Does this make sense- MBA AFTER a PhD in Business?

I am thinking down the long road and I wonder if it would make sense to get an RA MBA after finishing the PhD in Business Admin from NCU.

Does a PhD in BA carry as much weight or more weight than an MBA?

Can a PhD in BA carry a stigma such as being too educated or pigeon-holed (specialized) that an MBA would not carry?

Am I way off in my thinking?

 

There is an issue of "over educated", as I have seen others discuss in industry. I would suggest getting a degree in your specific field after the PhD in business, i.e. if you are in the aerospace field, engineering; if you are you in pharma, chemistry; etc..

The unfortunate thing about a business degree, is that in the industry, it is not seen as equivelant as a hard science degree, right or wrong. Many engineers in my field have said "A PhD in business, I didn't know they offered that degree, why?".... jokers they are!!! Anyway, that is my two cents.

Also, since you have already struck gold in the business area, maybe something you really enjoy, like histroy, art, etc.

 

Randell,

Actually it makes sense if you want to add additional credits for
teaching.

I have selected several Masters programs that I like and have discussed credit transfer, etc... Most DL Masters have extended timeframes for completion so I intend to transfer maximum credits from the NCU program to another Masters. The key was to ensure that the credits were acceptable to the institution. Effectively you can complete a good portion of the Masters with PhD classes. If you complete the PhD first, some schools won't let you use classes from a completed degree towards another degree unless they awarded the first degree.

I'm not sure you want to go the MBA route though since it is tough to get more than 4 classes (in a specialization) in any particular subject.

In the PhD program I selected a specialization (MIS) so that I could complete 18 graduate hours in a subject in case I want to teach this subject.

Nice to see you are staying busy

 

Re: Re: Does this make sense- MBA AFTER a PhD in Business?

I agree with Han.

Stange as it sounds I would suggest a Humanities degree (such as the one from CSUDH) because that would demonstrate that you have a wider view of the world than just business. In today's world economy one needs to understand the history and culture of other nations.

 

At one time, I had considered pursuing a Master's in ethics. Would be a nice complement to any PhD. (Unless you want to work at a place like Enron, where it would be a liability!)

 

I doubt doing an MBA after a PhD will give you any benefit whatsoever.

You're right in the sense that PhDs are specialized. MBAs study a broad curriculum over several areas (accounting, marketing, finance, etc.) With a PhD, you do research and a dissertation on a single area. I don't know how NCU works, but most PhD programs will let you take courses, or even "minor" in areas outside your field of study. In other words, just take the core courses that an MBA student would take while in your PhD program.

There is a book out there that is a MUST read for anyone doing or thinking about a PhD program. It's called "Getting What You Came For," by Robert L. Peters. ISBN 0374524777. It gives a lot of good advice about how to get a PhD and what it's like in the job market.

 

My experience is that a PhD in BA is not really necessary for business practicioners. If you have a M.Sc in ITM is more than enough for education credentials. If you are looking to better yourself, you can look into recognized certifications like CISCO, PMI, etc. PhDs in BA are not really paid in industry but certifications are. The PhD is basically for those looking for academic careers.

The MBA also does not make sense if you have alredy a management master's. If you are in IT, perhaps a more technical degree would be a differentiator in the market. Charles Sturt has many good master's degrees that can be combined with IT certifications like CISCO or Microsoft.

 

Re: Re: Does this make sense- MBA AFTER a PhD in Business?

Sorry, have to disagree with you there.

Why are you doing yours?

 

Re: Re: Re: Does this make sense- MBA AFTER a PhD in Business?

In my case, I teach at the community college level so there is a salary increase and it also allows me to supervise Master's thesis at the University level in my adjunct position. It also helps to apply for for research grants at the university level. Tenure track positions are only avaible for PhD holders.


For industry jobs, I have never seen any salary increase due to PhD in BA, some companies do pay a PhD in Engineering or Science for research positions. Most of the PhD in BA programs are meant to prepare future academics, some programs as the DBA are meant for practicioners but there is little evidence that supports direct promotions or salary increases due to this type of degree. It is not a secret that the payoff for PhD in BA education is very little in industry.

I see a high utility of a DL PhD in BA for community college professors since the pay scale with an accredited PhD is almost at the assistant professor level, at least at my college. It also helps to land adjuct positions at regular universities. Although I got an adjuct position with my MBA, new hires require now a PhD at my university, so the DL PhD can be a good asset for this kind of position.

In industry, PhDs in BA are seen as too academic or over qualified for most of the business positions. Many PhD in BA that I know work in companies with salaries at the MBA level.

 

Re: Re: Does this make sense- MBA AFTER a PhD in Business?

This is a very relative statement. If you refer to a "hard" degre to a one that is more quantitative based as engineering. PhDs in Finance are not exactly "easy" degrees, they require a very good background in sthocastic processes, statistics, calculus, probability and operations research. PhDs in "management science" are also very high in mathematics. I know of many PhDs in Engineering that work in the finance sector because of their quantitative background. It also depends on your skills, some people might find much more harder business fields like "marketing" or HR that are based on psychology than finance or any quantitative field.

 

If you get an RA MBA after finishing the PhD in Engineering, Science, or after finishing MD, it make sense.

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: Does this make sense- MBA AFTER a PhD in Business?

Fair enough, in salary and promotional aspects, I agree. But in the case of lean practices, special projects, continuous improvement, etc. the type of project envolved in conducting a dissertation, and the skills developed in doing so will be very valuable, with out without the promotion.

 

Re: Re: Re: Does this make sense- MBA AFTER a PhD in Business?

I see your point, but I do not think a PhD in Finance is equivelant to the hard sciences (i.e. chemistry). Though both would be difficult, I think they are seen different in industry. I agree the mgmt science degrees are stat based, and that makes it ----- I hate to say it ----- more rigorous!

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Does this make sense- MBA AFTER a PhD in Business?

Yes, a PhD is still a valuable learning experience for those that are interested in
research skills. However, the question here is if a MBA would make sense for a PhD in BA, a PhD in BA assumes general business knowledge so the MBA would be redundant.

 

I´d think that any IVY LEAGUE MBA _does_ make sense after a Northcentral PhD (for example) - don´t you think so?

T.

 

Re: Re: Does this make sense- MBA AFTER a PhD in Business?

I have tried to contact them and they never repsonded. Do youhave any info about this program?

 

I am looking at the PhD in BA/Management. What masters programs are you looking at to transfer credits into...Excelsior? I like your idea.

 

I'm confused. Why would you want to get an MBA after you got a PhD in BA/Management? I don't see any value here.

 

Most Masters will let you transfer anywhere from 6 to as much as 25 (Mountain State University has that nice self designed program)

I have looked at:

Amberton-up to 12 hours

UW-Platteville- MS Project Management-They allow transfer credit and if you have a PMP certification will award an additional 6 hours of graduate credit. Could potentially end up only having to take 15 hours.

Troy University- just recently added an IS concentration to their MSM program-you won't see it listed however. 12 hours transfer

Florida Tech-MS/M-IS-12 hours transfer

I have found others but not within my speciality. I believe concentrating on Business, Management, Project Management, and IS (IT) will merit teaching opportunities. The goal being to bring the graduate credit total up for teaching. Technology will continue to advance and if folks don't embrace the management of this technology as well as the production level (programming, etc...) businesses won't survive. I have found that successful technical people offtimes can't make the transition to managers of people.

Good luck....

 

I couldn't agree more. I'm probably one of those technical people who will probably never make a good manager. I'm way too demanding and not skilled enough to effectively motivate others. Is this a skill you can learn? Or, is is something that you learn at a very early age?