Program Information

Philosophy

Doctoral study in Business is structured to challenge individuals who possess the ability to analyze complex problems and synthesize solutions.

Objectives

The doctoral program in Business is designed to prepare individuals of outstanding ability for careers in teaching and research at the university level. The program has enough flexibility, however, to accommodate individuals whose career objectives lie outside academia. Individuals who undertake doctoral study are expected to achieve excellence in command of a business discipline's technical aspects and develop expertise in meaningful research.

General Requirements

The program requirements for the Doctoral Program in Business consist of course work, satisfactory performance on the qualifying examinations, and dissertation research. The total program requires a minimum of 60 hours of graduate credit beyond the Master's degree or 90 hours of graduate credit beyond the Bachelor's degree.

The minimum course work consists of the following:

Research Track
Concentration and Minor Areas
Dissertation

12 to 18 hours
27 to 33 hours
12 hours
60 hours minimum

In addition, all students must demonstrate calculus proficiency.

The above may include no more than 9 semester hours of 5900, 5910, or 6900 credit prior to dissertation research.

One of the following concentration areas may be selected: Accounting; Finance; Information Systems, Business Information Assurance, Management Science; Management; Marketing; and Logistics. A minimum of nine hours of course work designed solely for doctoral students will be included from the concentration area.

The nature of the minor course work and the number of hours are determined by the student's appropriate departmental committee and approved by the Ph.D. Coordinator. The minor course work is designed to develop the student's research abilities and technical knowledge pertaining to his/her career interests. The course work included therein may be extended to any graduate degree programs within and outside the G. Brint Ryan College of Business and is not necessarily limited to a single academic discipline.

The two research tracks consist of 12 to 18 hours of course work designed to develop the research capabilities of the student and to prepare the student for conducting research of dissertation quality. The student’s choice of track must be approved by their major area Ph.D. Coordinator. The two tracks are described below:

Research Track I (15 hours minimum)
BUSI 6450 Business Research Methods (3 hrs)
BUSI 6220 Applied Regression Analysis (3 hrs)
BUSI 6480 Advanced Issues in Research Design (3 hrs)
BUSI 6240 Applied Multivariate Statistics (3 hrs)
BUSI 6280 Applications in Causal and Covariance Structure Modeling (3 hrs)

Research Track II (12 hours minimum)
ECON 5600 Mathematical Economics (3 hrs)
ECON 5650 Advanced Econometrics (3 hrs)
MSCI 6000 Theory & Application of Nonparametric Statistics (3 hrs)
Methodological Tool Electives (3- 9 hrs)

Transfer of Course Work

As many as 12 hours of graduate course work earned in the 60 hour program and as many as 24 hours in the 90 hour program, earned at another institution, not used in a previous degree, may be accepted and credited to the degree plan provided the student’s advisory committee recommends acceptance to the Graduate School on an individual basis. Transfer credit must have been completed within five years of the student’s admission date.

The University of North Texas--and all other major state-assisted graduate universities in Texas--charges nonresident tuition to all graduate students who have attempted more than 99 hours in the doctoral program. This policy applies to all graduate students who have taken more than 99 hours, regardless of whether they are Texas residents or nonresidents, and regardless of whether they hold scholarships or assistantships that would previously have qualified them to pay resident tuition. A copy of the complete letter is available from the CoB Office of Graduate Programs and Research.