The world of business and management is undergoing rapid and profound changes. Theories, practices and strategies which seemingly worked yesterday are failing today. Institutional leaders, policy makers and managers everywhere are increasingly confronted by novel situations without historical precedent, precipitating the need for new knowledge.

At the same time the currency of management knowledge seems to be shortening, precipitating the need for knowledge to be more quickly translated into practice. Such circumstances call not only for heightened research activity, but pose questions for the nature of the inquiry itself. This has brought challenges for management education. SBS Swiss Business School has responded with the development of the innovative post-MBA professional doctorate, the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA). 
 

The program follows the internationally established DBA pattern where managers extend their knowledge through advanced management studies and the application of these studies to their work place situation. This includes the exploration of contemporary literature, theory and reports of best practice. Students are then able to integrate the acquired knowledge in applied forms through specific research projects.
 

The DBA is an integrated work and research program for management practitioners and professionals, who are oriented towards making a significant contribution to practice and policy. DBA students will have a diverse range of interests. Consequently there will be scope for requisite specialization within a general organizational and management framework. Graduates from the program are expected to make a key contribution to practice, so program work will relate to leadership, change and process management as well as research methodologies.

The DBA comprises a total of 108 units and can be completed in a minimum of 2.5 years part-time / next to the job study. The Program is taught in a classroom format based on the use of intensive workshops. It includes the following two components:
 

Coursework Phase:

Doctoral Program Seminars & Workshops (50%).
 

Research Phase:

Supervision Workshops (50%).
 

Duration

The program can be completed in a minimum period of time of 2.5 years and maximum over 6 years.
 

Course Curriculum

The program is designed to advance the professional development of senior practicing managers and professionals in the business arena by extending their management knowledge and equipping them with broad research and process management skills, enabling them to make a key leadership contribution to their chosen fields. Graduates of the program will have:

extended knowledge of emerging business and management ideas and deeper understanding of their relevance to applied business settings;

• conceptual frameworks of practice knowledge and innovative approaches for business and management application;
   
• extensive familiarity with the literature of selective specialist applied areas within the business and management field;
   
• ability to link and integrate applied research to learning as a precursor to the formulation of vision, strategy and process leadership for corporate and business enterprise;
   
• skills in applied research methodologies including literature searches, field research design, data analysis and the communication of research findings.

The DBA is offered in face-to-face delivery. Candidates are required to attend 7 courses and 4 research seminars, resulting in 11 intensive sessions over 2.5 years. The sessions are offered over the weekend (Friday, Saturday, Sunday from 09:00 - 18:00) to accommodate working professionals.

Admissions Requirements

Applicants seeking admission to the DBA program shall normally hold:

• An MBA degree, or equivalent, from an approved University or equivalent;

or

• Where other Masters degree level qualifications are held, applicants may be asked to complete a prescribed bridging program (normally designated courses from an MBA program)
   
• Substantial (not less than five years) experience at executive/management level.
   
• All DBA candidates must be able to demonstrate from their education and/or professional performance their potential to undertake research at a doctoral level. They should be able to show success in their career to date and document how the DBA program fits into their personal or career plans for the future.
   
• All DBA candidates must have a sound command of the English language, spoken and written, meeting the criteria as prescribed below.
   
• Applicants are required to have completed their previous Masters Degree in English; or submit proof of having achieved an IELTS test score of 7 or higher. 

All applicants must submit a 1000 word outline of their proposed research topic/idea as part of their admission application submission.
 

Where, during the application process, concerns are raised about the English proficiency of an applicant from either of the English language proficiency categories, or for applicants who do not meet either of these categories, the 500 word outline will be considered as an additional/alternative basis for assessment, as one of the conditions for acceptance into the program.
 

Selection Process

Considerable care is taken by SBS Swiss Business School in the selection of the D.B.A. candidates. In most cases, it will take up to one month to process each application. Therefore, it is advisable for potential candidates to apply at least 8 weeks before the start of each intake
 

Application Procedure

All applications must be submitted to SBS Swiss Business School before the closing date. Each application package must contain:

• A duly completed application form affixed with a passport-size photograph
  (Download Application Form)
• Certified copy of degree(s), professional qualification(s), certificate(s), and relevant transcripts
• Application fee of SFr. 150.-

The full application package should be sent to:

SBS Swiss Business School
Director DBA Program
Balz-Zimmermannstrasse 38
Building C
CH-8058 Zurich Airport
Switzerland

For further questions, you are welcome to contact us:

Phone: +41 44 880 00 88, Fax +41 44 274 27 65

E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
 

DBA Tuition Fees