Doctor of business administration (DBA) program

Drive long-term business change

The challenges facing the business world are numerous and complex, but they aren’t impossible. Through the DBA program, Concordia is preparing Christian leaders to address those problems holistically by combining quantitative and qualitative business concepts. The outcome? Actual change that translates to long-term growth and profitability.

Credits 60

Cost Per Credit ^$867

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Program Overview

The Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) is the highest accredited academic business degree at Concordia University designed to address the current challenges facing companies, leaders, and teams in today’s business environment. Students will develop scholar-practitioner skills as they learn from industry experts skilled in blending applied learning with theory development. Students will leave the program equipped with the tools, experience, and knowledge to transform organizations and improve performance through grounded research methods.

This three-year, 60-credit (minimum) program features four distinct concentrations for students:

Financial and Economic Management: Study how the financial and economic theory impacts global and regional organizations. You'll have the opportunity to explore further either financial or economic principles allowing you to apply the concepts to organizational structure and productivity.
Organizational Change and Performance: Learn applied methods and theories that address organizational improvement by examining individual, team, and organizational analysis and enhancing decision-making techniques.
Healthcare Administration: Study the administration of global health care systems and provide graduates with the opportunity to examine technology and analytics, legal and ethical considerations, and leadership topics encountered by top industry professionals.
Business Sustainability: Examine multiple methods to assess environmental risks and innovate sustainable solutions in order to implement strategies that generate value and increase competitiveness through sustainability.

Regardless of concentration, you will benefit from the unique holistic approach that the program takes in addressing and teaching both quantitative and qualitative business concepts. Throughout the coursework, you will acquire evidence-based decision-making skills to prepare them for effective leadership in business, healthcare, non-proﬁt, education, government, and other professional industries.

The next cohort will start in January 2023 with the in-person residency January 19-21, 2023. The application is now open and closes November 1. Apply today!

NEW - ALL BUT THE DISSERTATION (ABD) OPTION

Have you started your doctorate but life got in the way? Completed course work, but never finished your dissertation? Our new program provides an opportunity for students who have completed all requirements for a doctorate at another institution, except their doctoral dissertation. Concordia University welcomes all applicants who have achieved this status in their graduate education. We will help you achieve your goal and set you up for success. Now is the perfect time to finish earning your doctorate. Let us help! Click here for more information.

DBA overview

Informational Webinars

Our DBA faculty and staff provide live webinars for you to learn more about this new program including an in-depth view of the DBA concentrations, what the dissertation entails and how you'll be supported throughout this doctorate program. Learn more about our upcoming LIVE webinars here.

View our previously recorded DBA informational webinars below. In these recordings, you'll meet Dr. Matt Hurtienne, DBA program director and associate dean of the Batterman School of Business. He explains the curriculum structure, concentrations, dissertation, and how this will help you reach the goals you’ve set for yourself. You'll also learn more about the admission and application process.

Register today for upcoming webinars:

October 19, 12-12:30pm CST - Learn about our new concentration in Business Sustainability

Previously recorded webinars:

What to Expect

The DBA launched in July 2021 as a primarily online program with low residency requirements. Designed in collaboration with the School of Education, the program follows an eight-week format and includes 16 new online courses. The DBA is a perfect next educational step for students who already possess an MBA or a Master in Organizational Leadership degree, especially organizational managers seeking to advance their careers by developing an ability for advanced critical reasoning.

Upon completion of this program, students will be able to:

Compose ethical business solutions to complex organizational problems.
Formulate scholar-practitioner knowledge for organizational success.
Design qualitative and quantitative research projects related to business.
Evaluate organizational structure and design for productivity.

Please note, this degree is offered through our Concordia University Wisconsin campus. Courses will be online, but the two, weel-long residencies will be hosted on our Mequon campus.

The next cohort will start in July 2022 with the in-person residency July 14-16. The application is now open. Apply today!

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Locations

Online

DBA Admission Process

To be admitted into the DBA program, applicants must:

Have a master’s degree with a focus in business or other relevant degree from a regionally accredited institution.
Provide supporting evidence that you have completed an intermediate level statistics course (MBA 510 or equivalent), or have equivalent work experience. (please see section below for more information on this requirement)
Submit an application at cuw.edu/apply.
Submit official transcripts from undergraduate and graduate coursework.
Submit a resume or CV, and a list of references.
Submit a personal statement (no more than 3 pages).
- How the applicants educational and personal experience influenced the decision to pursue a DBA.
- Career goals and how this degree will help achieve those goals.
- A research topic or interest area that the applicant plans to study.
Participate in a video-conference interview.
No GMAT or GRE required
Have earned a minimum GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in one’s master’s coursework.
Applicants for whom English is a second language must provide English proficiency.

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Admission to the DBA program is governed by policies and procedures developed by the Batterman School of Business and Concordia University of Wisconsin. The University reserves the right to refuse admission or readmission to any prospective study or re-enrollment to any student. Any applicant who intentionally withholds pertinent information or falsifies information may be required to withdraw from Concordia University. The University and the Batterman School of Business reserves the right to make necessary changes to admission requirement without notice.

The DBA is a competitive admissions process. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee acceptance into the DBA program. Concordia University of Wisconsin and the Batterman School of Business may request additional documentation to evaluate a candidate’s record before a final admissions decision can be made.

Admission decisions are made on a rolling basis through the calendar year. The final due date to be considered for the DBA program is November 1 for the January 2023 date and an in-person residency from January 19-21, 2023. Applicants are encouraged to submit applicant material early, as cohort sizes are limited.

Credit Transfer

Nine credits counted towards completion of a previous graduate level coursework can be used towards your new doctoral program requirements. Eligibility of transfer credits will be assessed by the DBA Director, and based on relevance to DBA studies.

Up to 12 qualifying Concordia MBA credits, at the 800 level or above, may be counted toward the DBA. It is the responsibility of each applicant to supply official transcripts along with a request to have the credit(s) applied to the DBA program.

In certain situations, the student may be asked to submit a syllabus for any coursework being considered for transfer along with a rationale on why the student believes the course(s) meets the DBA requirements.

Pre-Stats Requirement

Our goal in this DBA program is to have high graduation success ratio (90% or better) and have put several procedures into place to meet this goal.

We completely understand the concern regarding the need to take the pre-stats course and the financial burden that this course can add on an individual. The pre-stats course intends to help ensure that the doctoral student can be successful in our doctoral stats course. We want to ensure that all students have the skills and knowledge to be successful in our program.

Many master level students take a stats course in their master program, but not all. Those who have not will need to take a master-level stats course before the start of our DBA stats course. Please remember, this is for the benefit of the student. We want to ensure that every student can successfully pass our DBA stats course.

To take your next step or for additional information, please contact our team at 877-289-1897 or Inquiry.Support@cuw.edu. We are here to help Monday - Saturday 8am-8pm cst.