Organizational Behavior Requirements 2012-13
I. Preparation in Quantitative Methods
As preparation for the general program requirement, some OB students, depending on previous preparation, find it useful to complete preparatory coursework in the summer prior to the first year (or in the first year). If you think you might not be prepared for the general program courses, you should ask questions of advanced OB students or the doctoral liaison.
II. General Program Requirement (GPR)1
All students are encouraged to fulfill the General Program Requirement during their first year of study, unless extensive remedial preparation in quantitative methods is necessary. Each course must be passed with a grade of LP or better.
Note: Any changes to the General Program Requirement (GPR) or Field Course Requirement (FCR) will be "grandfathered" Students are responsible for fulfilling the requirements in place at the time they entered the Program.
|
Course No. |
Course Title |
Possible Substitutes |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
MGTECON 600 or |
Microeconomic Analysis I or |
ECON 151 |
Economic Analysis I, or |
|
MGTECON 200 |
Managerial Economics (MBA Core) or |
||
|
HRMGT 302 |
Incentives and Productivity (please note that you need to have passed a qualifying exam during week 0 to take this course) or |
||
|
ECON 149 |
The Firm in Theory and Practice,or |
||
|
ECON 157 |
Imperfect Competition |
||
|
MGTECON 603or |
Econometric Methods or Intermediate Econometrics I |
MGTECON 604 |
Econometric Methods II, or |
|
ECON 271 |
Intermediate Econometrics II, or |
||
|
MGTECON 605 |
Econometric Methods III, or |
||
|
ECON 272 |
Intermediate Econometrics III or |
||
|
|
|
SOC 382 PSYCH 252 SOC 383 PSYCH 253 GSBGEN 641 GSBGEN 640 |
Either: |
|
|
|
POLISCI 350 A POLISCI 350 B |
Or thesequence of: |
| GSBGEN 698 | Practicum in Teaching | ||
| GSBGEN 699 | Practicum in Research | ||
1 In rare cases, the director of the PhD Program may waive a general program requirement for a student based on similar PhD-level coursework completed elsewhere. The four required courses listed below fulfill the OB students' breadth requirement of the GPR in Organizational Behavior.
III. Field Course Requirement
(Revised March '2000-01)
The following courses are required of each student. Each course must be passed with a grade of LP or better.
1st year students must take:
|
Number |
Course Name |
|---|---|
|
OB 671 |
Social Psychology of Organizations, and |
|
OB 672 |
Organization and Environment |
In addition, students take either:
|
Number |
Course Name |
|---|---|
|
OB 673 |
Perspectives on the Social Psychology of Organizations*, or |
|
OB 674 |
Perspectives on Organization and Environment* |
*This courses vary from year to year, featuring different faculty teaching on advanced research topics in social psychology.
See also below1.
2nd year students must take:
|
Number |
Course Name |
|---|---|
|
OB 673 |
Perspectives on the Social Psychology of Organizations*, or |
|
OB 674 |
Perspectives on Organization and Environment* |
*This courses vary from year to year, featuring different faculty teaching on advanced research topics in social psychology.
See also below1.
3rd year students must take:
|
Number |
Course Name |
|---|---|
|
OB 673 |
Perspectives on the Social Psychology of Organizations*, or |
|
OB 674 |
Perspectives on Organization and Environment* |
*This course varies from year to year, featuring different faculty teaching on advanced research topics in social psychology.
1 During either 1st or 2nd Year, students must take:
|
Number |
Course Name |
|---|---|
|
OB 670 |
Designing Organizational Research or |
|
OB 675 |
Micro Methods (added April 04-05) and |
|
OB 676 |
Social and Political Processes in Organizations |
In addition, there are numerous other courses that students may find useful, including:
|
Number |
Course Name |
|---|---|
|
SOC 261 |
Organizational Ecology |
|
SOC 360 |
Foundations of Organizational Sociology |
|
SOC 366 |
Workshop on Organizational Ecology |
|
SOC 370A |
Sociological Theory |
|
PSYCH 212 |
Social Psychology |
|
PSYCH 254 |
Principles of Personality Change |
|
PSYCH 256 |
Misunderstanding, Conflict and Dispute Resolution |
|
OB 674 |
Seminar: The Employment Relationship |
|
OB 686 |
Behavioral Organization Theory |
|
MKTG 642 |
Behavioral Research in Marketing: Conceptual Foundations |
|
GSBGEN 646 |
Behavioral Decision Theory |
|
STRAT 690 |
Research Topics in Strategy and Organizations |
Additional training in research methods directly relevant to organizational behavior is provided by:
|
Number |
Course Name |
|---|---|
|
OB 640 |
Multivariate Analysis |
|
SOC 382, 383, and 384 |
Research Design and Analysis |
|
PSYCH 273 |
Research Design and Procedure |
|
MKTG 641 |
Behavioral Research in Marketing: Methodology |
Other methods courses which may be of interest are offered by the Department of Statistics.
There are many other courses taken by PhD Students that are offered in departments outside the GSB, such as Computer Science, Economics, Management Science and Engineering, Mathematics, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, and Statistics. Descriptions of these course offerings can be found in the Stanford Bulletin, published by the Registrar's Office (650-725-1879).
IV. Research Paper Requirement
By the end of the winter quarter in the 2nd year, each student is required to submit a research paper prepared with the collaboration of a faculty advisor. Students will present this research paper in the OB seminar in the spring quarter. This paper is a key way that the OB faculty will track the progress of students in their second year and will play a major role in the student's second year evaluation.
V. First-Year Field Examination
The Organizational Behavior field examination is comprehensive, drawing on the broad range of theory and research within the purview of Organizational Behavior Specifically, the scope of the field examination includes all areas covered by the two first-year field requirement courses (OB 671 and OB 672). Students are expected to have an in-depth understanding of scholarship in Organizational Behavior, however, which often means covering more material than can be assigned in the two first-year field requirement courses. For this reason, first-year students typically augment their coursework by studying independently in preparation for the field exam, gaining greater depth in the various research areas identified in their two first-year field requirement courses.
In the examination, students are expected to show an understanding of existing literatures, and to address linkages and controversies among the various literatures. The examination assesses a student's ability to recognize similarities, differences, and relationships among different strands of Organizational Behavior scholarship, and to identify important research problems, issues, and prospects. Typically questions will also require that a student demonstrate the ability to design research that would address important research problems.
The examination is given to students as they finish their first year of study, approximately on July 1. Students are given one full day to complete the examination in an open-book, open-note format.
VI. Research Seminar Requirement
Students are required to attend regularly one of the research seminars coordinated by the OB faculty.
VII. Advancement to Candidacy
Advancement to candidacy will require successfully passing the general program requirement, first-and-second year field course requirements, research paper requirement, and first-year field exam. Students are encouraged to advance to candidacy at the end of their second year.
VIII. Supplementary Requirements
Students are urged to attend the workshops and colloquia offered by the Stanford Center for Organizational Research.
IX. Dissertation Research
Usually during the third year an OB student presents the proposal for the thesis to the dissertation reading committee for approval. (An informal presentation is also made to the OB faculty and doctoral students.) Once these requirements have been met, the student can take the University oral examination and complete the thesis.