The DBA program is divided into two stages:



Stage I – Training in Doctoral Research in Management Sciences: Philosophy, Methods and Tools
(18 to 24 months)

The DBA candidate starts by learning research design, data collection methods, and data analysis techniques to conduct, write up, and publish research to doctoral standards. Students complete a series of four to six research training workshops held in Grenoble and in the partner countries.

Between the workshops there are periods of individual supervised research. The candidate prepares a detailed research proposal for his/her thesis. Under the direction of doctoral supervisors, the student also completes a “pilot study” before embarking on the main fieldwork for the DBA research.

Before being allowed by the thesis committee to proceed to stage 2, students must fulfil certain written work requirements. Four pieces of work must be produced:

• A Project Proposal (1500 words)
• A comprehensive Literature Review of publishable standards (7,500 words)
• A Research Proposal (7,500 words): fully justified research question and hypotheses, intended methodology, pilot test study and expected results;
• A DBA thesis Research Plan and Scheduling

 
When successfully completed, stage I leads to the delivery of the Certificate in Research in Management Sciences.

Stage II: Thesis
(24 to 30 months of part-time study)

The DBA research and thesis element of the program consists primarily of individual research, under the supervision of a fully qualified professor who brings a broad range of expertise and international reputation in technology, innovation and change management.

The DBA thesis should exhibit substantial evidence of original scholarship and contain material of a publishable standard, as well as useful managerial recommendations.

A candidate for the degree of Doctorate of Business Administration is required to show ability to conduct original investigations, to test, apply and/or examine ideas – his/her own or others’, and to understand the relationship of his/her theme to a wider field of knowledge.

This may involve the identification of current issues and the application of theory relevant to problem-solving in the candidate's work environment and/or the identification of both theoretical and practical issues to facilitate future implementation of operational and/or strategic plans within his/her organisation.

The DBA program enables students:
 

• to understand the ‘state-of-the-art’ in their field of research,
• to acquire the necessary understanding and expertise in appropriate research design, data-collection methods and data-analysis techniques,
• to conduct, write and disseminate high-quality research of doctoral standard,
• to achieve a greater level of effectiveness as a professional practitioner in managing technology, innovation and change.

 
Companies gain from applied research

Companies that choose to sponsor candidates in this respected DBA program benefit directly from their research and study. Each candidate conducts doctoral research on actual business and management issues, often based on their own company’s current and anticipated needs. Additionally, the company needs not lose valuable managers while they pursue this part-time program.

DBA graduates are faculty members in universities worldwide such as:

DBA graduates have current teaching appointments in universities such as:       

Holders of Grenoble Ecole de Management doctoral degrees are eligible to apply for academic positions in most international universities and institutions of higher education. Many alumni from our doctoral programs currently hold tenured positions in accredited business schools worldwide. On occasion, in some institutions, Grenoble Ecole de Management doctoral degrees may not figure on the list of eligible qualifications. We recommend that our graduates check on this prior to applying for a position.

DBA graduates are currently working in companies such as: