Doctor of Philosophy (Business Administration)

  Institution: Private: Open University

The objectives of the Doctor of Philosophy (Business Administration) are:

• Enhance research management skills in specific areas of business administration.
• To enhance the analytical and conceptual skills in specific areas of business studies, and
• To foster research and development of new and improved knowledge in specific areas of business studies.

The Doctor of Philosophy (Business Administration) is designed to provide a strong foundation in selected areas of business administration by learning through the various phases in the research process.

This programme is also developed to enhance the expertise of business professionals who are inclined towards an academic career, research related careers, or human resources development in selected areas of business administration like management, marketing, finance and economics.

Entry Requirements

Normal Entry

• Master’s degree in related field
• Bachelor’s degree with first class in related field from OUM or other institutions recognized by Senate; AND
• Registered for a Master’s degree in related field
• Passed related qualifying examination.

Programme Structure

This programme is comprised of three parts:

• Part I – Compulsory Core Courses
• Part II – Research
• Part III – Thesis Examination

Part I

Compulsory Core Courses

• Research Methodology in Business
• Doctoral Seminar in:
• Management
• Marketing
• Finance
• Economics

Any 1 of the above courses can be chosen.

Additional Courses

Learner can also take additional courses (optional)

• Applied Statistics

Part II

After completing the required courses (PART I) learners will begin the research and thesis work (PART II) under the guidance of a supervisor. Each learner will meet the assigned supervisor at least 4 times in a semester and achieve satisfactory progress in the research / thesis work before being allowed to register in the subsequent semester.
Areas of specialisations in research / thesis:

• Management (Human Resource, Organisational Behaviour, Strategy, Ethics, etc)
• Marketing (Service, Consumer Behaviour, Strategy, etc)
• Finance (Investment, Banking,Portfolio Management, etc)
• Economics (Industrial Economics, Development, etc)

Part III

When the learner has completed the thesis and is ready for examination, an examining committee consisting of one internal examiner and one external examiner will be appointed to assess the thesis (PART III). The learner will be examined in the Viva Voce session.

Source: Open University Malaysia (OUM)