On April 6, Shippensburg University received approval from the Board of Governors of Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education for a Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA).
This 54 credit-hour DBA program, offered through the John L. Grove College of Business, will be the only AACSB-accredited business administration doctoral program at a public university in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia.
The program is designed to meet a documented need in the Commonwealth and region for doctorally prepared business professionals. The DBA will prepare regional, national and international graduates with the critical research expertise necessary in today’s global knowledge economy.
“The DBA is a prime example of our strategic addition of programs that build on the strength of our faculty as well as address the workforce and market demands of our region and the state,” said Dr. Tracy Schoolcraft, acting provost and vice president of academic affairs.
“Grove College of Business has a long history of excellence in education, having maintained our AACSB accreditation for nearly four decades,” said Dr. John L. Kooti, dean of Grove College of Business. “The DBA builds on the success of and growth of our MBA program which has been ranked among the best in the nation by U.S. News and World Report.”
Dr. M. Blake Hargrove, associate professor of management, has been leading the faculty effort to design a quality doctoral program with an innovative and flexible curriculum.
“The Shippensburg DBA is intensely collaborative. Working closely with their professors, students develop advanced research skills and become masters of their discipline during the two years of course work. In the third year, faculty mentors guide DBA students as they design and perform original research that makes a contribution to their field,” explained Hargrove.
Offered as a weekend, residential program, the DBA is suitable for recent MBA graduates, mid-level managers and executives seeking career development, local and regional educators without doctorates, international students and career-military personnel exploring a second career.
