Della Bradshaw, The Financial Times Business Education editor.
I think any comment on the future of the doctoral market is very timely, especially in light of the Bologna agreement in Europe. Prof Iniguez says he dares not dissect here the difference between PhDs in management and DBAs - very wise indeed!
Isn't the problem that, particularly in the US, DBAs and PhDs in management are exactly the same degree? My understanding of the situation in Harvard University, where the term DBA was coined, is that the PhD and DBA only differ in who awards the degree - if the business school gives the degree it is a DBA, if the department of arts and sciences awards the degree it is a PhD.
Can European schools choose to hijack the term DBA and redefine it for their own ends?
My particular concern in Europe is about the German system of higher education. There university business schools, with 70 or 80 full-time faculty, graduate 100 or more doctoral students a year. The universities claim these doctoral degrees are equivalent to a US or British PhD. But are they?
The Bologna agreement has at its heart the idea of portability of qualifications. How should corporations and academia outside Germany view these doctoral degrees?
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