Quit the Doctorate or Transfer (if possible)

Re: From the email sent by USQ..

My advise is to get a direct answer from the director of the DBA program:

"Ronel Erwee" <[email protected]>

I just got an email about these residencies, the canadian residency will be in a place in BC.

 

This is just for your information. Southern Cross University also has a distance DBA program.

 

Do you have a url for their information? I have this: http://www.scu.edu.au/courses/course_desc.php?spk_cd=1452810

The page indicates the degree can be done externally, but doesn't indicate whether on-campus residencies are required.

The curriculum is similar to Charles Sturt's; 4 business courses, 4 research courses, and a thesis.

Also, SCU used to "validate" doctorates earned at IMC. It appears IMC no longer offers the doctorate.

 

The tuition for the Southern Cross DBA is $AU44,000, or about $US34,000. Not exactly a bargain.

 

The following is from SCU's website: offshore candidates who do not study through the nominated University centres are required to participate in one workshop in Australia every year of their candidature.

The cost is A$1,850 per unit. I think those with a credit-average MBA is required to enrol in 20 units- 4 courses, and thesis (16 units), making the cost A$37,000.

For those without a credit-average MBA, 4 extra MBA courses are required.

For complete DBA information, the URL is http://www.scu.edu.au/schools/gcm/index.php?page_id=26&menu=2_32

 

Re: Transfer it is...

Well, DTechBA, it looks like you knew all along that it is better to transfer to a new program altogether (thereby salvaging what one has done, somewhat) rather than to either just quit or stay and fight with your advisor so that s/he can throw you out (thus wasting years of effort). Congratulations on having made the right decision!

 

Southern Cross University

They sent me an email this AM indicating they do not offer their DBA part time to students in the USA.

 

Charles Sturt University

Their application is becoming a pain. They want two referee reports, One of which comes from a past professor with whom I have done research. Since I cannot use a professor from Durban, it appears I will not be able to p[rovide this recommendations. Also, the other one is supposed to be from where I work indicating I will be able to use my studies in my workplace. Apparently, they expect you to apply your theses topic at your workplace. Since my proposed topic does not apply to my government job. I may not be able to provide that either.

 

New Problem...

Since putting my studies on hold, I have for the first time in 3 years been able to live without the pressure of studying. Normally, I am involved in running a Cub Scout pack; running one or two political organizations; serve as a commissioner of a park district; and involved in at least one fraternal organization; all on top of working and being a parent to active kids. When the studies got too much, I dropped most of the volunteer work so now that the studies are on hold I, for the first time in years, feel like I have a life. I can spend time with my family without the pressure of knowing I am letting something go undone.

It is going to be hard to start back up if I get into another program. Worse, I don't know if I want to......

 

Re: New Problem...

An excellent topic point to touch on. I've been thinking about energy for the doctorate lately. I have been wondering whether I have the energy to complete it?

After looking at the NCU and Touro programs it appears that they have it down in a modular fashion. Like eating an elephant. How do you do it? One piece at a time. Do you think the program you were in at Durban was more time consuming due to various factors you have already discussed?

 

Research Only Doctorates

Part of the problem with the research only doctorate is that the schedule is yours. You constantly feel you should be doing something. In a coursework program if you have you assignments done you can relax. In research only there is less structure so even if you are up to date you feel this pressure to do more. Mostly, it was probably me but it is a very real issue....

 

Re: Charles Sturt University

Can't you use letters of recommendation from your old MBA profs?

 

Re: Re: Charles Sturt University

They are out of consideration as they have no one available to supervise in my proposed area. Their HOD was very prompt in responding to my emails. Definately worth of look for others looking to Australia for a DBA...

 

Re: Re: Re: Charles Sturt University

Distance learning doctoral programs in business administration are on offer from the following schools which, based on their location, appear that they are likely dissertation-only propositions.

University of Bradford www.brad.ac.uk (BG15, 176)
Central Queensland University www.dtls.cqu.edu.au (BG15, 103)
Charles Sturt Unibersity www.csu.edu.au (BG15, 104)
University of Glasgow www.gla.ac.uk (BG15, 137)
Henley Management College www.henleymc.ac.uk (BG15, 160)
Heriot-Watt University www.hw.ac.uk
University of Luton www.luton.ac.uk (BG15, 139)
University of Melbourne www.unimelb.edu.au (BG15, 140)
University of New England www.une.edu.au (BG15, 141)
Open University of the Netherlands www.ouh.nl (BG15, 166)
University of South Africa www.unisa.ac.uk (BG15, 144)
South Bank University www.lbsu.ac.uk (BG15, 172)
Technikon of South Africa www.tsa.ac.za (BG15, 132)
University of Tasmania www.international.utas.edu.au (BG15, 146)
University of Teesside www.tees.ac.uk (BG15, 181)

 

Very pertinent article to this thread

http://chronicle.com/free/v50/i19/19a01001.htm

 

The most important reason to care about attrition, most researchers agree, is the effect it has on students' lives. "This is tremendously painful," says Barbara E. Lovitts, who left two doctoral programs before finishing a third one, in sociology, at the University of Maryland at College Park in 1996.

Now a research scientist at Maryland, she is the author of Leaving the Ivory Tower: The Causes and Consequences of Departure From Doctoral Study (Rowman and Littlefield, 2001). She saw several people who had not completed their degrees cry during interviews about their grad-school experiences and the effect it had on their lives -- no matter what their reasons for leaving.

"There is a tremendous opportunity cost," Ms. Lovitts says. "These are people who have never failed before in their lives. They were summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa. And for the first time in their lives they've experienced failure. It takes people a lot of years to get over it."

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Why wasn't she referred to as "Dr. Lovitts"? I would suspect that someone who had spent such a long time pursuing a Doctorate would prefer to be called "Doctor".

- Tom

 

I left my Union program for family reasons and didn't return for about 8 years. It was a crushing blow (I had just submitted my first dissertation draft to my core advisor) so close to finishing. I carried that weight around with me for years, and I'm sure it was a major factor in getting involved with MIGS. (Fortunately, I found out what they were up to--more accurately, not up to.)

Going back to Union, I tore through the rest of my program, motivated largely by never wanting to feel like that again. I cannot express the tremendous relief that came with graduation. Not the absence of schoolwork, which naturally came with it. Rather, never again having to explain why I didn't finish.

I don't know how ABD's do it....

 

MIGS. Whew! Haven't seen that name in a long time on the forum. A blast from the past for sure. Whatever happened to Sheila?

 

As an ABD dropout it took me about one year of knowing that I wasn't going to continue, but denying it to myself, and then two years of getting over it, during which time I even considered therapy, which I've never had in my life. I'm still not completely over it, but I'm getting there.

One thing that helped me out through the whole process is a relatively healthy attitude toward failure. I've dealt with it before and I have no doubt I'll deal with it again. I strongly believe that the true test of character is not dealing with success, but dealing with failure. I think there's a tendency in American society to just try and deny that failure exists or blame something else for it (e.g. Donald Trump on his show bellowing "failure is not an option!"). I don't necessarily blame dropping out on the insanely high rate of attrition in my field (although I do think changes need to be made). I set myself a standard, couldn't reach it, so now I'm trying something else.