursued academic teaching certification. She credits them with learning to think in a visionary way.

Just a month post-graduation, Parry said she was already better at her current job, but she was casting a wide net to explore roles in academia, industry and nonprofits.

When asked why she’d recommend the program, her answer is simple: “It helps you think more broadly and more critically. And it’s not just about knowledge. It’s about purpose, equity and community.”