The Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) is the premier terminal degree tailored for accomplished senior professionals and executives with a master’s degree in business or a related field. Unlike the Master of Business Administration (MBA), which builds foundational management skills and broad business acumen for mid-career advancement, a strategic management DBA focuses on conscious capitalism, ethical leadership and strategic decision-making, as well as applied research to help you guide your organization through complex challenges toward practical solutions.
The DBA is distinct from a research-focused PhD in business, which prioritizes the generation new theoretical knowledge for academic scholarship and university teaching. In essence, the DBA prepares seasoned leaders to take on the most senior roles and prestigious networking opportunities on corporate boards, industry executive councils or government advisory committees.
Southeastern Oklahoma State University’s online DBA with a Concentration in Strategic Management program combines strategic leadership, ethical decision-making and applied research in a fully online format. This DBA program is unique due to its grounding in conscious capitalism and ethical leadership, its accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and the flexibility to complete doctoral study while continuing to work.
DBA vs PhD: What Sets Each Degree Apart?
A Doctor of Business Administration is a practitioner-focused terminal degree designed for business professionals who want to apply advanced research and strategy to real organizational challenges. A PhD is also a terminal degree, but it is focused on academic research and faculty careers.
Southeastern’s online DBA in Strategic Management degree is for the executive, consultant or entrepreneur who wants to gain advanced knowledge and confidence to pursue ambitious career goals. It is designed for working professionals who want to apply doctoral-level thinking to real organizational challenges without stepping away from their careers.
What Will You Learn in a DBA in Strategic Management Program?
The core curriculum in this DBA in Strategic Management online degree focuses on topics such as conscious capitalism, industrial/organizational psychology, conscious leadership, strategic decision-making, data mining and business intelligence, and marketing and consumer behavior. The program’s distinctive philosophy provides an in-depth exploration of the concepts of higher purpose, stakeholder orientation and conscious leadership as the foundation for successful businesses.
Students will examine the practical application of research design strategies to tailor dissertation work to their career objectives. The program emphasizes doctoral research, applied research design, research methodologies and dissertation research.
What Are the Career Paths for DBA Graduates?
DBA graduates will gain the expertise needed to succeed in high-level roles such as chief executive officer (CEO), chief operating officer (COO), strategic planning director, business strategy or corporate strategy consultant, director of business intelligence and university professor in business. These are roles for senior-level professionals with at least five years of progressive business experience at the managerial level or higher who want the DBA credential and the applied research skills to operate at the executive or board level.
Chief executives are among the highest-paid workers in the U.S., according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), with a median annual wage of $206,420 as of May 2024. The occupation continues to generate tens of thousands of openings annually as organizations need leaders who can govern, set strategy and manage complexity.
Why Does AACSB Accreditation Matter for a Doctoral Business Degree?
The AACSB is the global standard-setting body for business education. Business schools with this accreditation are elite business programs that produce highly sought-after graduates. Fewer than 6% of business schools worldwide hold this accreditation, and employers specifically recruit from AACSB-accredited institutions because they trust the rigor of the credential.
For a DBA, this matters even more than for an MBA because a doctoral degree is a career-defining investment, and the accreditation of the program signals to boards, executive search firms and universities that the credential meets the highest international standards. Southeastern’s John Massey School of Business is AACSB-accredited.
Become a Doctorate-Prepared Leader and Expert Business Strategist
If you are ready to gain expertise and learn the strategies you will need to succeed in high-level roles in your chosen career field, the AACSB-accredited online DBA in Strategic Management degree from Southeastern Oklahoma State University will allow you to distinguish yourself.
Strategic management courses focus on the concepts of higher purpose, conscious culture, stakeholder orientation and conscious leadership. You will also dive into concentration courses in contract law and mediation, marketing and consumer behavior, accounting and performance analysis, and strategic and purpose-driven decision-making. Students design a dissertation aligned with their career objectives while completing the flexible program on their own schedule.
Learn more about Southeastern’s online DBA in Strategic Management program.