The Marshall University Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) program is a research-based doctoral program that combines a disciplined approach to scholarship with a focus on compelling problems of practice. The DBA program is a 66-credit hour, three-year, hybrid program that requires students to prepare an applied research proposal and dissertation. Students will study seminal and contemporary business literature to develop research questions in their area of interest. They will perform literature reviews, design and perform research studies, analyze data, and draw relevant conclusions that affect economic development and business innovation. Students will choose a concentration that focuses on one broad business area, and they will be required to complete a proposal and dissertation as part of the program.
#5 of the 20 Most Affordable Online DBA Programs in 2021
Comparison of DBA and PhD
DBA
PhD
Applied research
Basic research
Professional doctorate for practitioners working full-time
Professional doctorate for academics
Typically 3 years
Typically 4+ years
Significant professional experience
No professional experience needed
Hybrid delivery mode
In-person delivery mode
Hold a master’s degree
May or may not hold a master’s degree
DBA Job Prospects
Some career opportunities may include:
Business school faculty
Business executives
Market analysts
Management analysts
Business consultants
Health care administrators
Policymakers
Business owners and/or entrepreneurs
Economists
Government employees
Director of Human Resources
On-campus visit schedule
Fall 2023
August 25 – Saturday, August 26 – Huntington
December 1 – Saturday, December 2 – Huntington
Spring 2024
Friday, January 12 – Saturday, January 13 – Huntington
Friday, April 19 – Saturday, April 20 – Huntington
Summer 2024
Friday, June 21 – Saturday, June 22 – Huntington
Fall 2024
Friday, August23 – Saturday, August 24
Friday, December 6 – Saturday, December 7
Spring 2025
Friday, January 17 – Saturday, January 18
Friday, April 25 – Saturday, April 26
Summer 2025
Friday, June 20 – Saturday, June 21
Synchronous Virtual Classes (9:00 AM – 4:00 PM EST)
Fall 2023
Saturday, September 9
Saturday, October 7
Saturday, November 11
Spring 2024
Saturday, February 10
Saturday, March 9
Saturday, April 13
Summer 2024
Saturday, June 8
Saturday, July 6
Fall 2024
Saturday, September 7
Saturday, October 5
Saturday, November 9
Spring 2025
Saturday, February 15
Saturday, March 15
Saturday, April 12
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Yes, the Brad D. Smith School of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.
Hybrid classes combine online synchronous and asynchronous learning activities with traditional face-to-face (F2F) instruction. Our DBA program requires only 5 on-campus visits per academic year. The online synchronous classes meet the second Saturday of September October, November, February, March, April, June, and July.
The DBA program Is full-time because students will enroll in 9 credit hours per semester during fall and spring and 6 credit hours during the summer. This is considered full-time by the university.
The DBA Program Committee reviews completed applications for the subsequent fall cohort at three points during the academic year (typically December, February, and April) or until the cohort is filled, whichever comes first. Please complete your application as soon as possible for it to be considered. DBA application deadlines are as follows: Dec. 1, 2022, Feb. 1, 2023, April 1, 2023, and June 1, 2023.
We are looking for applicants who have a strong potential to become business leaders and academics. The DBA Program Committee will review admission materials including, among others, professional experience, educational preparation, potential reflected from your resume and personal interest statement.
No GMAT or GRE score is required for admission to our program. However, a good score of GMAT or GRE could help your admission to the program if you do not have a master’s degree.
No master’s degree in business is required. However, admission to the DBA is competitive and the DBA Committee prefers applicants who have a master’s degree in business along with a minimum of 10 years of academic and/or business experience.
This is a 3-year, cohort-based program.
No comprehensive exam is required. Students can begin working on their dissertations upon satisfactory completion of the required coursework and an approved proposal defense.
Students can choose from the following three concentrations:
Accounting
Health care management
Management and entrepreneurship
Before a final offer is made, candidates will be interviewed by the DBA Program Committee via phone or video conference.
About 15-20 students will be admitted for the first cohort, starting Fall 2021.
Publication is not a prerequisite for graduation. However, students are encouraged to consider working with faculty to co-author a paper.
Five (5) on-campus residencies will take place over two-day weekends (Friday and Saturday with 12-15 hours of instruction) per academic year (August, December, January, April, and June during the first 2 years). Breakfast and lunch will be provided during all face-to-face sessions.
The personal interest statement should be 4 to 5 pages in length and explain the candidate’s objectives for joining the program, goals upon graduation, potential research questions of interest, and how the candidate’s work experience will contribute to this research.
You can look two places on our website. The first is the faculty/staff directory. On this page you can scroll to the department and/or specific faculty member. Click on their name and you will see Recent Publications and Research Interests for that faculty member. The second is a list of all faculty research by year. Most of the publications in these lists are clickable to the journal website where you can read the paper abstract. Feel free to email any professor about their research.
Up to $2,500 of research funds available for each student to attend conferences and/or purchase data.
Program Contact
Mr. Wes Spradlin
Associate Director, Brad D. Smith Graduate School of Business
Marshall University
Phone: 304-746-8964
E-mail: Spradlin2@marshall.edu
Wes Spradlin, MBA, MS
Associate Director
Brad D. Smith Graduate School of Business
100 Angus E Peyton Drive
S. Charleston, WV 25303
Office: GC333
Phone: 304-746-8964
Fax: 304-746-2063 lcob@marshall.edu
LCOB Contact Info
Marshall University
Lewis College of Business
Office: 107 Corbly Hall
Phone: 304-696-2314 lcob@marshall.edu