PhD in Management and Public Service

The Hamline University PhD in Management and Public Service is a cohort program that starts every other fall term. A cohort is a group of students who start the program together. This program is available at the Hamline University Saint Paul Campus. The PhD is ideal for professionals who wish to build on the knowledge and experience they have already attained, who are anticipating their next career step, or who want to pursue the highest qualification in their profession.

The PhD is a part-time program designed for working professionals interested in the in-depth analysis of critical issues and leadership in the public, private and nonprofit sectors. The program integrates theory and practice, service and values to foster students’ critical thinking skills and scholarship. Students completing the PhD program should expect to meet the following learning objectives:

Students will be critical and analytical thinkers - Students will demonstrate the ability to solve and/or manage complex problems and evaluate the role of the public, private and nonprofit sectors in addressing these problems and issues.
Students will have advanced research skills - Students will demonstrate skills as both producers and consumers of quantitative and qualitative research and know which methods are appropriate for a given project or study.
Students will have the skills and knowledge to work with diverse groups and individuals across sectors - Students will demonstrate ability to engage diverse communities, analyze issues through a lens of diversity and cultural competence and provide analysis and recommendations in a culturally sensitive manner.
Students will have a mastery of leadership and management concepts and theories as they apply to issues across sectors - Students will organize, synthesize and integrate public, private and nonprofit management theories and concepts in addressing complex problems/issues.

PhD Degree Requirements

48 credits, 3.3 GPA, comprehensive exam, and dissertation defense

Core Courses (20 credits):

Elective Courses (16 credits):

Elective courses may be chosen from graduate offerings in Business, Nonprofit Management, and Public Administration.

Comprehensive Exam:

After completion of core and elective coursework, students must complete and pass the written comprehensive exam before defending a dissertation proposal.

Dissertation (12 credits):

The completion and defense of a dissertation is the final requirement in the PhD program. The PhD candidate must demonstrate a high level of academic competence, which typically results in a significant contribution of new knowledge in the field. The PhD dissertation usually focuses on applying theory to practice in the contexts of critical issues in all sectors and the student’s professional experience. Students have the option of completing a single substantive work or three related papers that are of publishable quality.

To advance to degree candidacy, the PhD student is required to complete the Dissertation I course then register for dissertation work (Dissertation II through Dissertation V) for four consecutive semesters. Students must successfully defend the first three chapters or first paper (dissertation proposal) after Dissertation III before advancing to candidacy and registering for Dissertation IV and V. Upon completion of Dissertation V, students must successfully defend the full dissertation.

Course Substitution or Waiver

Student requests for substitution of a required course or courses shall be forwarded to the Program Director whose decision on the request shall be final. No more than two (2) required courses may be substituted.

If the basis for the substitution request is having already successfully completed coursework in a different program at Hamline University or another institution, the student must provide the syllabus or syllabi from the course(s) taken and an official transcript showing successful completion unless that transcript is already a part of the student’s application file. Under no condition may the course(s) used as the basis of the substitution have been completed more than ten (10) years prior to admission to the PhD.

Waiver of a required course(s) for reasons of extensive professional experience and expertise, documented to have occurred within the last ten (10) years, is at the sole discretion of the Program Director. No more than two (2) required courses may be waived.

In all instances of substitution or waiver of required courses, the student is required to register and successfully complete another course or courses whose total credits equal the number of credits represented by the substituted or waived required course(s).

Time Limit

Seven years is the maximum time allowed for students to finish their core and elective coursework in the PhD program. Ten years is the maximum time allowed for students to complete the PhD in Management and Public Service including the dissertation.

New students enter in the fall semester, and normally complete most or all of their core courses together. (Exceptions can be arranged with the approval of a student’s advisor and the program director.) Satisfactory/steady progress is typically completion of one course per term, two or three terms per year. Normally students complete all required core courses within the first three years of study.