Management and Business PhD

Surrey Business School is internationally recognised for interdisciplinary, international and applied research.

As a PhD student you will receive rigorous instruction and training in research philosophy and methods, together with outstanding supervision. You also benefit from choosing between either writing a traditional dissertation monograph or following the PhD by publication format route. This way, you decide your preferred pathway to present your research so that it suits your interests.

Our researchers often work closely with industry and collaborate with staff across the School, leading to innovative new thinking. In the UK government’s 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF), the School is in the top 10 for the outputs and top 20 for real-world impact of our business research. Overall, the University is ranked 33rd for overall research quality by REF.

Surrey Business School is a member of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and is accredited by the Association of MBAs (AMBA).

Here at Surrey, you’ll join a cosmopolitan, multicultural and diverse community of students and scholars. We consider doctoral students to be junior academics or researchers, and an integral part of the School.

Our PhD in Management and Business will train you in critical and analytical skills, research methods, and in discipline-specific knowledge that will give you the knowledge, skills and abilities needed for a career in academia, or as a researcher in a wide variety of settings.

We offer a three-year, full-time (and, in exceptional cases, part-time) programme. The programme has a dual-focus on subject-specific knowledge and methods training, which will give you the intellectual foundation to ask cutting-edge questions and then conduct high-quality research to address those questions.

You’ll receive an induction by the University of Surrey’s Doctoral College, as well as a bespoke induction programme from the Business School. This induction will introduce you to the School as well as the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences in which the School is based. The induction will outline the relationship between you and your supervisor.

Your supervisor will serve as a mentor as you progress through your PhD.

Year 1

In your first year, you will receive instruction in subject-specific knowledge and instruction and training in research philosophy and methods. As a full- time student you will complete four taught modules in your first year:

• Philosophy of Social Science Research
• Quantitative Methods 1
• Qualitative Methodology 1
• Either Quantitative Methods 2 or Qualitative Methodology 2.

At the same time, you will be working on your research (part-time students take the modules over two years). This will form the foundation of your doctoral research.

Year 2

Once you’ve got the foundation for your doctoral research and passed your confirmation exam, your second year will be spent conducting doctoral research. Students conducting primary research tend to spend the year away doing field research.

Year 3

Your third year will then be devoted entirely to data analysis, writing up and submitting your dissertation. You’ll have frequent interactions with your supervisor. You’ll also have the opportunity to attend professional development workshops in preparation for the academic job market. There is a four-year maximum period of study on the PhD programme for full-time students.

Your final assessment will be based on the presentation of your research in a written thesis, which will be discussed in a viva examination with at least two examiners. You have the option of preparing your thesis as a monograph (one large volume in chapter form) or in publication format (including chapters written for publication), subject to the approval of your supervisors.

The professional development of postgraduate researchers is supported by the Doctoral College, which provides training in essential skills through its Researcher Development Programme of workshops, mentoring and coaching. A dedicated postgraduate careers and employability team will help you prepare for a successful career after the completion of your PhD.