Ph.D./M.B.A. Program
Overview
The rapid growth of the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and
health care industries has created a demand for biomedical
scientists with knowledge of business principles and practices.
The combined Ph.D. in Biomedical Science/M.B.A. program is
designed to provide selected Ph.D. students with a thorough
grounding in contemporary business by blending and balancing
technical rigor, management theory, practical application and
individualized concentrations.
The Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program is offered at the
University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington. Combined
degree students may take their graduate business courses at the
M.B.A. programs offered in Hartford, Stamford, Waterbury or
Storrs.
The requirement for a period of concentrated education in
each program is a principle to which both the Biomedical Science
program and the School of Business are committed. Combined
degree students must fully immerse themselves for at least 30
credits of continuous coursework in each program during which
time they are not taking didactic courses in the other school.
Beyond this requirement, recognizing the strenuous demands that
a dual program places on a student, flexibility and adaptability
are fundamental features of this combined degree.
Given the specialized nature of this combined degree program
it is anticipated that only two to three students per year will
be enrolled.
Application and Admission Process
Combined Ph.D. in Biomedical Science/M.B.A. students must be
admitted to the Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program AND to the
M.B.A. program. Admission to one school does not guarantee
admission to the other schools. Admission to both programs need
not be simultaneous: a Ph.D. in Biomedical Science student may
want to apply to the M.B.A. program after having started in the
Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program or an M.B.A. student may
choose to apply to the Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program after
enrolling in the M.B.A. program.
Students who apply to the Ph.D. and M.B.A. programs at the
same time will have to submit only one application fee, but will
have to submit applications to both programs to ensure
appropriate documentation. Students initially enrolled in one
program and applying to the second program will have to submit
an application fee with their application to the second program.
Both the GRE and the GMAT are required of all combined Ph.D.
in Biomedical Science/M.B.A. students.
- For information on applying to the Ph.D. portion of the
program, please visit our
How to Apply page.
- For information on applying for the M.B.A. portion of
the program, please visit the
UConn
School of Business website. Please note that when
applying, applicants should indicate their interest in the
combined program on BOTH applications.
Student Advising
Recognizing the complexity and difficulty of a dual program,
special Ph.D. in Biomedical Science/M.B.A. student advisors will
be identified at the Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program and at
the School of Business. These advisors will provide guidance to
prospective and existing combined degree students in developing
their individual plans of study as well as other forms of
academic counseling and advice relating to the combined degree
program.
Plan of Study
Students entering the combined degree program will focus on
the Ph.D. in Biomedical Science for the first two years. After
successful completion of the Ph.D. General Examination and all
required Biomedical Science course work, the student will
commence their year of 30 credits of M.B.A. courses. This could
occur in either late January or May of the second year,
depending on when the General Exam and required coursework are
completed. During this period of fulltime M.B.A. courses, the
student will continue their thesis research and hold a 0.5 FTE
Health Center Graduate Research Assistantship. (Note: combined
Ph.D. in Biomedical Science/M.B.A. students require the
permission of the Ph.D. major advisor and such permission will
be obtained at the time the student selects their thesis
laboratory.)
Following completion of the 30 credits of initial M.B.A.
courses, the student will resume more intensive research in the
Ph.D. program and take one or two M.B.A. courses each semester
until completion of all M.B.A. requirements. Beyond the core
requirements of the M.B.A. program, combined degree students may
choose to take any graduate business electives that interest
them. The School of Business will accept any electives
successfully completed (with a “B” or better) by combined degree
students in the Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program.
Acceleration of the course of study is achieved through an
exchange of credits between the two programs. The M.B.A. program
will accept 12 credits from the Ph.D. in Biomedical Science
program as M.B.A. program electives (combined degree students
will be required to complete 45 out of the 57 credit M.B.A.
program). The Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program will accept a
varying number of credits from the M.B.A. program as electives;
the number of credits will be determined by each student’s
advisory committee and the Director of the Area of
Concentration, but will in no case exceed 12 credits. Combined
degree students must have received the equivalent of a “B” (3.0
grade point average) or better in each course that they wish to
transfer between the Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program and the
M.B.A. program.
This exchange of credits is only available to dual degree
students. The M.B.A. program will not accept credits from
graduates of the Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program nor will
the Ph.D. in Biomedical Science program accept credits from the
School of Business for graduates of the M.B.A. program.
The University of Connecticut’s Graduate School requires that
the dual Ph.D. in Biomedical Science/M.B.A. program be completed
within eight years. Combined degree students must complete both
programs before being awarded a degree from either program if
they are to benefit from the exchange of credits between the
Graduate School and the School of Business.
|
