General Program Requirement (GPR)

In addition to the course requirements set by each of the seven fields, all PhD students, regardless of their fields of study, are required to demonstrate a solid understanding of the basic disciplines that underlie the study of management by taking the general program requirement courses as follows:

• Bus E600: Microeconomic Analysis I
• Bus E603: Econometric Methods I
• a course in organizations or psychology

Fields may designate acceptable substitute courses. It is expected that entering students have sufficient background to perform successfully in these courses; a student who lacks these prerequisites may need to undertake additional preparation prior to or during the first year of doctoral study in order to fulfill breadth requirements in a timely fashion. For the above GPR, the most important courses for preparation are calculus, matrix algebra, probability and mathematical statistics, and intermediate microeconomic theory.

If a student's background includes prior completion of commensurate coursework elsewhere (e.g., from a comparable doctoral program), the student may request a waiver for certain coursework. Approval is granted at the discretion of the Director of the PhD Program and the field liaison.

Field Coursework Requirements

Each field of study requires its students to complete a minimum of courses both in the chosen field and from various other disciplines. Years 1 and 2 of the Program are focused primarily on fulfilling the General Program Requirement and field requirements. A student normally takes four courses (11 to 16 units) per quarter until these coursework requirements are completed.

Depending on the student's field of specialization, he or she may sometimes take as much as 50 percent of coursework outside the Graduate School of Business, and it is not unusual for students to enroll in a significant number of courses in the departments of Economics, Engineering, or Sociology, for example. Enrolling in courses outside the School is convenient, since the Business School is close to the center of the University and follows the University calendar. For assistance in selecting such courses, the student may consult with his or her advisor.