Searching for a DBA Program

I am the owner of a small manufacturing firm with no time for brick and mortar. I am looking for a 100% DL DBA program with no residency that can be completed in 18-24 months (or less). Accredited or unaccredited is acceptable provided the unaccredited program is sufficient in content and quality. I am going on the assumption that there are unaccredited institutions that offer quality instruction at a reasonable price versus an accredited institution that offers equal or better instruction for a higher price. Accordingly, I am not here to debate the accredited/unaccredited issue. I need neither to get or retain a job. I want the additional education for personal and professional reasons (current and future trends).

Thanks to all who respond.

 

Well, you know what they say about assuming things, right?

 

Mr. Sainz
I was very reluctant to post to this forum for the very reason of your response. I came here for answers, not snide remarks.

 

tomsellers,

The trend for several California Approved schools (that were credible) that offered DBA programs is that they are not offering the programs any longer because they are seeking DETC accreditation.
I would not look at schools like Kennedy-Western as an alternative. You may want to. The only other California school I know of that offers a DBA is California University Of Business And Technology .

As far as RA schools, TUI offers a PhD, NCU offers a PhD and they do not require a residency. Nova Southestern and
Argosy University offer DBA programs. Univerity of Phoenix offers a Doctor of Management also.

Good Luck

 

Randel1234,

Thank you sir for the post. I will investigate your recommendations.

 

Here is more info from another post.
When I posted the question-Do any CA schools offer a DBA anymore?

BillDayson says
...but you might look at Calif. U. of Bus. and Tech., Newport U., California Pacific U., Education America U. (which seems to have split into two schools, one accredited by ACICS, the other retaining their doctoral programs), International School of Mgmt. and Asia Pacific Intl. U.

John Bear says
...I note that the Edinburgh Business School of Heriot-Watt University will be introducing a 100% non-resident DBA this fall, and apparently plans to market it fairly extensively in North America.

By the way UoP requires a residency and I am not sure about Nova or Argosy. The other RA schools will probably take longer than 18-24 months. A California school may be your best bet.

 

Randell1234,

Once again, thank you for the information. I appreciate your professionalism and timely response.

 

Have you considered buying a book on the subject you're interested? After all a non accredited degree is like not having anything, so you may as well save your money.

I hope it helped.

 

TUI

You could conceivable do the TUI PHD in 2 years but you would have to work hard at it. The course work would take about 15 months full time and that would leave 9 months for the dissertation. Maybe being self employed you can program that into your schedule to get it done. Might really kill the personal life though for a few years.

 

JLV,

Thanks for the post. I do agree with your comments regarding unaccredited institutions. In fact, using an accredited institution is still an option for me. I have considered purchasing books. However one important thing (for me at least) that is missing is the interaction between an instructor and other students. There is a wealth of knowledge out there that is not in any books.

 

Heriot Watt DBA

 

You seem to be very well informed concerning the debates that take place here concerning accreditation. In spite of this, you chose to ask a question qualified by an assumption that may or may not be correct. Moreover, you offered no information concerning your previously earned credentials, which are indeed relevant to the pursuit of a more advanced degree. This, coupled with the other constraints you have imposed, makes it difficult, at best, to recommend a specific program that meets your criteria.

A doctorate requires a significant amount of research. Perhaps, you would be better off providing additional information about yourself and asking where and how you might begin investigating the myriad of opportunities available rather than expecting to be spoon fed alternatives.

 

Couple of questions:

1. Since you said in 18-24 months, do you have a Master's in business, that will determine if the 2 years is realistic on some programs, and may rule some out.

2. Reasonable price - that is very subjective, do you have a range?

3. When you say unaccredited, yet quality, what is your definition of quality? It seems that instructor / student interaction is important to you, but anything else? Lock step program? Prereqs? Group work? Format / delivery?

I ask these questions to better help with a recommendation, nothing above is sarcastic, please let me know, I have been investigating for sometime and have information that might help you.

Also, Dr. Bear's book is WONDEFUL. It is worth the money!

 

Tom - I suspect that your 18-24 month time expectation will rule out almost all RA programs. For example, I know the mean time to completion at NSU is 60 months.

As for unaccredited program - the question I'd ask is "Why spend the money for such a program?" The degree you earn won't have much use as a credential. If you are looking for personal development - self study may be as useful and a whole lot less expensive.

Regards - Andy

 

Re: Re: Searching for a DBA Program

I agree with Andy. Many people come to this forum looking for the cheapest, the fastest and the one that can assure me a tenure track position at an accredited university.

There is no free lunch. You can get an unaccredited and relatively fast DBA from California Coast, New Port , Kennedy Western or Rushmore but none of these would be respected and useful for places where a DBA is normally needed (academia, research positions).

Although this is your personal choice. If you don't have the time and commitment to finish an accredited doctorate that would take 5 years to complete, then it would be better to save your money and invest your time for more useful credential like a CMA, CFA, CPA or CMC.

 

Tom Sellers:
"However one important thing (for me at least) that is missing is the interaction between an instructor and other students. There is a wealth of knowledge out there that is not in any books."

I do not see much prospect for 'interaction between instructors and other students' in the DL mode. If you want that you will have to go B&M. As for a DBA programme, at serious doctoral level not Mickey Mouse, interaction with fellow students tends to be limited except in the taught part of the programme and then mainly if you are on campus. During thesis writing it tends to be rather lonely.

In my experience I have never found anything that has not been written about in a book somewhere - the oral approach to knowledge desemination went out some millennia ago; that's how universities got started in the 14th century in Europe.

If you are starting from scratch, with no prior Masters degree from a reputable university, your goal of a DBA in 18 to 24 months is heroically ambitious and any institution that would award it, other than to a fulltime member of faculty with the requisite research record, would be of questionable academic status, accredited or unaccredited.

Your temperment towards Gus, a seriously qualified person in this field, suggest that the admonition that 'education is the acquisition of humility' is so far unknown. Doctoral students have to defend their theses to gain them and the questioning can get pretty tough at times. The best students answer without losing their 'cool'; some of the worst examiners try to provoke them to do so. If you really know your subject it is not difficult to defend your thesis, which is, after all, the purpose of trying to graduate PhD or DBA.

A couple of pennies worth froma country (Scotland) with some fairly old universities with some of the best libraries in the world.
Reading books is no disgrace.

 

It is quite apparent now that I was heading in wrong direction. I am sure there are still those who will still defend the unaccredited institution but that is an agruement that will continue. Thanks to all who have posted. I really appreciate your comments. For those of you who are interested (a number of you asked), I have a MSM and MBA.

After much consideration, I will be enrolling in either the University of Phoenix or Touro University.

Again, thanks to all.

 

I am about half way complete with an MS-ITM from TUI and I am very pleased with the program. I have spoke to UoP about the DM Program. It sounds greats.

Whan it comes time for me to decide on a PhD program, those are two of the schools I will be looking at.

Good Luck.

 

Those two regionally-accredited programs are actually radically different in design, outcomes and cost.

The UOP program(s) have a DBA/DM designation, practitioner focus and are somewhat expensive. The TUI program has a PhD designation, research focus and is more moderately priced. Both have value in their respective domains. Neither has achieved AACSB accreditation, but what DL program has? Probably not important for most middle-aged doctoral students anyway...

If you are headed the academic route, then the TUI program is more likely to lead toward academic publishing and a full-time teaching position. However, if you already have a regionally-accredited MBA, then you can teach part time anyway. In that case, the practioner focused degrees might still lead to a teaching position and be more applicable in the business setting. Who knows. It all depends.

Nova and Argosy are worth a look. There are now lots of programs out there if you want to consider those with minimal residency. There are some interesting overseas degrees, Heriot-Watt, Charles Sturt and UNISA that will have some weight for consulting and speaking opportunities, but may not get you the full-time academic gig here in the States.

Still, if you have something particular that you want to study in a setting/topic that isn't firmly routed in the research stream, want a rigorous program, want to work at your own pace, want a generic doctoral designation for speaking and consulting, and also have few dollars to invest, then check out California Pacific University's DBA; it's a good California State approved program but the school is relatively small and not regionally accredited. With all these other California programs going away for DETC reasons, its sort of last, but not least, of the Mohicans...

Cheers,

Dave

P.S. By the way, there are a few folks on this board that you should never reply to, because although they purport to speak through the clouds with thunder, their posts often lack the concomitant but illuminating and necessary flash of light... but they are often funny to read and so why not let them post anyway. This ain't Cuba!

 

California Pacific University