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The DBA (Doctor of Business Administration) is a doctoral degree with a focus on application. Students submit an independent thesis on an area of research that is of interest to practitioners. The doctorate is the terminal academic degree, and it is expected that the thesis will build on existing scholarly work. Students who are accepted onto the DBA will be offered support through online and contact sessions, and it is expected that they will also contribute to their peer community.

• An MBA degree from a recognised tertiary institution.
• Familiarity with basic statistics.

An application pack comprising the following must reach the Director of Research at GIBS before the due date:

• A completed and signed hard copy of the application form and contract.
• An application fee relevant for the year of admission, payable to the Gordon Institute of Business Science.
• Official academic transcripts of all academic qualifications obtained to date. (Please note that a degree certificate is not a transcript.)
• A 20-page research proposal, containing:
• The research question;
• A concise review of the literature most relevant to the research;
• The proposed research design;
• The proposed data source(s) and data gathering strategy.
• Reports from two independent professional referees with whom the candidate is well acquainted, commenting on the candidate’s suitability for advanced academic study towards a doctorate. The signed referees reports should be marked “Admissions and the year of study” and sent directly to the Director of Research.
• Successful candidates will be required to pay a non-refundable deposit relevant to the year of application, deductible from their subsequent tuition fees.
• Assessments will be conducted to establish if candidates are capable of doctoral study. Continued study on the doctoral programme will be contingent upon meeting the requirements of the assessment.

Progress on the research will be guided by a supervisor and monitored through regular engagement with the student. In order to complete the research, candidates need to share their research, at a practitioner-based forum.

The completed research study must be presented in the form of a doctoral thesis. Manuscript based on the thesis must be prepared for submission to an accredited academic journal, local or international, for publication as an empirical research paper. The successful completion of the doctorate depends on having the academic publication accepted into the process of review, as well as passing the thesis.