The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
PhD in Business Administration Program of Robert C. Vackar College of Business & Entrepreneurship
Program Requirements
The doctoral degree in business administration consists of 63 academic hours. Each student selects a concentration area such as finance, management, marketing, information systems, or accounting. All students are expected to complete quantitative methods and major field courses designed to provide a strong foundation for conducting high-quality research in business administration. Students complete core course work requirements within the first two years of their training. After required first-year coursework is completed, students take a preliminary exam. Those students successfully passing the preliminary exam proceed to second-year coursework. After completing second-year coursework, students take a comprehensive examination. Those students successfully completing the comprehensive examination proceed to writing and defending the dissertation. More specifically, students will defend a proposal and final dissertation. Each dissertation is expected to make a significant contribution to the field of knowledge in business administration.
PhD in Business Administration Program Requirements
| Required Courses | 21 Hours |
| Research Method Courses | 15 Hours |
| Electives | 12 Hours |
| Capstone Requirement: | |
| BADM 9690: Dissertation Residency (taken twice) | 12 Hours |
| BADM 9391: Dissertation Extension | 3 Hours |
| Total Graduate Hours for Degree | 63 Hours |
Foundation (Leveling) Coursework
All students entering the PhD Program are required to have a business administration foundation. The foundation may be achieved by holding an MBA degree, Masters in a business field, or a selection of coursework designed to provide the foundation. A student joining the program without a business educational background must complete leveling or foundation courses before enrolling in PhD Seminars. During the first year of the doctoral program or subject to the advice of the student's program advisor for other time limits, a student without a business educational background must complete the following coursework (and associated prerequisites) prior to enrolling in PhD Seminars:
ACCT 6320 Accounting and Financial Analysis
(Prereq: ACCT 6301 with C or better OR ACC 2301 & ACC 2302 with C or better)
ECON 6350 Managerial Economics
(Prereq: ECON 6301 with C or better OR ECON 2301 & ECON 2302 with C or better)
FINA 6340 Advanced Corporate Finance
(Prereq: FINA 6303 with C or better OR FINA 3380 with C or better)
INFS 6330 Information Systems for Managers (No prerequisites)
MARK 6310 Marketing Strategy (No prerequisites)
MGMT 6330 Organizational Behavior (Prereq: MGMT 6301 with C or better)
QUMT 6310 Business Research (Prereq: QUMT 6303 with C or better)