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The Doctor of Business Administration: Managing Candidate Diversity and the Academy

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Postgraduate Education in Higher Education

Part of the book series: University Development and Administration ((UDAA))

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Abstract

Professional doctorate programs have been offered through Australian universities since the mid-1990s, and the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) has been at the forefront of offerings. The chapter provides a snapshot of contemporary DBA programs in Australia and explores the diversity of DBA candidates and their needs. The authors explore issues regarding the expectations of academic managers, candidates, and supervisors of DBA programs, current positive and negative outcomes of DBA programs from both management and candidate perspectives, the structure of DBA programs, and the gap between coursework and thesis. Practical suggestions are made to manage the status of the DBA in the academy, enhance the structure of the DBA programs, and better manage the enculturation of candidates into the academic genre, given the applied nature of a DBA program. This chapter is informed by contemporary literature on doctoral candidature and two recent empirical studies; one is a qualitative study on the DBA co-led by the first author and funded by the Australian government’s Office of Learning and Teaching, and the other is an analysis of Australian government statistics on DBA numbers and completions 1993–2013.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Business and Tourism, Southern Cross University, Coolangatta, QLD, Australia

    Michelle Wallace

  2. Independent Researcher, Lismore, NSW, Australia

    Teresa Marchant

Authors
  1. Michelle Wallace
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  2. Teresa Marchant
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Correspondence to Michelle Wallace .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia

    Ronel Erwee

  2. Tertiary Preparation Program, University of Southern Queensland Tertiary Preparation Program, Queensland, Queensland, Australia

    Meredith Harmes

  3. Open Access College Administration, Queensland, Australia

    Marcus Harmes

  4. University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia

    Patrick Alan Danaher

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Wallace, M., Marchant, T. (2018). The Doctor of Business Administration: Managing Candidate Diversity and the Academy. In: Erwee, R., Harmes, M., Harmes, M., Danaher, P. (eds) Postgraduate Education in Higher Education. University Development and Administration. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0468-1_23-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0468-1_23-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-10-0468-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-10-0468-1

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