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Business Administration (DBA)

Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)

The Doctorate for Human-Centered Leaders

Drucker School of Management and EHL Hospitality Business School have joined forces to offer you the Doctor in Business Administration (DBA). We’ve designed the program for accomplished senior executives who seek to lead by example and with impact, and to create positive change in their organizations and their own lives. This program is an intellectual pursuit that empowers you to engage in meaningful discussions on global leadership, business, and societal challenges driven by cross-disciplinary thinking, original research, and strategic insights.

Prioritizing a human-centered philosophy, the program incorporates the timeless ideas from Peter Drucker, enriched with the customer and people centric principles of hospitality management from EHL as well as cutting-edge research in management. You will, therefore, explore the intersections between leadership, organizational behavior, humanities, and various business disciplines to navigate global challenges with a people-first mindset. The DBA is an exclusive forum where senior leaders come together with faculty experts around a shared purpose: to build thriving, functioning organizations and societies.

Program Benefits

You will develop rigorous (yet relevant) research skills and master complex concepts, enabling you to engage in informed dialogue on topics of your choice. You’ll amplify your career (and this includes your career-transitions) by maximizing your impact within your current organization, while opening new doors in academia, consulting, and thought-leadership. You’ll also gain an exclusive international network of like-minded senior leaders to challenge and support you along the way.

Program Highlights

  • Focus on Human-Centered Management: This program offers a unique approach to humanistic management, blending the time-honored insights from hospitality with leadership, organizational behavior, deep customer insight, humanities, social sciences for concrete business, non-for profit, and public sector applications.
  • Practical Integration for Real-World Results: Courses and your own research agenda combine academic rigor with practical application, building on the experience you accumulated over the years to address management challenges and offering hands-on leadership training for real-world impact.
  • Designed for Full-Time Executives: We are confident that you can fit this into your schedule thanks to a curriculum that’s primarily online, offering and a ‘doable’ blend of asynchronous and synchronous lecture material. You’ll also complete your Doctoral Research Project progressively throughout the 3-year program. The program’s curriculum is designed with a clear goal in mind: helping you finalize (and publish) your dissertation so that it can inspire the next generation of leaders.
  • Global Network and Perspectives: The program includes three weeklong seminars in the USA, Europe, and Asia, offering international exposure and opportunities to connect with peers and faculty. We value human interaction and strive to maximize real-time and where possible, real-space, interaction.
  • Accredited by AACSB and WASC: Almost needless to say – the program offers global recognition via the top accreditation bodies. Even more interestingly, as a graduate, you gain membership to both EHL and Drucker alumni networks.

Career Paths

The DBA enhances your expertise and leadership skills, allowing you to make a greater impact in your current career or explore new opportunities which may be adjacent to your existing career path or – indeed – be off the beaten track. You decide. We feel certain that our graduates will receive an extra-boost of confidence enabling you to take the next level as business leaders, shaping practices and driving innovation; university instructors, contributing to teaching and research; consultants, offering expert advice to organizations and policymakers; speakers, presenting original ideas at conferences; and board members, guiding organizational strategy and oversight. You may also wish to consider applying for faculty positions on the Professor of Practice level at Drucker or EHL upon successful completion of the program. Are you ready?

Ideal Candidates

Our DBA program is designed for:

  • Senior executives with at least 10 years of professional experience, including significant leadership roles and responsibilities.
  • Professionals from diverse industries, organizations, and disciplines. This diversity is intended to enrich the participants’ learning experience and network.
  • Leaders who align with the program’s with human-centered purpose.

Program At-a-glance

  • 64 units

    required units

  • Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)

    degree awarded

  • Hybrid

    modality

  • Fall

    program start

  • 3 years | part time

    estimated completion time

Faculty

  • David Sprott

    David Sprott

    Henry Y. Hwang Dean, Drucker School of Management
    Professor of Marketing

    Research Interests

    Retailing, branding, influence strategies, marketing public policy

    View profile
  • Michael Gibbert

    Michael Gibbert

    Professor at Universita Della Svizzera Italiana, Adjunct Professor & Director of the Sustainability Lab at EHL

    Research Interests

    Sustainable consumption, Qualitative research methods

    View profile

Curriculum

  • Degree Requirements: Participants must successfully complete the DBA program in its entirety, a total of 64 units, to obtain the DBA degree.
    • The core of the program is 48 units of coursework, including courses, intensive seminars, and the doctoral research project.
    • The remaining 16 units needed to obtain the 64-unit DBA degree may either be transferred from prior graduate studies, or must otherwise be completed from a proposed list of courses offered by the two schools.  This will be assessed on a case basis.
  • Curriculum Overview: The core curriculum of the DBA program offers 48 units of coursework. Alongside the Doctoral Research Project, the curriculum entails a set of dedicated doctoral level courses delivered by EHL Hospitality Business School and the Drucker School of Management at Claremont Graduate University. The remaining 16 units needed to obtain the 64-unit DBA degree may either be transferred from prior graduate studies or taken from a proposed list of courses offered by the two schools.
  • Coursework:
    Coursework of the core DBA curriculum is grouped into four main streams: Methods and Theory, the Leadership Core, the Multi-disciplinary Core and the Doctoral Research Project.Methods and Theory (12 units)Leadership Core (8 units)Multidisciplinary Core (14 units)Doctoral Research Project (14 units)

    The DBA courses are delivered mostly online, with three week-long intensive seminars taking place in the U.S. (Claremont), Switzerland (Lausanne), and Singapore. The intensive seminars combine experiential coursework and doctoral discussions at key moments throughout the program journey.

    The program includes a detailed assessment plan to ensure continuous improvement and alignment with AACSB accreditation standards.

  • Capstone:
    The program culminates with the completion of the 3-year Doctoral Research Project. The program’s guided research journey is structured as follows:Year 1: Define your groundbreaking research topic and craft your research proposalYear 2: Conduct your empirical research
    Year 3: Develop your findings and discuss how they transform practiceThe journey is designed to ensure success as outputs at each milestone build up to a complete thesis.
  • Competencies and Learning Outcomes:
    Understanding and applying management practice conceptsUtilizing analytical and methodological toolsFormulating action plans for organizational impactCommunicating research results to stakeholders

Application Guidelines

University Requirements
Application Fee

$80 (fee is non-refundable)
Official Transcripts

Undergraduate/graduate

Applicants must submit a sealed, official transcript from every undergraduate and graduate institution that has granted the applicant a degree. Electronic transcripts sent to admissions@cgu.edu are also accepted. For undergraduate coursework, applicants are required to submit proof of a completed bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university. Unofficial copies of transcripts are accepted for review purposes, but official copies will be required upon admission.

Applicants currently earning a degree that will be completed prior to attending CGU are required to submit a transcript showing work in progress for evaluation purposes. Once the degree has been granted, a final official transcript documenting the degree conferred must be submitted to CGU.

International applicants are advised to review the International Transcript Guidelines for additional information on submitting international transcripts.
English Proficiency Exam

Required (international applicants only)

In general, a valid score on one of the following examinations TOEFL (min. score 95), IELTS (min. 7.0 with no sub-score less than a 6.5), Pearson PTE (min. score 66), Duolingo English Test (min. score 125) is required of all non-native English-speaking applicants. However, English proficiency may also be assessed during the admissions interview.

The examination is not required for the following applicants:

  • Citizens or permanent residents of countries where English is the sole official language of instruction, e.g., Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Canada (except Quebec), England, Ghana, Ireland, Jamaica, Kenya, New Zealand, Nigeria, Scotland, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad, Tobago, Uganda, and Wales (see the CGU Bulletin for a complete list of accepted countries).
  • Applicants who hold an undergraduate or advanced degree, or will have earned such a degree prior to enrolling for the program, from an institution in the US or in countries where English is the sole official language of instruction (see above).
  • Applicants who have successfully completed an academic English pre-master’s or intensive graduate bridge program from a nationally recognized, regionally accredited four-year college or university in the United States in the last two years, with submitted evidence of successful completion, and subject to curriculum approval.
  • An English proficiency waiver is allowed if the applicant has received, or will receive prior to enrollment for the program, an undergraduate or advanced degree from an institution where English is one of the primary languages of instruction for the majority of courses in the student’s program. To receive the waiver, documentation must be provided by the applicant to show that English is the language of instruction at their university/college.

International applicants are encouraged to visit our International Applicants page for more information, including score requirements.
Resume

Applicants must submit an up-to-date copy of their resume.
Program Requirements
Statement of Purpose

Please submit a 2-3 page statement of purpose that details your academic and/or professional achievements, your specific areas of research interest within your desired field of study, why you are a strong candidate for graduate studies at CGU, and your career goals.
Academic Prerequisites

Work experience: Minimum of 10 years of leadership experience
References

Three professional references
Interview

Required

Upon review of your application, you may be invited for an interview, which is required for admission. An admission decision will not be issued until the interview is complete.

Key Dates & Deadlines

CGU operates on a priority deadline cycle. Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit complete applications by the priority dates in order to assure maximum consideration for both admission and fellowships.

Once the priority deadlines have passed, the University will continue to review applications for qualified candidates on a competitive, space-available basis. The final deadlines listed are the last date the University can accept an application in order to allow sufficient time to complete the admissions, financial aid, and other enrollment processes.

Fall 2025
Priority Deadline – February 1, 2025
Final Deadline (International) – July 5, 2025
Final Deadline (Domestic) – August 1, 2025
Classes begin – August 25, 2025

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Cost & Aid

Tuition is based only on the units you are required to take to achieve the DBA. Depending on whether you have a prior graduate degree, the units you are required to take to complete the program may range from a minimum of 48 units to a maximum of 64 units (see degree requirements or talk to a recruitment advisor).

  • Tuition per unit: 2,500 CHF (120,000 CHF for 48 units of coursework or 160,000 CHF for 64 units of coursework).
  • Program fees: 5,000 CHF for each of the 3 global intensive seminars (15,000 CHF total). These fees include accommodation and meals, but not airfare, airport connections, or other expenses related to traveling for the intensives.
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