I hold a BS in Management, and a MS in Project Management. To add, I was recently accepted into an MBA program, and now I'm facing a dilemma. Do I continue with the MBA, or should I pursue a DBA/PhD? I am seeking employment in upper management, and I haven't decided if I would like to teach or not. I hope to get some opinions. No negative comments please.
Do you have professional experience? An MBA or a DBA isn't going to automatically result in a position in upper management with no relevant experience. If you want to work in industry I would recommend the MBA over the DBA. It will require less time and likely less money.
Ditto… I would pursue the MBA instead of a DBA for industry purposes. I’m not aware of any industry management or even leadership positions that would officially require the DBA (unless perhaps consulting (?)); however, there are those requiring a MBA.
Agreed - I have never seen an upper management job require a DBA. Some high tech bio firms require a PhD in sciences but that is totally different.
I'd go for the MBA and save a doctorate for later in life (or never). When your MBA is getting stale after many years and you are solidly in middle and upper management, a DBA can be a good mental and professional workout, especially if you have developed a passion for understanding or solving a particular problem area that can become the focus of your research.
I believe an MBA from a top school is much more useful than a DBA from an online non ranked school when it comes to management positions. Most management positions call for an MBA and not a DBA, a DBA would be useful if you want to teach on the side or want to become a consultant.
Since nobody mentioned it you can consider doing a post graduate certificate in business at NCU. No I am not 100% recommending that school because it does have its flaws however you will learn from the certificate program and 5 of the 6 specialization courses will apply toward a DBA or PhD at NCU. The credits will also put you in a better position to teach in the future. I recently finished this post grad cert and am working toward a PhD at NCU. The school is not for everybody but I like it because it is self paced and the syllabus for each course is freely available once you enroll in a single course. The syllabus basically is the course so you can see what you are getting into and begin working on a course prior to enrolling. With all that said, the doors to upper management will not automatically open once you get an advanced degree. I have over 15 years of industry experience and I am not even in middle management. I also have a MBA and 11 PhD level business courses under my belt.
I am at NCU right now. I enrolled in the CAGS Business and those courses transfer into the PhD since they are the exact same course numbers. The only difference is that you graduate with a post grad certificate (new name for CAGS) in business. It is Northcentral University. Randell graduated from NCU with a PhD. I graduated with a MBA, CAGS, and am now enrolled in the PhD.
Hi, so you aren't interested in teaching, so, I would exclude a PhD. although a DBA is not very often required, it is always an higher study lever towards an MBA. this doesn't guarantee you anything, the rest is up to you, your experience, the ranking of your school etc.
