The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) recognized The University of Scranton’s Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) program for “Innovations and Best Practices in Canada, Latin America and the United States.” Just 43 colleges from the two continents were included in the just-released publication that recognizes the “impactful ways” AACSB member schools are redefining business education.
AACSB recognized Scranton for providing a non-traditional research DBA in accounting that “promotes diversity and practice relevance by providing a flexible path for experienced practitioners to gain the knowledge and credentials required to succeed in tenure-track positions at AACSB-accredited institutions.”
The University developed its DBA program in accounting in response to the pending shortage of accounting faculty and The Pathways Commission on Accounting Higher Education of the American Accounting Association (AAA) and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) call to develop more flexible, non-traditional tracks to an accounting doctorate for experienced practitioners. AACSB also has recognized this need.
Several Scranton accounting faculty members researched and published several manuscripts in top-tier journals examining the national challenge as part of their research to develop the DBA program at the University.
The University’s DBA program in accounting, launched in the fall of 2017, was developed specifically to provide experienced practitioners with a practical, flexible pathway to an academic career, while still providing for the development of the knowledge and skill set necessary to become a “scholarly academic,” that is one who is most qualified to serve in a tenure-track position at a school of business that possesses or is seeking formal accreditation by AACSB International.
Douglas M. Boyle, DBA, associate professor, accounting department chair, and DBA program director at Scranton said the innovative doctorate program provides a flexible structure and practice relevance, in addition to training for teaching excellence.
“First, the program has a single concentration in accounting. This innovation enables the program participants to engage earlier and more deeply in research in the accounting discipline, thus better preparing them to publish in quality journals,” said Dr. Boyle. “Second, the program follows a cohort model and is delivered in a flexible manner through monthly on campus residencies, allowing participants to retain their professional positions and practice relevance. Third, the program includes faculty from Scranton and nationally recognized scholars from other AACSB institutions, serving as program advisors in the dissertation process. In addition to extensive coursework in business literature, theory and methods, the program also includes courses in the academic governance, teaching excellence, Jesuit pedagogy and applied research to address practice relevance.”
According to Dr. Boyle the DBA’s first three cohorts of 35 doctoral candidates represent a very diverse group of professionals with extensive practice experience. The majority of the candidates are female and over 20 percent represent individuals of color.
“This diversity far exceeds that of population of tenured faculty and senior accounting leaders in practice,” said Dr. Boyle. He also said the initial scholarly outcomes for the DBA students have included numerous conference presentations, proceeding and peer-reviewed publications, with several candidates already having published manuscripts in the top five practice journals.
Learn more about the DBA program at The University of Scranton.
