Management

Advertisement

As a world-class, research-led School of Management, we have designed our academically-oriented PhD programme specifically to train the next generation of professional management researchers and scholars.

We seek to attract and fully train exceptionally qualified and strongly motivated individuals from around the world who want to excel in careers as professional management analysts and academics.

Our goal is to train tomorrows leading management scholars by ensuring all our PhD candidates graduate with both the formally recognised training and the practical research and teaching experience needed to succeed in the increasingly competitive international market for jobs in professional management research and scholarship.

In addition to providing the advantage of Baths excellent world-wide reputation for management research, we achieve high marketability for our PhD graduates through a programme that:

* Provides all PhD candidates with a comprehensive taught training in management research methods that earns the award of a Master in Research degree after the first year of registration
* Enables PhD candidates to work closely with our international faculty on original scholarly research at the frontiers of management knowledge
* Actively encourages PhD candidates to present and publish their scholarship before they graduate
* Offers the possibility for PhD candidates to gain both teaching training and some direct teaching experience

With these four elements of the Bath PhD, your success in a career as a management scholar is assured a world-class foundation in excellence.

Qualifications and durations
Full-time MPhil 1 - 3 years
Part-time MPhil 2 - 4 years
Full-time PhD 2 - 4 years
Part-time PhD 3 - 6 years

Academic year 1
In their first year, all PhD candidates begin three integrated processes to lay solid foundations for their professional research careers: (i) a programme of formal research training via the MRes; (ii) the process of refining and crystallizing their research interests; and (iii) the process of recruiting and formalising a supervisory team.

* (i) Formal research training

All PhD candidates are registered on the MRes degree, which comprises the following assessed units taken during the first 12 months of registration:-

* Semester 1
* - Approaches to Management Research (6 credits)
* - Social Science Research Principles and Skills (6 credits)
* - Qualitative Research Methods 1 (6 credits)
* - Quantitative Research Methods 1 (6 credits)
* - Short Research Apprentice Project (6 credits)

* Semester 2
* - Research and Publishing Practicum (12 credits)
* - Qualitative Research Methods 2 (6 credits)
* - Quantitative Research Methods 2 (6 credits)
* - One masters unit as prescribed by supervisory team (6 credits)

* Summer semester
* - Initial Research Proposal (30 credits)

Although exemptions will be made for appropriate previous study in specific areas of research methods training at Masters level, and alternative Modules may be taken if the general programme is considered inappropriate by the supervisory team.

In addition to these formal research training units of the MRes, all PhD candidates will throughout the year undertake practically-oriented research apprenticeships with faculty members in their Subject Group, and will be encouraged both to take additional relevant taught units at Bath and other academic institutions.

PhD candidates are also expected to gain valuable research experience by attending and presenting at School seminars, and additionally to begin the process of developing papers, with Subject Group members and on their own, for presentation at academic conferences and for submission to scholarly journals.


* (ii) Refining and crystallising research interests

While all PhD candidates will have joined the Subject Group within the School that most reflects their general area of academic interest, few will have arrived with a precisely defined, clearly elaborated and theoretically sound thesis that they can immediately research and test. Nor will they usually have had the opportunity to determine the optimally appropriate analytical approach and detailed methodologies necessary practically to operationalise their thesis research.

Consequently, in the first year of the Bath PhD programme all candidates simultaneously begin a systematic process of (i) developing and refining a relatively narrow and feasible research topic and of (ii) exploring, evaluating and becoming proficient in the methodologies that will provide the most appropriate analytical strategies for their research. This might be based on the preliminary research suggestions candidates had when they applied to the School, but will often be different as a result of the development of candidates' research interests and ideas through their taught training. The 15,000-word detailed Initial Research Proposal undertaken in the summer semester of the MRes is designed specifically to help in this process by constituting a first draft of a substantive transfer examination document.


* (iii) Recruiting and formalising a supervisory team.

Candidates will have a good deal of freedom and flexibility both to select their own research topic and to recruit an appropriate supervisory team for the PhD stage of their studies.

Selecting a feasible research topic will be dictated predominantly by candidates' personal intellectual interests, but will also be determined in part by the availability and willingness of faculty members to supervise candidates and their topics.

Accordingly, PhD candidates in their first year develop their research ideas in direct consultation with faculty members in order to put in place and formally agree a personal supervisory team that will consist of two or more experts from relevant Subject Groups.



Satisfactory progress in each of the above three areas is a requirement for progression into the second academic year of the PhD.

Academic year 2
In their second year, PhD candidates are registered on the MPhil/PhD. They are expected as early as possible during their second year to submit, present and defend at an oral examination their final research proposal.

Getting the theoretical and methodological aspects of original PhD research right is vital to expeditious achievement of a successful PhD thesis, so performance in this formal examination will determine progression onto PhD status. The final proposal will be developed from the Initial Research Proposal prepared as part of the MRes.

PhD candidates will also continue in their second year to undertake taught units in subject and method areas as determined with their supervisory team. Candidates will additionally continue both their practical research apprenticeships with faculty members and their development of scholarly papers.

We regard our PhD programme as an investment in the future of our profession of scientific enquiry into management, so we welcome applications from those with the determination and ability to join the first rank of professional management researchers and academics. Our policy is to admit the best and most promising applicants based on their intellectual ability, academic achievements, and motivation to undertake the professional scholarly research training we offer on the Bath PhD programme.We seek applications from outstanding individuals from anywhere is the world and from any disciplinary background who are strongly committed to and potentially capable of high-quality academic research in any of the disciplinary areas covered by the Subject Groups of the School and who: * Have, or expect to receive before September of the year of entry, exceptionally good academic qualifications in any discipline. * Are fluent in reading and, especially, writing English. Exceptionally good academic qualifications are required. These are evidenced by high GRE or GMAT scores, or high GPAs, or high degree classifications, or similar. All applicants must hold at a minimum a first degree award at First or Upper-second (or GPA equivalent) level before final acceptance.Prior academic disciplines studied are less important than demonstrable quality of academic achievements and a willingness to undertake systematic research training, including both qualitative and quantitative methods training, as well as specific disciplinary training as necessary. We therefore welcome applications from any disciplinary background regardless of whether or not applicants have already taken a master degree. Our emphasis is primarily on intellectual ability and motivation to become a professional management scholar.Applicants who have taken GRE or GMAT and achieved high scores will be very greatly advantaged in the admissions process. The advantage of having taken GRE or GMAT applies to candidates from any disciplinary or national background.English language requirementsTaking the taught elements of our PhD programme and writing up original research to an internationally successful standard demand a high degree of fluency in English. For non-native English speakers, we normally requires a score of at least 7 in the IELTS test administered by the British Council, or a TOEFL score of 250 (computer-based) or 600 (written). Please note that these are the minimum requirements, with higher ability generally expected.In some cases students may be made an offer of a place that is conditional on successful completion of one of the pre-sessional English language courses offered by the University's English Language Centre.Academic referencesOne academic reference is required. If you graduated a long time ago and think you will have difficulties providing a reference, please contact the department. English Language Requirements IELTS band: 7 CAE score: (read more) Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) is part of the Cambridge English suite and is targeted at a high level (IETLS 6.5-8.0). It is an international English language exam set at the right level for academic and professional success. Developed by Cambridge English Language Assessment - part of the University of Cambridge - it helps you stand out from the crowd as a high achiever. 75 (Grade B) TOEFL paper-based test score : 600 TOEFL iBT® test: 100 IMPORTANT NOTE: Since April 2014 the ETS tests (including TOEFL and TOEIC) are no longer accepted for Tier 4 visa applications to the United Kingdom. The university might still accept these tests to admit you to the university, but if you require a Tier 4 visa to enter the UK and begin your degree programme, these tests will not be sufficient to obtain your Visa. The IELTS test is most widely accepted by universities and is also accepted for Tier 4 visas to the UK- learn more.