PhD Management Studies

PhD Management Studies (at our Southend Campus) gives you the opportunity to interrogate issues surrounding the contemporary workplace and how these relate to wider society on a local and global level. This programme attracts students from a variety of backgrounds and nationalities, with wide ranging social science research interests. You can tailor your studies to a profession or sector of your choice and may choose to explore issues such as:

• marketing and brand management
• strategic management, including mergers and acquisitions
• the role of networks in the modern economy
• organisational power relations and leadership
• logistics and supply chains

You study at Essex Business School, the largest department at the University of Essex, at our Southend Campus. We are a business school with an international outlook. Our doctoral students join us from all over the world and we are committed to the UN Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME). With us, you join the next generation of social scientists influencing business theory, policy and practice. You become part of a lively, international research community, challenging conventional wisdom to make organisations better places to do business.

You benefit from academic expertise across a range of business disciplines, from sustainability and leadership to identity and brand management. We offer a highly individualised PhD experience, where your supervisors will develop your professional skills and research expertise in your chosen area.

Our Strategy, Operations and Entrepreneurship Group, based at our Southend Campus, are a group of international researchers with an entrepreneurial focus. The group organises regular research seminars and events, giving you the chance to hear cutting-edge research and industry expertise, as well as the opportunity to network with scholars from the School and the wider academic community.

The Group’s research is multi-disciplinary and falls within two broad and interrelated streams – management science and entrepreneurship and SME management. Current research projects include exploring “Autism and the world of work” – looking at the challenges faced by individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder in the workplace and how they can be offered better support and understanding; and “Accelerating women’s enterprise” – research in partnership with the Accelerating Women's Enterprise (AWE) project exploring the challenges and barriers faced by disadvantaged women entrepreneurs.

You can choose to study on a full-time or part-time basis, and we also offer an integrated (or 1+3) PhD Management Studies (at our Southend Campus) programme that provides a route to doctoral study in this area if you do not have a Masters degree, or only have limited research training. You may be eligible for a scholarship.

Our expert staff

At Essex Business School, you benefit from world-class supervision and research training conducted by our senior academic staff such as Professor Matthew Allen. Matthew is Professor of International Business and Strategy, and Head of the Strategy, Operations and Entrepreneurship Group within Essex Business School. Widely published, his research compares and analyses business and employment systems and their effects on innovation, technology and work designs.

As a leading management science and entrepreneurship specialist, Matthew is one of two EBS academics helping fulfilment and distribution specialists The Finishing Line develop an e-commerce strategy to drive growth and maximise efficiency as part of a prestigious new Management Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP). Financed by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), Management KTPs are a flagship programme for collaboration, connecting businesses and social enterprises across the UK with expertise and research in Universities and linking them up with ambitious graduate talent. Essex is proud to be Top Two in the UK for number of KTP’s.

As the Head of the Strategy, Operations and Entrepreneurship Group, Matthew is the line manager for over 20 colleagues and is responsible for providing leadership, oversight, mentoring and monitoring of all academic staff in the Group in the delivery of excellence in education and research. He reports to the Dean. As a member of the EBS Senior Management Team, he contributes to the overall strategic and operational delivery of School activities ensuring effective leadership of the School as a whole.

Our department boasts eight research centres across our two campuses. Professor of Management and Director of Postgraduate Research at Essex Business School Martyna Sliwa, oversees and leads on the provision of our graduate research programmes and ensures that we create an environment where our doctoral students can flourish as researchers in a thriving and mutually supportive PhD community. Martyna talks more about her role, why Essex Business School is unique and offers advice to prospective PhD students here.

You work with two supervisors during your studies. They provide guidance and support to help you achieve your individual research goals, develop your research topic and create a personalised training plan. You meet with your supervisors at least once a month and are usually required to submit work before for feedback. Twice a year, you have a supervisory board meeting to discuss your progress and agree your plans for the next six months.

As well as supporting you to complete your thesis, your supervisors can help you to plan your career development. Our academics often co-author publications with doctoral students and can help you to develop the transferable skills needed for the jobs market.

Take a look at our staff pages pages to find out more about our areas of supervision.

Specialist facilities

This PhD is based at our Southend Campus, just 40 minutes from the City of London and in the heart of the Thames Gateway - one of the Government’s priority areas for economic growth, offering fantastic research and networking opportunities.

Southend-on-Sea combines the charms of a traditional seaside resort with the attractions of a vibrant, modern town and our campus sits right at the centre. With seven miles of coastline, a thriving arts and cultural scene and a wide variety of restaurants and nightlife all on your doorstep, it’s the perfect place to live and study. Our town centre location has excellent transport links and London Southend Airport is just five minutes away by train, offering flights to over 50 destinations across Europe.

When you choose our Southend Campus for your studies, you’ll have access to excellent facilities to help you conduct your research including:

• our award-winning The Forum building, with a library and café
• 24-hour learning hub, with study spaces, PC access and quiet places for conducting research
• access to databases such as Bloomberg, Compustat, Passport GMID, Bankscope and Datastream
• e-book finance and business packages to support part-time and distance learning (including Ebrary, NetLibrary, Oxford Scholarship Online, Palgrave Connect and SpringerLink)
• study skills support for postgraduate students such as help with the University library, research databases, literature reviews and presentation skills

Your future

Our PhD programmes are designed to foster the business leaders and researchers of the future. Our graduates use creativity, innovation and ethical awareness to meet the many challenges facing the international business world.

Our doctoral graduates have secured roles in academia at some of the best international universities, as well as organisations in the public and private sectors. Recent examples include careers with Leeds University Business School, Cambridge Education, EY (Ernst and Young) and public sector roles around the world.

Our University Student Development Careers Services are on hand to provide careers advice and help you make the most of your Essex experience. You will also have access to CV workshops, one-to-one advice and career resources.

"I am really putting my experience of working relationships and cultural sensitivity gained through my Master’s and PhD into practice."

Hiva Rafiei, Msc Global Project Management and PhD in Management Studies

UK entry requirements

You will need a good Masters degree, or equivalent, in a related subject. A well developed research proposal is also essential.

You will normally be required to attend an interview/Skype interview for acceptance, and acceptance is subject to research expertise in the department.

English language requirements

Course structure

A research degree doesn't have a taught structure, giving you the chance to investigate your chosen topic in real depth and reach a profound understanding. In communicating that understanding, through a thesis or other means, you have a rare opportunity to generate knowledge. A research degree allows you to develop new high-level skills, enhance your professional development and build new networks. It can open doors to many careers.

Teaching and learning disclaimer

Following the impact of the pandemic, we made changes to our teaching and assessment to ensure our current students could continue with their studies uninterrupted and safely. These changes included courses being taught through blended delivery, normally including some face-to-face teaching, online provision, or a combination of both across the year.

The teaching and assessment methods listed show what is currently approved for 2022 entry; changes may be necessary if, by the beginning of this course, we need to adapt the way we’re delivering them due to the external environment, and to allow you to continue to receive the best education possible safely and seamlessly.

Assessment

For your first year you meet regularly with your supervisors and undertaking an intensive study programme. You attend advanced research methods training and undertake compulsory modules tailored to your individual research needs.

Throughout your PhD, you have regular meetings with your supervisors. You are often asked to write up your ideas or reading notes to help establish good writing practices. By the end of your first year of research, you should have a solid understanding of the key debates in your field and have defined your research questions, outlining your original contribution to knowledge.

In your second PhD year, you are likely to finalise the design of your own research project and either collect primary data, or access and analyse large scale datasets. You may also make progress on your second research paper. You receive regular feedback on your ideas and findings from your supervisors and are encouraged to develop your own research ideas independently during this year. If you are undertaking fieldwork in another location, your supervisors will still be in touch via email or Skype.

In your final year, you continue to analyse your own research data and further refine your original contribution to knowledge. You will collate your work into an approximately 50-80k words thesis.

Creating a 50-80k word thesis is a significant task. To help you finalise your PhD and produce high quality doctoral research, we have a number of support mechanisms.

You undertake a progress board every six months, where you, your supervisors and an independent chair mark your progress and set objectives for the next period. You are also encouraged to take part in peer group debates and discussions.

Our full-time doctorates are 36 month programmes. At the end of this time, you may be allowed up to 12 months to finish writing up your PhD.

You may attend a number of conferences in your final year to test out your research findings and thesis on an international stage. Your attendance may be funded by Essex Business School. As well as advising on how to prepare your thesis for examination, your supervisors can advise on future career plans in academia or industry.

Dissertation

You can choose to follow a traditional thesis approach, where you write a dissertation, or follow a 'three paper' thesis, where you produce three research articles, framed by an introduction and conclusion.

Once you have submitted your thesis, you will be asked to attend a Viva Voce examination with examiners from within and outside of the University. A viva voce examination usually takes place within three months of submission of thesis.