· web viewa strategic review of the doctor of business administration program in the college of...

A Strategic Review

of the

DOCTOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION PROGRAM

in the

College of Administration and Business Louisiana Tech University

Dr. Shirley P. Reagan, Dean (Retired - June 2007)Dr. Marc Chopin, Associate Dean (Former)

Dr. Rebecca Bennett, Associate Dean (Currently – Professor of Management)

January 5, 2007

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Table of Contents.....................................................................................................iiHistory......................................................................................................................1 Student Diversity................................................................................................2 Contributions to Instruction by Doctoral Teaching Assistants...........................2 Doctoral Student Credit Hours............................................................................6 Contributions to University Doctoral Degrees...................................................7 Placement/Success of Graduates.........................................................................9Possible Future Directions for the DBA Program.................................................10 Costs of the DBA Program...............................................................................10 Value of the DBA Program...............................................................................13 Future Directions..............................................................................................16 Continue the DBA Program with Limited Changes OR Change From DBA to a PhD with Five Concentrations.......................................17 Continue DBA Program with Fewer Concentrations Changing To PhD in Future.....................................................................................18 Discontinue the Doctoral Program...............................................................18Role and Value of the Business Doctoral Program...............................................19Conclusion and Recommendations........................................................................20Appendix A............................................................................................................21 Universities with Doctoral Programs in Business............................................22Appendix B............................................................................................................25 Placement of DBA Graduates...........................................................................26

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Strategic Review 2006-2007Doctor of Business Administration

College of Administration and BusinessLouisiana Tech University

The following report was developed in response to a request by the AACSB Accounting Accreditation Team that we complete a strategic review of the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) program in the College of Administration and Business. The program evaluation includes the program history, an evaluation of program costs and benefits, and a discussion of possible future directions. In conclusion, the report identifies the role and value of the program in light of College resource needs and proposes actions for the future.

History

The Doctor of Business Administration program is beginning its 39th year. The Doctor of Business Administration and Doctor of Philosophy in Economics programs were established in 1967. The first graduate completed the DBA with a concentration in Management Science in 1971. This student is one of the 275 who have completed the programs since their inception. A listing of the academic areas and the number of graduates is provided below.

Accounting 74Business Educ 5CIS 1Finance 52Management 48Mgmt Sc 6Marketing 52QA 24Econ 13

The Doctor of Philosophy degree in Economics was terminated in October 1976. DBA concentrations in Business Education and Management Science were eliminated as changes in business disciplines occurred. The CIS Concentration was added to the program in 2004.

The doctoral degree in business brings prestige to Louisiana Tech University given the limited number of such degree programs available nationwide and the reputation of universities that have such a degree. Doctoral degrees in the concentrations offered by Louisiana Tech are available at a limited number of United States universities. A search conducted with the AACSB Database found 86 universities including Louisiana Tech that are either business or business/accounting accredited by AACSB and that offer the doctorate in accounting, CIS, finance, management and marketing (See Appendix A). Of these universities, 22 are in the top 50 universities and 48 in the top 100 universities as reported by U.S. News and Report.

The only other university that offers a comprehensive doctoral business program in Louisiana is Louisiana State University – Baton Rouge. Universities in contiguous states that offer a

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comprehensive business doctorate include: University of Arkansas, University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University, University of North Texas, University of Texas (at Arlington, Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio), Texas A & M University – College Station, and Texas Tech University.

Student Diversity

Students who enter the DBA program represent a diverse mix of undergraduate universities and geographic regions. Table 1 shows the location of residence and universities awarding bachelors and masters degrees to students who received their DBA between 2001 and 2006. Table 2 provides the same information for students currently enrolled in the DBA program. Of the 60 students listed, twelve are from Louisiana, two have undergraduate degrees from Louisiana Tech, and 12 have masters degrees from Louisiana Tech. Of the 60, 38 are international students representing 15 different countries. This diversity enriches the experiences of all students enrolled in the program, the CAB, and the University.

Contributions to Instruction Made by Doctoral Teaching Assistants

The College of Administration and Business recognizes that doctoral teaching assistants (TAs) need to develop strong research skills, and, if they plan to seek employment in higher education, they need strong instructional skills. Generally, doctoral TAs are assigned teaching responsibilities after their first or second year of study. During the first two years of study, TAs work with doctoral faculty to initiate their research, develop research skills, and undertake publishable research projects so they can center the job market with papers that are published, in press, or under reviews. These first two years, also, provide TAs experiences that prepare them to teach principles and other undergraduate classes. After TAs complete their first/second year of study, academic unit heads assign most students between two and four courses per year. These assignment parameters are designed to provide doctoral graduates the opportunities to enter the job market with both journal publications and teaching experiences. A graduate who has mastered his/her content area and who has a strong teaching record as a TA combined with publications in high quality journals has the credentials for placement at higher quality universities. Current students and recent graduates have received invitations to interview at universities such as Ball State, Pennsylvania State, Baylor, and Kansas State.

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Table 1Geographic Residence and Universities Awarding Undergraduate/Masters Degrees to DBA Graduates 2001-2006

Name Residence University Awarding Degree Degree(s) QuarterEntered

QuarterGraduated

Kenneth Green Monticello, AR University of Arkansas/Louisiana Polytechnic BS/MBA 1979 F 2002 WMusa Dwairi Jordan Alexandria-Eygpt/Central State Univ/Univ of N Texas BA/MBA/DBA 1992 SP 2004 WDavid Williams Wichita Falls, TX McMurry Univ/Texas Tech University BA/MBA 1994 F 2001 FPeter Ochlers Voorhees, NJ Drexel University MBA 1994 F 2003 WChaitanya Singh India University Delhi-India/Univ of Louisiana Monroe BC/MBA 1995 F 2002 WJian-Zhou Zhu China Shaani Institute of Finance and Economics BE/ME 1996F 2001 SPLisa Toms Magnolia, AR Southern Arkansas University/Louisiana Tech University BA/MBA 1996F 2004 SPDebra Hunter Delhi, LA Louisiana College/Baylor BS/MBA 1996 SU 2004 WKuan-Shun Chiu Taiwan Pittsburg State Univ/University of Central Oklahoma BBA/MBA 1997 F 2002 SUMorsheda Hassan Egypt University of Helwan-Egypt/Grambling State Univ BA/MBA 1997 F 2002 SUNicholas Twigg Hammond, LA State Univ of New York/Southeastern State Univ BS/MBA 1997 F 2004 WTeresa Webb Troy, AL Troy State University BS/BA/MBA 1997F 2004 SPAmy McMillan Jackson, MS San Diego State Univ/Mississippi College BA/MBA 1998 F 2003 SPCan Topuz Turkey Univ of Yildiz Istanbul/Yidiz Univ/St Jospeh's Univ/Univ of New Orleans BA 1998 F 2002 WHarold Davis Hammond, LA Southeastern State University BS/MBA 1998 F 2002 FKaveephong Lertwachara Thailand King Mongkut's Institute/Univ of Utah/Southern La. Univ BS/BS/MBA 1998 F 2003 SPKulkanya Napompech Thailand Chulalonghoru Univ/Central Missouri State University BA/MBA 1998 F 2002 WNatalya Delcoure Russia Labour Institute-Moscow/University of Louisiana - Monroe Bacc/MBA 1998 F 2001 SPXueming Luo China Hunan University/China BS 1998 F 2003 WKhaled Elkhal Tripoli Bilkent University/Louisiana Tech University BS/MBA 1998 SP 2002 F

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Name Residence University Awarding Degree Degree(s) QuarterEntered

QuarterGraduated

Kyle Ristig Ft. Smith, AR Arkansas Tech University/Louisiana Tech University BS/MBA/MA 1998 W 2004 SPGary Whitten Arkadelphia, AR Ouachita Baptist Univ/Henderson State University BA/MBA 1999 SP 2004 SPKishwar Joonas India University of Bombay BS/Master 1999 SP 2004 SUCynthia Daily Arkadelphia, AR Henderson State University BS/MBA 1999 SU 2002 FMargaret Chen Taiwan Nat'l Taiwan University/Louisiana Tech University BA/MS 1999 SU 2003 SPColin Pillay South Africa Univ of Durban-S Africa/Iowa State U/Texas Bach/MS/MBA/MS 1999 W 2004 SPXiaoli Wang China Wuhau University/Louisiana Tech University BA/MBA/MPA 2000 F 2004 WGordon Mosley Newburyport, MA Michigan State University BA/MBA 1995 F 2006 WIman Akour Jordan Yarmouk University/Grambling BS/MBA 1997 F 2006 WBarbara Allison Alabama University of Alabama/University of Alabama BS/MBA 1999 F 2005 SUSon Le Vietnam Enational Economics Univ/Boise State University BA/MBA 2001 SP 2006 WFang Zhao China Tianjin University/Louisiana Tech University BA/MBA 2002 F 2006 SPMary Anderston Mississippi Arizona State University/Univ of Southern Mississippi BS/MBA 2002 SU 2005 SUDheeraj Sharma India University of Delhi/Dr. Bhim Rao Amberkar University BC/MBA 2004 SU 2006 W

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Table 2Geographic Residence and Universities Awarding Undergraduate/Masters Degrees to DBA Students Enrolled Fall 2006

Name Residence University Awarding Degree Degree(s)QuarterEntered

Wai Man Caroline Leung Hong Kong Hong Kong Shue Yan College/ULM BE/MBA/ME 1998 FDonald White Louisiana Grambling State University BS/MBA 1998 SPDavid Romer Tennessee University of Tennessee - Knoxville BS/MBA 1998 WHua Wang China Shanghai Univ of Finance & Econ/Louisiana Tech BE/MBA 2000 FLaurent Josien France Southeastern Louisiana Univ/LSU - BR MS/MBA 2000 FTracy Bundy Louisiana University of Louisiana - Lafayette BS/MBA 2001 SPLaura Marler Louisiana Louisiana College / Louisiana Tech University BS/MBA 2002 FPavani Tallapally India Osmania Univ/ Indiana Univ of Pennsylvania BC/MBA/MBA 2002 FBeth Hegab Louisiana Georgia Institute of Tech/Louisiana Tech University BIE/MSIE/MBA 2004 FEugenie Goodwin Louisiana Northeast Louisiana University BA/MBA 2004 FHui Di China Tianjin Foreign Studies Univ/Louisiana Tech Univ BA/MBA 2004 FShalini Wunnava India Osmania University BA/MBA 2004 FSusie Cox Louisiana Louisiana Tech University BS/MBA 2004 FWei-Chih Chiang Taiwan Tsinghua University/Wayland Baptist University BS/MBA 2004 FYing Wang China Shandong University/Colorado State University BE/MS 2004 FYingxu Kuang China Central South University/Hunan University Bachelor/Master 2004 FAbdullahel Bari Bangladesh Bangadesh Univ of Engr&Tech/Oklahoma State U/LA Tech BS/MS/DE 2004 SUKrist Swimbergh Belgium Catholic Univ of Brussels/Catholic Univ of Louvain Bachelor/Master 2004 SUSteven Hanke Wisconsin University of Wisconsin-Whitewater BA/MBA 2004 SUKatherine Loveland Louisiana Lewis & Clark College/Univ of Tennessee BA/MPA 2005 SP

Name

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Residence University Awarding Degree Degree(s)QuarterEntered

Shaji Khan India Governors State University BA/MS/MBA 2005 SU

Benjamin McMillan AlabamaBirmingham Southern College/Univ of Alabama/Univ of Alabama @ Birmingham BA/MBA/BS 2005 F

Karen Pierce Kentucky Morehead State Univ / Univ of Kentucky BSA/MBA 2005 FMichael Clayton Posey Mississippi Capiah-Lincoln Com Col / Miss. State / Jackson State AA/BBA/MBA 2005 FJim Watkins Louisiana Louisiana Tech University BS/MPA/MBA 2005 FLorraine Woodard Louisiana Muskingum College BA 2006 SP

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The TAs who provide undergraduate instruction are important to achieving the instructional goals of the CAB. Without these teaching assistants, course offerings would be severely limited unless the number of instructional faculty were increased. Over the past six years (Fall 2000 – Spring 2006), TAs have taught 162 course sections (504 semester credit hours) with an enrollment of 7495 undergraduate students (Table 3) for a total of 22,485 student credit hours.The goal is to maintain enrollment between 40 and 45 doctoral students with approximately 35 enrolled as full time students and serving as TAs. At that enrollment, TAs would teach approximately 50 course sections or 150 semester credit hours each year which would be the equivalent to instruction delivered by ten to twelve tenure track faculty or six instructors at a cost of $480,000 to $1,000,000.

Table 3Doctoral Student Undergraduate Course Coverage and Enrollment

Fall 2000 to Spring 2006

Quarter Number of Sections EnrollmentFall 2000 10 364Winter 2001 18 774Spring 2001 16 837Summer 2001 11 312Fall 2001 6 356Winter 2002 7 323Spring 2002 6 298Summer 2002 12 404Fall 2002 8 486Winter 2003 10 482Spring 2003 10 523Summer 2003 8 285Fall 2003 2 217Winter 2004 5 247Spring 2004 2 79Summer 2004 5 184Fall 2004 6 322Winter 2005 4 189Spring 2005 5 158Summer 2005 5 193Fall 2005 2 75Winter 2006 4 189Spring 2006 6 198TOTALS 168 7495

Doctoral Graduate Student Credit Hours

Over the past six years (Fall 2000 through Spring 2006), our faculty taught 96 doctoral seminars or 288 semester credit hours of doctoral course work (Table 4). These figures do not include AB 690: Research and Dissertation or Independent Studies.

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The TAs delivered 453 semester credit hours of instruction as they received 288 semester credit hours through doctoral course work. Further, the graduate students generated over 22,000 student credit hours of instruction.

Table 4Number of Doctoral Courses Taught

Fall 2000 – Spring 2006

Quarter Number of Course SectionsFall 2000 3Winter 2001 4Spring 2001 4Summer 2001 0Fall 2001 3Winter 2002 4Spring 2002 4Summer 2002 0Fall 2002 4Winter 2003 5Spring 2003 6Summer 2003 0Fall 2003 5Winter 2004 5Spring 2004 3Summer 2004 0Fall 2004 6Winter 2005 5Spring 2005 7Summer 2005 1Fall 2005 9Winter 2006 9Spring 2006 9TOTAL 96

Contributions to University Doctoral Degrees

DBA graduates have made a significant contribution to the pool of Louisiana Tech University doctoral graduates. Over the past 19 years, Louisiana Tech University has produced 404 doctoral graduates and 171 or 42% have been DBA graduates (Table 5). A summary of DBA graduates (1985-2006) by concentration is provided in Table 6.

In the last 191 years (1987-2006), the DBA students comprised 32% of the doctoral enrollment for Louisiana Tech University (Table 5). Over the full 18 year period, enrollment in the DBA program has ranged from a high of 82 to a low of 24.

During the mid- to late-1990s the CAB worked to support the University’s goals of increased doctoral enrollment and ultimately increased doctoral graduates. From 1990 through 1999

1 Period selected on basis of information available. The first Louisiana Tech University Fact Book was for the period of 1987-1992.

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doctoral enrollment in the CAB ranged from a low of 47 to a high of 67. While recruiting efforts helped to identify qualified DBA applicants, many of those accepting admission to the program during this period struggled to complete their doctoral studies despite significant (and in some cases continuing) efforts of the faculty.

Table 5Louisiana Tech University DBA and Doctoral Enrollment and Graduates

1987/88 to 2004/2005

AcademicYear

DBA Students

University DoctoralStudents

DBA Stu./Univ. Stu.

DBA Graduates

UniversityDoctoral

Graduates

DBA Grads/ Univ. Doc

Grads2005/06* 30 239 .13 7 31 .262004/05 26 235 .11 1 34 .032003/04 24 230 .10 8 33 .242002/03 36 235 .15 10 36 .282001/02 38 193 .20 7 21 .332000/01 43 198 .22 9 28 .321999/00 51 173 .29 6 23 .261998/99 57 188 .30 10 26 .381997/98 56 187 .30 8 14 .571996/97 47 151 .31 9 13 .691995/96 55 138 .40 11 20 .551994/95 56 108 .52 13 18 .721993/94 67 120 .56 17 19 .891992/93 61 111 .55 4 11 .361991/92 65 129 .50 8 15 .531990/91 69 127 .54 7 10 .701989/90 67 127 .53 6 10 .601988/89 63 133 .47 16 25 .641987/88 82 127 .65 14 17 .82

Total 993 3149 Average .32 171 404 Average .42 *Projected. Not included in totals or averages.

Also during the 1990s and early 2000s, the AACSB revisited the guidelines for business accreditation. Of significance were changes in the AACSB preferences and expectations with respect to appropriate doctoral enrollment for a given faculty. Therefore, beginning in the late 1990s and in preparation for the College’s self study and re-affirmation visit, the College restricted admissions to the DBA program. Concurrent with these efforts, the CAB faculty worked diligently to facilitate doctoral student progress and completion to help achieve the University’s goal of 30 doctoral graduates per year. During the five years from the fall of 2000 through 2004 the ratio of doctoral graduates to doctoral graduate faculty in the CAB averaged 0.22. Together these efforts to restrict enrollment and facilitate progress for those in the program resulted in decreased doctoral student enrollment, for which the AACSB visit team commended the College.

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Table 6DBA Graduates by Academic Concentration

1985-2004

AcademicYear

Acct Fin Mgmt Mktg QA CAB Total

University Total

2005/06 1 1 1 3 1 7 312004/05 1 1 342003/04 2 1 2 2 0 8* 332002/03 3 2 1 2 2 10 252001/02 1 4 2 0 0 7 212000/01 2 2 2 2 1 9 281999/00 2 1 2 1 0 6 231998/99 1 2 3 2 2 10 261997/98 3 2 2 1 0 8 141996/97 6 1 1 0 1 9 131995/96 2 3 3 2 1 11 201994/95 3 3 3 3 1 13 181993/94 6 0 3 6 2 17 191992/93 1 1 0 1 1 4 111991/92 3 1 2 1 1 8 151990/91 1 4 1 1 0 7 101989/90 3 0 1 1 1 6 101988/89 3 7 4 1 1 16 251987/88 9 3 0 0 2 14 171986/87 4 1 0 3 2 101985/86 2 1 3 5 0 12**

*One CIS graduate **One Business Education graduate

During 2001 the College emphasized doctoral student recruiting efforts in anticipation of a new doctoral student class beginning the program in the fall of 2002. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the limited availability of international student visas hampered recruiting efforts. In addition, three students who were expected to join the program during the fall of 2002 did not begin their studies. Further, two doctoral students chose to leave the program at the end of the 2002-03 academic year. In February of 2003 the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak also impacted international students’ ability to travel to the US to study. The College’s recent student recruiting efforts have been more successful, with a total of 25 new students beginning their studies in 2004, 2005, and 2006. Six new students started the program in the 2006 academic year.

From 1987 to 2004, the ratio of doctoral graduates to the number of doctoral faculty has averaged 0.22 and ranged from a low of 0.03 to a high of 0.31. The ratio for the current year is 0.23.

Placement/Success of Graduates

Many DBA graduates have enjoyed considerable professional success and are serving in universities across the country. See listing in Appendix B. For example, graduates are presently working in universities such as Cornell, Indiana University, Texas A&M (2), University of Arkansas-Fayetteville (3), University of Mississippi (2), University of Montana, University of Wyoming, Ball State University, and many others. Graduates also play a significant role in the administration of colleges and universities across the country. Several graduates are presently or

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have served in the past as Dean, Associate Dean and Department Head in universities such as the University of Arkansas, Mississippi State University, and many others. At least one graduate has served as Provost (Coastal Carolina University). Graduates also assist in business higher education regionally with many graduates employed as faculty and administrators in sister schools in Louisiana and colleges and universities across the region.

With the changes that have been made in the program, the placement of students will continue to improve. Graduates of the program are readily employable with many students accepting employment at the ABD stage. The need for qualified faculty in business schools is growing with an average of 4.43 faculty members being hired by U. S. business schools each year. Demand is increasing as the number of doctoral business graduates declined and then increased slightly (Table 7). Also, business schools are experiencing a large number of retirements, a trend expected to continue for the next decade as Baby Boomers retire.

Table 7Trends in the Number of Business and Management Doctorates Awarded by AACSB Accredited

Universities by Field/Disciplines – U. S.

Field/Discipline 1998 2003 2004Accounting 154 106 131Banking/Financial Support Services 83 79 106Business Administration/Management 348 342 372Business/Managerial Economics 57 44 60Human Resource Development - - 86International Business 33 44 35MIS/Business Data Processing 86 86 94Marketing Management and Research 142 111 134Operations Research 57 26 51Organizational Behavior 103 111 124Business Management/Admin. Services, General 38 18 23Business Management/Admin. Services, Other 71 68 48Total 1,172 1,035 1264Copied from Pocket Guide to Business Schools produced by AACSB International in 2005 (page 33) and 2006 (page 17).

Possible Future Directions for the DBA Program

Costs of the DBA Program

The primary costs of a doctoral program compared to undergraduate/master’s only program in business are related to faculty salaries and doctoral teaching assistant stipends. The difference in faculty salaries is the most difficult to determine; whereas, the doctoral stipends can be defined fairly easily.

When AACSB International began including graduate programs in their accreditation of business programs, the standards for faculty teaching in doctoral programs increased. A critical number of faculty who have discipline-based research is necessary for every doctoral program. Faculty members with these research credentials are, thus, in great demand; however, the supply is limited and the salaries necessary to hire these faculty are relatively high compared to salaries for

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faculty without the discipline-based research. Also, employment packages typically include summer research stipends. Because these faculty are teaching doctoral seminars and working with students on dissertations, their teaching loads are less than those of faculty who teach undergraduate and/or master’s level course work. The exact cost differential is very difficult to determine. One would assume that the operating budget per full time faculty member would be greater for universities with doctoral programs; however, a review of Table 10 shows that this is not uniformly true for public colleges/universities in Louisiana. The Louisiana Tech College of Administration and Business operating budget per full time faculty member ($133,415) is less than the operating budget per full time faculty member for each of the following business programs:

Louisiana State University – Baton Rouge (has doctoral program) at $181,732 University of New Orleans (doctoral program in economics) at $165,590 Southeastern Louisiana University (bachelor’s and master’s) at $140,530

For the Louisiana public universities with bachelor’s and master’s programs, the range is from a low of $70,439 (McNeese) to a high of $140,530 (Southeastern).

Doctoral teaching assistant stipends in the College of Business are currently $15,000 for 12 months. This stipend is comparatively low given the fact that most universities with business doctoral programs include a tuition waiver as part of the assistantship package. A 2006 survey of doctoral business programs reported that doctoral student stipends ranged from $11,700 to $30,000 with a mean of $18,448. Over 90% of the schools provided a waiver of tuition as part of the graduate assistant package. Work requirements ranged from none to a high of 20 hours per week with a mean work week requirement of 14.6 hours.

At the current time (November 2006), there are 28 DBA students with 21 being employed as teaching assistants. The goal is to have between 30 and 35 students enrolled full time and employed as teaching assistants. Given our current stipends the costs for teaching assistantships is shown below:

2006-2007 with 21 on teaching assistantships: $315,000 Goal for future enrollment

o 30 on teaching assistantships: $450,000o 35 on teaching assistantships: $525,000

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Table 8Data for Public Colleges and Universities Offering Business Degree Programs

2004-2005

University OperatingBudget

Op. Budg./FT Faculty

Faculty Undergraduate Masters DoctoralFTE FT FT Fac

withDoc.

FT Students/FT Faculty

Enr.FT/PT

Degrees Enr.FT/PT

Degrees Enr.FT/PT

Degrees

LA Tech 7,071,016 133,415 55 53 47 25 1247/118

305 66/5

64 26 9

UNO 14,075,164 165,590 99 85 76 27 2265/1165

647 0/1032

380 40 4

LSU-BR 20,353,988 181,732 118 112 96 17 1569/134

806 303/133

193 82 16

LSU-S 2,983,501 114,750 29 26 22 30 755/273

108 33/66

29 NA NA

UL-Lafayette 6,132,612 98,913 74 62 42 38 2345/333

404 0/187

62 NA NA

Southeastern** 8,993,919 140,530 77 64 50 39 2288/414

519 190 95 NA NA

UL – Monroe 4,440,717 108,310 44 41 34 21 831/223

198 39/43

35 NA NA

McNeese 2,113,183 70,439 33 30 23 33 900/179

183 81 23 NA NA

Nicholls 3,211,153 80,279 41 40 34 22 819/183

222 48/68

0 NA NA

Northwestern** 2,225,277 63,579 39 35 22 26 912/127

168 NA NA NA NA

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Table 8Data for Public Colleges and Universities Offering Business Degree Programs

2004-2005

University OperatingBudget

Op. Budg./FT Faculty

Faculty Undergraduate Masters DoctoralFTE FT FT Fac

withDoc.

FT Students/FT Faculty

Enr.FT/PT

Degrees Enr.FT/PT

Degrees Enr.FT/PT

Degrees

Grambling** 2,080,535 80,021 27 26 18 31 805/41

149 NA NA NA NA

Mean 112,505 28

*Data from AASCB website, October 2006**Data Southeastern, Northwestern, and Grambling is noted on website as 2003-2004.

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Table 9Peer Institutions Ranked by Operating Budgets 2003-2004

University

Operating Budget

Operating Budget/

FT Faculty

Faculty Undergraduate Enrollment Masters Enrollment Doctoral Enrollment

FTE FTFT with Doctorate

FT Students/FT Faculty FT PT Degrees FT PT Degrees FT PT Degrees

Southern Illinois-Carbondale 6,622,389 150,509

47 44 42 37 1402 121 397 165 11 111 70

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Binghamton U 6,900,000 168,293 46 41 34 37 1267 15 370 245 10 136 17 3Louisiana Tech 6,911,966 132,922 55 52 42 30 1434 304 80 13 62 24 12U of Rhode Island 7,372,032 129,334 59 57 55 23 1233 200 369 47 160 71 15 13 9Mississippi State 7,963,954 113,771 85 70 66 35 2162 222 721 246 150 62 5U of Mississippi 7,000,000 152,174 50 46 43 48 2078 336 1937 123 85 45 63 6New Mexico State 10,807,954 154,399 75 70 68 27 1752 309 380 108 46 41 15 2 4U of Oregon 10,970,091 182,835 66 60 48 40 2131 81 281 239 120 27 8Cleveland State U 11,748,183 165,467 97 71 62 19 1095 826 355 231 589 250 8 48 3U of Missouri-Columbia 12,194,623 243,892 64 50 49 78 3554 464 297 150 40 10U of Massachusetts Amherst

12,490,869 141,942 102 88 79 30 2395 0 756 182 408 152 62 3

U of Kansas 12,649,531 269,139 53 47 43 29 913 457 437 23 234 26 4Clemson 12,973,399 154,445 85 84 69 26 2000 97 644 128 138 123 18 3 5U of North Texas 13,079,945 128,235 109 102 93 40 3646 1342 786 418 96 52 0U of Kentucky 13,563,896 176,154 85 77 72 33 2314 166 759 199 106 126 56 6 7UT-Arlington 14,760,319 141,926 111 104 83 32 2751 1373 1094 426 701 330 69 20 10U of Utah 15,494,383 186,679 89 83 64 28 2019 898 827 230 440 232 48 6

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University

Operating Budget

Operating Budget/

FT Faculty




U of Oklahoma 15,694,239 253,133 77 62 56 52 3054 490 751 152 184 139 36 7U of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

16,374,000 221,270 82 74 67 40 2680 560 724 254 473 249 47 1 1

U of South Florida 16,452,025 114,250 157 144 86 16 1947 1599 1290 314 552 347 59 4Florida State Univ 16,482,631 143,327 122 115 95 45 4975 593 1422 69 161 150 81 10U of Buffalo 16,494,000 266,032 69 62 55 39 1898 254 580 471 165 339 49 8U of Nebraska-Lincoln 16,660,966 252,439 74 66 64 43 2706 217 643 50 173 114 104 12U of Colorado-Boulder 17,510,945 236,634 85 74 62 48 3297 742 176 73 103 46 9Virginia Commonwealth U 18,300,990 181,198

107 101 87 18 16141042

417 190 285 166 32

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UT-San Antonio 18,413,006 214,105 103 86 71 43 3407 1381 785 260 464 202 28 0U of Cincinnati 18,490,787 222,781 85 83 70 24 1879 97 519 112 305 200 40 8 6Texas Tech U 18,837,698 209,308 91 90 68 49 4114 553 984 269 204 209 49 10LSU 19,322,011 170,991 122 113 91 16 1520 174 858 239 165 64 88 5Virginia Tech U 19,383,087 161,526 124 120 107 33 3642 67 951 215 239 150 69 14Florida Atlantic U 19,700,000 157,600 164 125 101 23 2756 2720 719 16 775 242 42 2Oklahoma State U. 19,818,407 222,679 112 89 89 38 3452 591 909 317 337 216 67 14 4Auburn University 19,872,865 228,424 94 87 80 43 3535 280 1071 178 302 196 17 26 8U of Arkansas 19,884,175 213,808 97 93 79 30 2607 380 633 106 108 136 49 3U of Memphis 20,056,527 192,851 108 104 92 19 1946 847 557 0 440 295 73 11Washington State U 20,396,390 221,700 97 92 92 16 1221 322 682 147 187 85 62 11U of Houston 21,400,000 227,660 105 94 87 55 5090 1093 0 1081 404 53 16

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University

Operating Budget

Operating Budget/

FT Faculty




U of Alabama 22,442,041 241,312 101 93 91 43 3695 204 882 243 32 184 77 1 12U of Central Florida 23,440,279 150,258 176 156 111 35 5277 2074 1808 124 800 270 43 0U of Pittsburgh 23,460,450 330,429 84 71 66 27 1589 74 456 221 484 361 77 0 10UT-Dallas 23,715,760 249,640 109 95 87 21 1454 823 568 458 1360 676 84 14 9U of California Irvine 24,664,652 536,188 62 46 45 6 238 620 265 46 9U of South Carolina 25,271,916 202,175 137 125 101 23 2571 148 635 224 111 338 49 10Florida International U 27,774,917 272,303 126 102 78 34 3343 2584 1424 42 405 226 23 0U of Iowa 29,109,538 291,095 117 100 95 36 3329 274 791 212 902 362 101 3 9Georgia State U 36,063,016 203,756 219 177 143 26 3710 1737 1014 872 1384 870 97 15U of Delaware 114 107 92 21 2074 624 193 361 170 29 3 6Kent State U. 77 69 59 39 2382 411 713 219 184 148 56 7

Data from College Profiles on the AACSB Website. Collected Summer 2005. Data for Mississippi State University not listed on website and was provided by Dean.

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In addition, to the teaching assistantship stipends and tuition waivers, most other universities provide conference/travel funds (range of $200 to $1500 with mean of $614 per person). Some provide research and travel support for doctoral students as well.

Unlike programs in the sciences, the availability of research grants to provide faculty research support, graduate assistantships and other doctoral student support is quite limited. Because of this limitation, business colleges must rely upon operating budgets and funds from external development to support these endeavors. External support for these endeavors is difficult to achieve unless the College has large endowments. Value of DBA Program

It is recognized that the doctoral program in business is expensive to staff and that the grant/contract funds available to support research of business faculty and doctoral students are very limited. However, the value of the program manifests itself in a number of ways. When compared to other doctoral business colleges, the program is cost effective. The

Louisiana Tech University College of Administration and Business has continued its doctoral program and enhanced its quality while keeping costs down comparatively. Table 9 presents Peer Institutions Ranked by Operating Budgets. The operating budget for the Louisiana Tech University College of Administration and Business is one of the lowest for operating budget per full time faculty member of the 48 universities listed.

The program attracts students from a very diverse geographic area – national and international. The applicant pool is projected to increase rather than diminish as occurs with programs that focus on enrolling students residing in the immediate geographic region. It is important that Louisiana Tech University have an array of programs that attract students outside the immediate geographic region.

There is a high demand for doctoral business graduates. The number of doctorates awarded in business/management in the U. S. has not increased substantially at a time when the demand for university faculty has increased greatly. The result has been increasing salaries for new university faculty hires. AACSB in collaboration with businesses and universities has a number of projects dedicated to increasing enrollments in university doctoral programs.

At full enrollment, we project that our program can produce 8-10 graduates per year. This assumes an average enrollment of 40 students.

The recent implementation of our new policies (requirement of full time enrollment for coursework, promotion of research publication prior to graduation, and instructional mentors of TAs) will enhance placements of our graduates. Doctoral teaching assistants make a significant contribution to undergraduate instruction in the CAB.

Over the past six years, TAs have taught 168 course sections with an enrollment of 7495 undergraduate students. This is an average of 28 courses per year with an annual enrollment of 1249 students.

CAB doctoral faculty have strong research/publication records. These research and publication records are important in attracting doctoral students and providing doctoral students quality learning and research experiences. Given that these faculty teach in the MBA, the MPA and undergraduate programs as well, all students in the CAB benefit from the level of expertise of the faculty. Louisiana Tech faculty publishing research articles in quality professional journals lends prestige and recognition to the University as well.

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A strong undergraduate experience and a productive faculty are necessary as the base for a doctoral program. Students completing their baccalaureate degrees in business are very vocal about their experiences in the College. Over the past few years, their exit interviews indicate increased satisfaction with their educational experiences. Employers hiring Louisiana business graduates continue to verbalize that their strongest entry level employees complete their degrees at either LA Tech University or LSU. The average student credit hours generated per business faculty member exceeds the university average and is the second highest for the University (Table 10).

Table 10Student Credit Hours by College and Per Faculty by College 2004-05

College Student Credit Hours/Faculty

Faculty Student Credit Hours Generated

CAB 807 45 36,327ANS 652 70 45,676Educ 1361 40 54,444COES 757 89 67,373LA 748 128 95,770University 702 372 299,590Data from Louisiana Tech University Fact Book

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Future Directions

There are four possible future directions for the Louisiana Tech University DBA program. These are as follows:

Continue the DBA program with limited changes Change the program from a DBA to a PhD Continue the program (DBA or PhD) with fewer concentrations Discontinue the doctoral program

The first two directions are similar and are discussed together. Although the current DBA program has six concentrations: accounting, computer information systems, finance, management, marketing, and quantitative analysis, students are not being admitted to the quantitative analysis concentration because of the limited course offerings and limited number of faculty.

Continue the DBA Program with Limited Changes OR Change the Program from a DBA to a PhD with Five Concentrations. In the section above, the following values of the doctoral program in business were stated with supporting information/documentation: CAB program is cost effective compared to doctoral programs in colleges of business at other

universities. Students in the program are admitted from national/international pools which does not result

in the saturated market that occurs with programs with local/regional pools. Program graduates are in demand and most have employment at graduation. At full enrollment (40), the program can produce an average of 8 to 10 doctoral graduates

each year. New policies will enhance quality of placements bringing greater recognition to Louisiana

Tech University. Teaching assistants make a significant contribution to undergraduate instruction. Strong publication/research records of CAB faculty and DBA students bring

recognition/prestige to the University The doctoral program is built upon the base of an undergraduate program which is being

continually strengthened through an effective assessment program.

The major cost/disadvantage of the doctoral program is the expense; however, statistics show that the program has been delivered and strengthened while the operating budget per full time faculty member is one of the lowest for doctoral granting business schools in the United States. The primary expenses of the program are the relatively high faculty salaries and the need to provide competitive teaching assistant stipends for our doctoral students. It is especially difficult to secure university funding for these stipends when doctoral students in fields such as engineering and science support their students through grant funding which is very limited for business faculty.

Nationwide, there are a very limited number of DBA programs. A review of the AACSB data base revealed DBA programs at Boston University and Cleveland State University. Drexel University and Indiana University offer both the research-oriented PhD and a practitioner-

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oriented DBA. The PhD more effectively reflects the focus of the current doctoral program at Louisiana Tech University. The goal is to produce graduates who are grounded in the theory of their field, who have strong research skills, and who have teaching/presentation skills necessary for university teaching.

The recommendation would be to change to the PhD in Business with concentrations in accounting, CIS, finance, management, and marketing. The concentration in quantitative analysis would be eliminated. The proposed calendar/process for change (By Fall 2008, ten or more students should have graduated from the recently [2002] revised DBA program): Fall 2007 through Spring 2008 – Collect and summarize data about program. Prepare

materials for consultants to visit campus. Identify and secure consultants Fall 2008 – Consultants visit campus and provide report/recommendations As soon as the report from the consultants is received, consider changes recommended by

consultants and select those to be adopted Spring 2009 – Submit proposal for change from DBA to PhD to ULS

Continue Program with Fewer Concentrations Changing to a PhD in Future. The DBA could be continued with fewer concentrations. Table 6 provides the historical listing of Louisiana Tech DBA Graduates by concentration. If we reduce the number of concentrations, the applicant pool will decline because we will be recruiting for a narrower list of academic specialties. In addition, if we reduce the number of concentrations without increasing the number of faculty in the selected areas, there would be a decline in the number of students that can be accepted into the program. The result would be fewer students enrolling and graduating from the program. With fewer doctoral students, there will be a reduction in the number of courses taught by doctoral students thus increasing the need for faculty in areas/disciplines not offering the doctorate.

Conversely, staffing a smaller number of disciplines with doctoral graduate faculty would decrease costs to a certain extent. However, a large decrease in costs is not anticipated as salaries for faculty in colleges offering the masters and the doctorate are not greatly different.

It is anticipated that if concentrations in the DBA are deleted, many faculty, those in academic areas not impacted as well as those impacted, will seek employment at other universities which have comprehensive business doctoral programs. Faculty necessary to replace them will be hired at market salaries which are in many cases higher than salaries of our current faculty.

If the decision is made to reduce the number of concentrations being offered, it is recommended that admission to the selected concentrations be closed rather than terminating the concentrations. If the University funding available for the program increases in the future, any closed concentrations could be reopened for admission.

Discontinue the Doctoral Program. If the doctoral program at Louisiana Tech University is discontinued, a number of factors should be considered by the University:

Savings will probably not be substantial. Table 8 provides a summary of data for LA Tech and other public Louisiana universities that offer business programs of study. As can be noted all these universities have a substantial percentage of faculty who hold the doctoral

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degree. This is required for a business college to maintain its accreditation. Even programs that do not provide graduate instruction must have a substantial proportion of their faculty holding doctoral degrees in the teaching fields. The MBA is inadequate for continuing coverage of a course unless the faculty member has hours beyond the masters degree (which is not typical) or has professional qualifications.

Loss of the university prestige for having one of only two comprehensive doctoral programs in business in Louisiana. Only LSU-BR and Louisiana Tech University offer comprehensive doctoral programs.

Loss of 8-10 doctoral graduates in business disciplines each year Loss of program that attracts students from a wide geographic region Loss of program that is not dependent upon regional prospective student population and thus

is less likely to become a saturated market Loss of faculty with a strong research orientation. Faculty would need to engage in research;

however, it likely would be more practitioner (professional practice) oriented. Discipline-based research is more closely aligned with the vision of Louisiana Tech University.

Loss of instruction provided by doctoral students resulting in need for additional faculty to cover those sections.

Loss of many current faculty who would seek employment elsewhere because they want to teach at a university with a doctoral program. Costs of replacing faculty would be high:

o Would have to hire replacements at market salaries which are considerably more than most current doctoral graduate faculty are being paid.

o Search costs and faculty orientation costs (include both financial costs and opportunity costs)

In terms of benefits, there would be some cost savings; however, it is not believed that the savings would be substantial. In fact, if a large number of faculty leave and have to be replaced, salaries for a number of the replacements are expected to be higher than some of the doctoral graduate faculty members who have been at Louisiana Tech University for a number of years.

Role and Value of the Business Doctoral Program

The doctoral program in business is congruent with the vision and mission for Louisiana Tech University. A diverse mix of doctoral programs enhances the reputation and appeal of a University. Strong doctoral programs in business are often associated with top research institutions. The DBA program at Louisiana Tech which has produced 42% of all Tech doctoral graduates has a long history of contributing to the reputation and stature of Louisiana Tech.

The doctoral business students make positive contributions to the College and the University. While in residence doctoral students increase instructional and research productivity of the faculty. In addition to participating in numerous research projects, the doctoral teaching assistants have taught over twice (453) as many semester credit hours of instruction as they received (204) for the last five year period. DBA students hail from widely diverse cultural and regional backgrounds, thereby enhancing the diversity of the student body and providing a large and continuing pool of prospective students.

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Doctoral graduates enhance the reputation of the College and the University. As doctoral business students approach completion of their degrees, they are enjoying increasing success upon their entry to the job market. While many graduates have chosen to remain in the region, serving as faculty and administrators in universities throughout Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, current students and recent graduates are increasingly receiving several invitations to campus visits from highly regarded universities across the country and around the world. The success of these graduates enhances the reputation of the College of Administration and Business and Louisiana Tech University as well as assisting in faculty recruitment and student recruitment and placement at all degree levels.

The doctoral program attracts strong faculty who also produce high quality research. We are able to hire faculty who might not otherwise consider us because of the doctoral program. These faculty in turn enhance educational experiences of undergraduate and masters level students. In addition, the research contributions of these faculty are congruent with the University focus on strong research portfolios.

Conclusions and Recommendations

Consideration of role and value of the doctoral program along with the costs and benefits, the College believes that the College should retain the doctoral program in business and move to change the program from a DBA to a PhD with five concentrations. The timeline outlined earlier in this document appears to be appropriate for the University to consider in making this change.

The doctoral program is expensive; however, the marginal costs are not significantly more than the costs are for staffing a strong undergraduate/masters level business programs. A review of budget figures for peer institutions and other state institutions demonstrates this. Funding the difference in faculty salaries and providing competitive doctoral student stipends is worth the benefits obtained.

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Appendix Accompanying Strategic Review of DBA Program“Appendix A”

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Appendix Accompanying Strategic Review of DBA Program“Appendix B”

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