Smith PhD Program Overview

General Requirements

The PhD Program of the Robert H. Smith School of Business consists of the following four elements:

Major area course requirements (6 courses):

  • Course requirements for the first minor in Research Tools (4 courses)
  • Additional course requirements that vary by area:
    • Accounting, Finance, Marketing, and Organizational Behavior
      - Two courses from the MBA core
    • One or two graduate courses in Economics, as specified by area.
    • One course, BMGT 880, in research methodology as specified by area.

In addition to course requirements, the PhD Program requires:

  • Students in all areas must pass a written comprehensive examination in the area of concentration.
  • Students attaining a "pass" or a "high pass" on the first attempt on the written comprehensive examination are exempted from the oral comprehensive examination.
  • Students in all areas must prepare and present before a committee a dissertation proposal.
  • Students in all areas must prepare a dissertation consistent with their proposal and then pass a final dissertation oral defense before a committee.

Please note these special requirements by area:

  • Organizational Behavior, Human Resource Management, and Strategic Management:Students in these concentrations must submit a satisfactory research working paper, usually completed by the end of the second year.
  • Finance: Students in this concentration need to pass a Qualifying Examination at the end of the first year.

In addition, the Graduate School requires the following of all graduate students enrolled at the University:

  • Registration: Each student must register for 12 credits of BMGT 899 (Dissertation Research) during the program and must be registered during the semester in which a degree is to be received.
  • Time Requirements: All course requirements and exams must be completed, and the student advanced to candidacy, within a five-year period. The degree must be received within four years of advancement to candidacy or nine years of admission, whichever is later, but not less than six months after advancement to candidacy.