Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) – 48 Credits

Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) – 48 Credits

The 48-Credit DBA

Doctorate in Business Administration — the same doctorate, in fewer credits.

A Doctorate Designed Around Your Time

A 48-credit doctorate built from the core business disciplines, a full research-methods sequence and a dissertation or Doctoral Research Project. Choose the 48-credit DBA for a streamlined curriculum with no concentration requirements. It is designed for working professionals who arrive already knowing what they want to research.

*Not SEVP approved for international students

Why Westcliff

  • Small classes and mentored activities that ground the learning
  • Learn from faculty who bridge scholarship and real-world practice
  • Sharpened executive leadership and decision-making skills
  • A credential that advances the career you already have

Program Requirements

  • Admission Requirements

    A completed master's degree is a prerequisite for entry.

    Open to domestic and online students.

    Applications are reviewed on academic record and professional experience.

  • Dissertation Onboarding Program

    All doctoral students are required to take the DOC 700 (Doctoral Foundations) course within the first two terms of the Program. This course provides students with a solid foundation for understanding the research and dissertation process at WU, helps build momentum toward a topic of study, and provides opportunities for students to connect with their cohort of peers for support.

  • Doctoral Dissertation or Doctoral Research Project Review

    In support and pursuit of candidacy for the Doctor of Business Administration – 48 Credits Degree Program, doctoral students must submit a scholarly written report, with original research and investigation as to its foundation. This report is commonly and collectively referred to as the Dissertation and is indicative of high academic integrity and rigor, congruent with Doctoral level studies. Alternatively, doctoral students can complete an applied Doctoral Research Project that focuses on a real-world problem, situation or phenomenon, adhering to a comparable level of academic integrity as the dissertation. The doctoral dissertation and applied Doctoral Research Project can result in a new theory that is created, or it may be focused on contextual topics or phenomenon. The resulting report must have at a minimum a problem, purpose, research question, methodology, data collection, and an analysis of the results.

    The oral defense of the Doctoral Dissertation or presentation of the applied Doctoral Research Project is performed as a final step in conclusion of the program. Following the oral defense or project presentation, the doctoral committee chair confers with committee members and reaches a consensus as to whether the candidate receives a grade of pass, pass with minor content revisions, or fail.

  • Graduation Requirements

    Students in the Doctor of Business Administration – 48 Credits Program must complete forty-eight (48) prescribed credit hours with a program GPA (PGPA) of 3.0 or higher to graduate. Students must apply for graduation. Upon graduation and fulfillment of all academic requirements, students receive a Doctor of Business Administration degree.

Program Information

  • Required Courses

    Course Sequence - 48 Credit Hours Over Three Years

    Year One: Leadership, Strategy and the Functional Disciplines (18 Credit Hours)
    DOC 700 Doctoral Foundations 3 credit hours
    LDR 700 Leadership & Creative Solutions 3 credit hours
    MKT 700 Marketing Strategy & Consumer Behavior 3 credit hours
    MGT 700 Corporate Strategy 3 credit hours
    ECO 700 Business in a Global Economy 3 credit hours
    ORG 700 Doctoral Seminar in Sustainable Organizations 3 credit hours

    Year Two: Research Methods and the Prospectus (18 Credit Hours)
    FIN 700 Entrepreneurial Finance 3 credit hours
    DOC 705 Quantitative Research Methods 3 credit hours
    DOC 710 Qualitative Research Methods 3 credit hours
    DOC 715 Prospectus 3 credit hours
    DOC 720 Literature Review 3 credit hours

    Elective Research Course (Select one of the following):
    DOC 706 Advanced Quantitative Research Methods 3 credit hours
    DOC 711 Advanced Qualitative Research Methods 3 credit hours
    DOC 712 Applied Research for Real-World Impact 3 credit hours

    Year Three: Dissertation or Doctoral Research Project (12 Credit Hours)
    DOC 901 Dissertation I 3 credit hours
    DOC 902 Dissertation II 3 credit hours
    DOC 903 Dissertation III 3 credit hours
    DOC 904 Dissertation IV 3 credit hours
    OR
    DRP 901 Doctoral Research Project I 3 credit hours
    DRP 902 Doctoral Research Project II 3 credit hours
    DRP 903 Doctoral Research Project III 3 credit hours
    DRP 904 Doctoral Research Project IV 3 credit hours
  • Course Catalog and Student Handbook

    Student Handbook and Catalog

Scholarship Opportunities

Program Requirements