DBA and PhD: What is a Better Choice?

Are you wondering what is the difference between the DBA and the Ph.D. program? What are the peculiarities of these two programs and for whom are these programs beneficial to in the first place? We have prepared a brief article where you can learn more about these programs.

The Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy) program represents the highest level of our educational programs and is a continuation of the MSc (Master of Science) program. The Ph.D. program is designed for students who are interested in theoretical research activities in a broad range of fields. It’s different from the DBA (Doctor of Business Administration) program in its character.

The Ph.D. program is research and scientific based in its nature and promotes knowledge, whereas the primary objective of the DBA program is to promote professional practice.

DBA program

The Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) program represents the highest form of management education and usually is a sequel to the Master of Business Administration (MBA) program. The main focus of the DBA program is practice and development in specific companies or specific problems that are solved by a manager. It is a management program aimed at practical benefits and solutions to specific problems.

The DBA program is especially suitable for experienced managers with several years of managerial experience who wish to complete the highest level of management education and want to address specific situations in their doctoral studies. Graduates of the program have the opportunity to develop their potential, use their experience and prepare for solutions to complex challenges. Upon successful completion of the program, the student will produce a high-quality dissertation thesis, which should bring insight into a specific area with a specific proposal of the solution.

PhD program

The Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) program was briefly described in the introduction. Now we will introduce it in more detail.

Typical students and graduates of the Ph.D. program want to pursue theoretical and research activities in various fields along with learning in depth about scientific research methods in a chosen specialization to test their hypothesis.

Students of the Ph.D. program pursue new information in order to apply knowledge to the wider sphere. This approach in the Ph.D. program differs significantly from the DBA program.

Summary

Are you still in doubt of which of the program you should choose? First of all, you should answer the question; what is your main goal? The DBA program is focused on the professional managerial experience of the student. The Ph.D. program is especially focused on developing a profound knowledge of a particular issue or area, and the preparation of scientific research, which is important for the development of selected sectors.

Students of the DBA program address the practical problems that specifically occur at their workplace. The Ph.D. program focuses more on research in the scientific community. Reliability, success and new knowledge obtained from the project as well as following the intellectual and ethical standards are stressed in the DBA program the most. In the case of the Ph.D. program the reliability, new knowledge, and information, compliance with professional standards in the scientific community are of the highest value.

Author: Linda Kalasova