The Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA) is designed for highly experienced professionals who seek to take their career to the highest level. The three-year program is designed for working professionals with a previous master's degree in a business or business-related discipline. The ideal candidate will enter the program with significant business acumen gained through eight to 10 years of managerial or consultative experience. Candidates for the DBA will learn to frame complex business problems in a manner that enables an applied, evidence-based analysis of all available data and rigorous evaluation of potential solutions.
A fundamental component of the DBA experience is the personal working relationship with the research-active faculty of the Driehaus College of Business and Kellstadt Graduate School of Business. These ongoing mentor-student relationships support the doctoral candidates’ professional development in the tools and methods of data analysis and business intelligence. In addition, DBA candidates will advance through their program as members of a cohort of about 15 students. The program’s small group format is designed to build a strong network of like-minded, high-potential professionals to support each other both during the program and after graduation.
Each year of the program, candidates will participate in nine three-day residencies led by Kellstadt faculty. DePaul's DBA program begins with a strong emphasis on research methodology and disciplinary coursework that features the most current developments from both academia and professional practice. Coursework simultaneously builds candidates' interdisciplinary business knowledge and applied research skills. In the second year, DBA candidates will work as part of a small research team, with a faculty mentor, to take a research idea from conception to completion in one year. By the end of the second year, candidates will be expected to have framed and formally proposed their dissertation research. In the third year of the program, candidates will be personally supervised by one of Kellstadt’s research faculty as they pursue their dissertation research. Throughout the program, DBA candidates are exposed to emerging industry and disciplinary developments through a series of doctoral seminars on current topics in business.
| Program Requirements | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|
| Degree Requirements | 72 |
| Total hours required | 72 |
Learning Outcomes
Students will be able to:
- Design, conduct and analyze research.
- Communicate and disseminate knowledge for internal and external constituencies.
- Understand and apply relevant organizational theory to contemporary organizational problems.
- Demonstrate awareness of ethical issues when conducting or disseminating research.
- Critically evaluate research quality and approaches to organizational decision-making.
- Understand how multicultural perspectives influence knowledge creation and dissemination.
Degree Requirements
Course Requirements
Research Methodology Courses
| Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Research Methodology Courses | ||
| GSB 800 | INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH METHODS | 2 |
| GSB 801 | EMPIRICAL RESEARCH STUDIES | 6 |
| GSB 802 | STATISTICS IN BUSINESS RESEARCH | 4 |
| GSB 803 | APPLIED MULTIVARIATE STATISTICS | 5 |
| GSB 804 | FORECASTING AND PREDICTION | 4 |
| GSB 805 | DATA SCIENCE AND VISUALIZATION | 2 |
| GSB 806 | INSTITUTIONAL AND ACADEMIC RESEARCH DISSEMINATION | 2 |
| GSB 820 | LEADING ORGANIZATIONS THROUGH PEOPLE | 2 |
| GSB 820 | LEADING ORGANIZATIONS THROUGH PEOPLE | 3 |
| GSB 850 | QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS | 3 |
Disciplinary Courses
| Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|---|
| GSB 821 | CONTEMPORARY TOPICS IN FINANCIAL RESEARCH | 3 |
| GSB 822 | MARKETING AND BUSINESS STRATEGY | 3 |
| GSB 823 | LEADING ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE | 4 |
| GSB 824 | BEHAVIORAL DECISION THEORY | 3 |
| GSB 825 | BUSINESS ETHICS AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY | 2 |
| GSB 826 | CONTEMPORARY TOPICS IN ACCOUNTING RESEARCH | 3 |
Research Labs1
| Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|---|
| GSB 840 | GROUP RESEARCH LAB I | 2 |
| GSB 841 | GROUP RESEARCH LAB II | 2 |
| GSB 842 | DISSERTATION PROPOSAL LAB | 5 |
| GSB 843 | DISSERTATION LAB II | 3 |
| GSB 843 | DISSERTATION LAB II | 3 |
| GSB 843 | DISSERTATION LAB II | 6 |
- 1
These courses are taken Pass/Fail
Student Handbook
Doctorate in Business Administration
DePaul’s Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA) is for experienced professionals looking to take their careers to the next level.
About the DBA
The DBA is a three-year program designed for high-potential working professionals. Doctoral candidates are trained to frame complex business issues (both opportunities and threats), analyze responsive options, and implement change. The program empowers graduates to transform their organizations through a mastery of sophisticated research and analytical skills for decision-making. It also can provide experienced business professionals with the skills, experiences, and credentials to transition to academic careers.
Students take eight research methodology and eight business discipline-specific courses. Each course is delivered in three-hour modules resulting in five different courses during a given residency, and courses are staggered throughout the year to offer deep engagement in each topic.
Degree Requirements
Students in the DBA degree program must meet the following requirements in order to be eligible for degree conferral:
- Complete all designated doctoral courses, topical seminars, and research requirements.
- Earn a grade of C or better in all designated courses and doctoral seminars.
- Earn a designation of pass or higher on all research requirements.
- Prior to beginning the program, Doctorate in Business Administration ("DBA") students can request for doctoral-level academic credit earned at another institution be considered for transfer to DePaul University to fulfill degree requirements. The number of transfer credits allowed is at the discretion of the DBA Director, and will take into account previous course level, content, and rigor. The maximum number of transferrable credits is not to exceed 12 quarter hours.
Leave of Absence
- Students requesting a non-medical leave of absence are subject to the DePaul Graduate Handbook policy terms found here.
- In addition to the terms of that policy, DBA students requesting non-medical leave must:
- notify the Program Director and the Assistant Dean of Graduate Programs.
- resume their coursework where they discontinued their studies (typically one year from the leave of absence date).
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Students requesting a medical leave of absence must contact the Dean of Students.
Computer Equipment
Each student will receive a computer with installed software for use over the three year program. Please refer to the Equipment Loan Agreement for details regarding return and damage policies.
Class Materials
Class materials, including textbooks, are provided by the program/are included in tuition fees.
Dismissal
Students who receive a C- or below in any single DBA course or who fail to make sufficient progress towards degree requirements will be subject to dismissal from the program.
Graduation
- DBA degree conferral requires the completion of a minimum of 72 quarter hours.
- Students should successfully defend their final dissertation by June 1 of their final year of coursework.
- If students do not successfully defend their final dissertation by June 1 of their final year of coursework, they must formally request a dissertation extension. To do this, they must:
- by May 1, schedule a meeting with the Program Director to discuss (a) their intent to work on their dissertation beyond the deadline and (b) their anticipated timeline for completion.
- by May 15, discuss with their Dissertation Chair that Chair’s availability for advising beyond the expected timeline. (The DBA program cannot guarantee the Chair’s availability and students may be reassigned if their work extends beyond the dissertation deadline.)
- by June 1, complete the Dissertation Extension Request form and submit that form to the Program Director.
- Students granted a dissertation extension may request up to 12 additional months to successfully defend their final dissertation proposal. Students who do not meet this deadline set forth in their Dissertation Extension Request will be unable to graduate from the program.
Grades
- Letter Grades - Grades of A through C are acceptable and allow the student to remain in good academic standing.
- Pass/ Fail Grade - “Pass/ Fail” is assigned to specified program components upon their completion.
- Research-in-Progress (R) - “R” may be assigned to indicate that a student is making satisfactory progress in a course that extends beyond the end of the term or in a project.
Additional Policies
The Kellstadt Graduate School of Business Handbook and the DePaul Graduate Handbook covers all policies and procedures not otherwise described within this DBA Handbook.