Doctoral Studies // Business Administration

The doctoral programme of EBS constitutes an important part of our range of programmes. Our objective is to provide doctoral students with an inspiring and challenging research environment. The programme complements the supervision by a professor with a structured programme of theoretical and methodical courses. Your supervisor will challenge your ideas and inspire your inquisitiveness further in a guided process of annual reviews.

At a glance

Degree: Doctor Rerum Politicarum (Dr. rer. pol.)
Study Duration: min. 4 / max.10 Semesters
Start: Enrollment throughout the year
Language: English
Costs: Internal Doctoral Candidate: 0 Euro per Semester // External Doctoral Candidate: 2280 Euro per Semester

Studying at EBS

Experienced Professors
Personal Supervision
Yearly held Proposal Defenses
Doctoral Summer School
Conference Presentation
Individual Career Advisory Service and Coaching

Dates

Enrollment every month, throughout the year
Mandatory courses every semester
Doctoral Summer School between May and July

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Your personal contact

Promotionsamt // Office for Doctoral Studies

Office for Doctoral Studies of EBS Business School

Petra Kaufhold

: +49 611 7102 1767
: promotion@ebs.edu

Rankings

No. 10 in Germany

World University Rankings: Business & Management Studies 2020

Accreditations and partner

The study programmme

Below the most important elements of the EBS Doctoral Study Programme:

Mandatory courses conveying a theoretical and methodological background supplemented by specialized electives customized to the different fields of research.
Annual proposal defences guaranteeing regular feedback and involvement of the candidate’s second supervisor in the research process.
Obligatory presentation of a competitive paper at an international scientific conference.

The conduct of our community is regulated by our Ethical Guidelines, which are an intrinsical part of the culture and mutual understanding in our research community. Take a moment, to appreciate and consider the values we’d like to share.

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Programme structure

The course programme consists of two mandatory courses offered every semester and at least four elective courses during the yearly Doctoral Summer School. The teaching language is English. Courses are offered as block seminars, but are not taking place on weekends. Mandatory yearly proposal defenses complement the programme to discuss the current state of the doctoral candidate’s research. In addition, at least one presentation has to be given at a worldwide EBS target list conference.

Mandatory Courses

A Crash Course in Empirical Theory

In a first part of this crash course we will concentrate on general questions from the theory and philosophy of science, e. g. “types of scientific explanation”, “confirmation of hypotheses”, “the nature of scientific theories” or “progress in science”. A minor second part analyses specific questions from current debates in the sciences. In keeping with the general aim of the course, i. e. to investigate universal structures in science and to supply additional educational background, we deliberately choose examples mostly from outside economics. The resulting distance to the usual professional or research-topics of the participants serves to illuminate the structural characteristics of the cases discussed.

Academic Writing & Publishing

In this class, we comprehensively discuss issues of scholarly writing, including the writing process, the structure of empirical (deductive) manuscripts, and editing English language sentences. Principles of topic choice for research projects are reviewed in depth. We also examine the journal review process, address issues regarding methodology from a reviewer’s perspective, and go into the publication process based on a recent example. Our focus will be on A-level journals. The course includes discussions, lectures, and exercises. The ultimate goal is to improve your scholarly work because writing is not just a support-level activity as part of research; it is the primary way in which we develop and disseminate knowledge.

Courses offered in this year’s Doctoral Summer School (27.05.-03.07.2019)

Theoretical Perspectives in Management
Qualitative Research Methods
Survey Design & Measurement in Social Science
Research Forum: Developing PhD Research Projects
Advanced Econometrics
Fundamentals of Experimental Design and Analysis
Introduction to Econometrics

You can download the brochure for this year’s Doctoral Summer School in the section “Downloads”.

Credits achieved during attendance in courses from other doctoral programmes or courses of EBS partner universities can be approved by the Doctoral Committee.

Your support is important to us

At EBS Universität you can expect not only excellent teaching and an intensive learning atmosphere, but also an extensive range of services. We want you to achieve an optimal academic result and to start your professional life with excellent career opportunities. Therefore we support you in…

your career planning and the acquisition of practical experience with the Career Services Center
your goals and decisions with individual coaching from our Coaching at EBS team
the organisation of your semester abroad by our International Programmes Office
your apartment search with our Housing service
the development of your foreign language skills with the EBS Language Center
your academic work with the offerings of the University Library
efficient work through our IT services.

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Campus life

Student life on campus

Life on EBS campus is diverse, international and characterized by the great commitment of our students. Due to the small number of students per intake and group, students know each other on campus and experience a family atmosphere that is also felt beyond the lectures. Our students’ sense of togetherness is extraordinary. The unique EBSpirit is born of our values of commitment, solidarity, thirst for knowledge and reliability. The common goal is to achieve great things, time and time again. And it works: with self-organised congresses, cultural events and much more.

MORE ABOUT CAMPUS LIFE!

Your study location - Living and learning in the Rheingau

The Rheingau is known worldwide for its Riesling, as are the fortresses, Castles and abbeys along the Rhine. Only a few kilometres downriver, the UNESCO World Heritage Site Upper Middle Rhine Valley with Loreley and Drosselgasse can be found. Every year a large number of tourists visit this region, which has so much to offer. Whether gastronomic, sporting or cultural, Oestrich-Winkel in the Rheingau provides plenty of variety for leisure activities.

The EBS campus in Oestrich-Winkel is also home to one of these historic, fascinating buildings in the Rheingau - Schloss Reichartshausen. Close to the Rhine and surrounded by vineyards, teaching and learning take place at this location in a unique environment. In addition to offices for teaching staff and service departments, the castle also houses several lecture rooms and representative event rooms.

MORE ABOUT THE LOCATIONS!

Studying business at EBS Universität

Your study experience and success is important to us. In order to make it easier for you to start your studies and to guide you optimally through the study programme, we offer personal support and various services:

Career Services Center: Career planning
Coaching at EBS: Individual coaching and goal definition
EBS Housing Office: Assistance in finding accommodation
EBS Language Center: Expansion of foreign language skills
University Library: Support with your academic work
IT-Services: Optimal framework conditions for efficient work during your studies
MORE ABOUT EBS SERVICES!

Application

To apply as a doctoral student, applicants need to obtain a promise of doctoral supervision by a senior professor of EBS Business School and then apply to the Doctoral Committee via the Office for Doctoral Studies. The Doctoral Committee decides on the admission of new applicants.

As a minimum requirement, applicants need to have a master degree (with a cumulated minimum of 300 ECTS in their bachelor and master) or a “Diplomkauffrau/-mann” with a GPA of 2.5 or higher (“Prädikatsexamen”). In the case of international degrees, an additional three months processing time may be required. Accordingly, documents need to be submitted to the Office for Doctoral Studies well in advance. In addition, the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) may be requested by the supervising professor.

The first step in applying for the Doctoral Programme at EBS Business School is to get the promise of supervision by one of our senior professors. Please hand in the Promise of Doctoral Supervision form, together with the following documents, to the Office for Doctoral Studies:

Short formless letter in English to the Chairman of the Doctoral Committee, asking for acceptance
If required: GMAT
Curriculum Vitae in tabular form
A-levels certificate (legally certified copy)
Degree certificates and transcripts of records (legally certified copies)
Honorary Declaration
English language certificate
ZAB authentication (if you hold non-german degrees)

For more information regarding the application process and the doctoral studies at EBS Business School in general, read the document Information for Applicants, or contact the Office for Doctoral Studies.

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