NCU Phd acceptability by potential employers

First if all, this forum has already provided a lot of good information that I was looking for.

I am very interested in earning a Phd and I have narrowed down to the following: Walden, Capella, and NCU. NCU is on the top of my list because of its flexibility.

My goals for obtaining a Phd in Management are as follows:
1. To land a top management position at a Fortune 500 company. Basically, I would really like a Phd to get me through HR and help me in getting an interview.
2. Further enhance my credibility as a future consultant.
3. Become a part-time instructor (for undergrad courses) at a university like UoP, National, etc. to remain in touch with the basics.

My questions are as follows:
1. Is Phd worth the time and effort for my goals listed above. I want to continue my education but already have two Masters (one in Engr and other in business) from traditional schools?
2. Do HR recruiters at companies (especially Fortune 500) even care about the schools where a degree was earned? (I work at a Fortune 100 company and there are a lot of managers with a UoP degree. In fact, the company encourage everyone to continue education in any way they can!
3. Will a Phd from NCU be more useful than traditional colleges? (I want to learn from the people who have been in the trenches, not from someone whose job is to publish publications that have little or no use in practical life, i.e. industry!)

I would really appreciate your help in this. I have over 7 years industry experience and I want to get into top management.

I would really appreciate any constructive feedback on this matter.

 

For what it's worth, I'm not sure a Phd is going to be a huge benefit for goal #1 (top management). I'm sure there are some Phd's in top management - but I would wager that it's the exception rather than rule (can't think of one in my company).

Of course, a Phd would help with goal #3 (education) but even then, I think there's a bias towards tier 1 schools (IMO).

Greg

 

Unless you plan to teach full time, I wouldn't recommend that you pursue a Ph.D.; it is too much work for what you plan to do with it. You already have excellent preparation for management ascendency, teaching part-time and doing consulting projects. I would recommend that you write a book in the area in which you hope to consult. If you are serious about full-time teaching, then I would recommend that you look into the Ph.D. BA at Touro as preparation.

Dave

 

Re: Re: NCU Phd acceptability by potential employers

Thanks a lot Dave. I definitely do not plan to teach full-time as I think it would limit my professional progress in the industry. However, I definitely want to continue my education somehow.

Touro is a good option and I like the fact that they are a bit more selective in requiring at least a GPA of 3.4 for entrance. However, they are more costly than NCU.

So far the feedback that I have received from a couple of recruiters at work echos your conclusion that it is unlikely that it will help in breaking into top management.

 

Re: Re: Re: NCU Phd acceptability by potential employers

How about one of these inexpensive Master of Liberal Studies programs in which various concentrations are possible?

http://www.fhsu.edu/mls/conc/index.shtml

There are other such MLS programs available as well.

Dave

 

A Ph D actually can come with limitations. It is not very often you see Ph D required in industry(academia is another subject). Most often a Master's degree (e.g. MBA) is all that is required for most upper management jobs. There are many skills that can get one into Upper management, but having a Ph D is not one of them(not many CEOs have Ph Ds and alot of CEOs aren't even MBAs).

 

For what it's worth, a PMP would go nicely with your Six Sigma Black Belt (IMO) and round out your engineering/MBA background.

e.g.

http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/pmp/academics/certificate.html

Greg

 

Hi Greg,

Thanks for the link. I did not even know that Stanford offered those extension courses. I will definitely look into it. I think a PMP from PMI probably gives the most value on the resume. Thanks again!

 

The PMP looks like an interesting program, but I see that Stanford calls their Public Managment Program the PMP, instead of the more widely understood Project Management Professional (PMP).

Dave

 

NCU also offers a DBA--doctorate in BA without the dissertation. If you're not going to teach, the DBA is basically the Ph.D. equivalent. You do the same coursework, only without the dissertation. Check into it!

 

The DBA from NCU does require a dissertation. It does not require an oral defense of the dissertation.

 

Re: Re: NCU Phd acceptability by potential employers

I would be careful about this, Why would you think that a Touro PhD would have more use that a NCU`s one in academia? How many actual Touro`s PhD graduates are working full time as faculty members?

After a google search, I was able to find few working at places where the PhD was more of a dressing than a requirement as Devry University.

I think that Touro is still far from being a tested product to be recommeded as a good option for full time teaching careers.

 

I agree that a PhD is probably not going to be much help in landing a Fortune 500 "top management" position. In fact having a PhD and not having Fortune 500 experience seems more likely to rule you out than advance you into the recruiting process.

Recruiting tends to begin within the same industry and within other large, successful companies. Well-rounded experience with a demonstrated track record of success is what propels into upper management. If you have had a lot of success in staff positions, then seek an operations position with profit and loss responsibility. If you have handled intricate, solitary projects well, then seek a team-driven, social assignment. Vice versa as well. If you know you want to specialize within a certain industry, this is where educational certifications can be really helpful.

 

Re: Re: Re: NCU Phd acceptability by potential employers

I have to agree with you here. Although Touro has some small advantages - a for-profit arm of a small not-profit B&M college - its use has to be about the same as an NCU PhD.

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: NCU Phd acceptability by potential employers

Actually, I would think that NCU has more advantages than Touro. NCU has the big plus that has many specializations while Touro's program is more a general business degree. A general business degree is hard to sell where most schools ask for 18 credits of doctoral graduate work related to the teaching subject.

 

I seriously doubt a PhD will help you land a top management position but it will definitely make you more marketable for consulting and adjunct work.

A lot of universities do in fact require 18 credit hours of graduate work in a specific subject to teach that subject. NCU has a big advantage over the others in this. NCU has numerous specializations to choose from including management. The flip side in having so many specializations is you feel like a kid in a candy store. I am a prime example of this having switched specializations a few times.

For your purposes, a PhD from any of the schools you mentioned will help you in #2 and #3 above, but not with #1.