PhD Business Analytics
Accurate data analysis can generate significant opportunities for business leaders, managers, policy makers and entrepreneurs. Modern economies increasingly demand analytically trained researchers in both academia and practice. Our PhD Business Analytics has been designed to meet this demand.
Data in modern societies has evolved. Static spreadsheets have been replaced with interactive, dynamic representations combining multiple sources and providing rich insights on markets, firms, competitors, consumers and networks. Our PhD Business Analytics equips you with both classical statistical techniques and modern computational methods to allow you to tackle cutting-edge research questions relevant to today's businesses, markets and societies using small, medium and big data sets.
Research areas may include:
- complex systems
- network analysis
- market behaviour
- organisation studies
- entrepreneurship
- innovation
You undertake a personal research project and benefit from tailored supervision to develop your desired expertise and skills. By enrolling in our PhD Business Analytics, you join the next generation of social scientists informing theory, policy and practice related to the interconnected society.
This programme is administered by Essex Business School, the largest department at the University of Essex. You join the School's Strategy, Operations and Entrepreneurship Group at our Southend Campus and benefit from rich expertise in analytical and quantitative research methodologies, using varied data sources to understand our modern, dynamic and interconnected society. We are the largest department at the University of Essex and our doctoral students join us from countries across the world.
We encourage you to present your work at our termly research afternoons to gain feedback from doctoral students and staff in the finance, accounting, entrepreneurship and management disciplines.
This course is available to study full-time, part-time or as an MPhil.
You may also be eligible for a scholarship.
- 100% of our business and management research environment is world-leading or internationally excellent (Research Excellence Framework 2021)
- We are ranked 20th in UK for research power in business and management (Times Higher Education research power measure, Research Excellence Framework 2021)
- We are ranked in the Top 175 for Business and Economics in THE World University Rankings by Subject 2024.
Our expert staff
At Essex Business School, you benefit from world-class supervision and research training conducted by our senior academic staff. Our department boasts eight research centres across our two campuses, including the ESRC Business and Local Government Data Research Centre. The centre aims to become a national centre of expertise for data users across academic and non-academic sectors and supports businesses in their use of complex big data.
Dr Louise Nash and Director of Postgraduate Research at Essex Business School oversees and leads the provision of our graduate research programmes and ensures that we create an environment where our doctoral students can flourish as researchers in a thriving and mutually supportive PhD community.
Louise is a lecturer in Management and Marketing and completed her PhD Management at Essex. She has extensive management and marketing experience which has influenced her research interests – these focus on interpretative, qualitative studies of the lived experience of work, including: the spatial and temporal rhythms of everyday life; the culture, aesthetics and symbolism of organisational life; gender in the workplace and exploring and developing sensory and embodied methods for researching organisations.
You work with two supervisors during your studies. They provide guidance and support to help you achieve your individual research goals, develop your research topic and create a personalised training plan. You meet with your supervisors at least once a month and are usually required to submit work in advance for feedback. Twice a year, you have a supervisory board meeting to discuss your progress and agree your plans for the next six months.
As well as supporting you to complete your thesis, your supervisors can help you to plan your career development. Our academics often co-author publications with doctoral students and can help you to develop the transferable skills needed for the jobs market.
Take a look at our staff pages to find out more about our areas of supervision.
Specialist facilities
As well using University facilities such as the library and computing laboratories, you have access to:
- databases, such as Bloomberg and Compustat, Passport GMID, Bankscope and Datastream
- a wide range of e-books and finance and business packages to support part-time and distance learning (including Ebrary, NetLibrary, Oxford Scholarship Online, Palgrave Connect, and SpringerLink)
- in your final year, you benefit from your own office to allow successful completion of your thesis.
Your future
Essex Business School fosters the business leaders and researchers of the future. Our PhD graduates use their creativity, innovation and ethical awareness to meet the many challenges facing the international business world.
Many of our graduates enjoy careers in academia and organisations in the public and private sectors, including at some of the world's most well-known organisations and exciting SMEs, such as:
- Groupon
- KPMG Group
- Right Freight Pvt Ltc
- Copal Partners
- Capital Markets Intelligence, a financial publisher
- Credit Data Research, a business funder
- Many now also run their own growing businesses
PhD Business Analytics students can also take advantage of the services offered by the Careers Service, including careers advice; work experience; internships; placements; and voluntary opportunities.
At Essex we pride ourselves on being a welcoming and inclusive student community. We offer a wide range of support to individuals and groups of student members who may have specific requirements, interests or responsibilities.
The University makes every effort to ensure that this information on its programme specification is accurate and up-to-date. Exceptionally it can be necessary to make changes, for example to courses, facilities or fees. Examples of such reasons might include, but are not limited to: strikes, other industrial action, staff illness, severe weather, fire, civil commotion, riot, invasion, terrorist attack or threat of terrorist attack (whether declared or not), natural disaster, restrictions imposed by government or public authorities, epidemic or pandemic disease, failure of public utilities or transport systems or the withdrawal/reduction of funding. Changes to courses may for example consist of variations to the content and method of delivery of programmes, courses and other services, to discontinue programmes, courses and other services and to merge or combine programmes or courses. The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will also keep students informed appropriately by updating our programme specifications. The University would inform and engage with you if your course was to be discontinued, and would provide you with options, where appropriate, in line with our Compensation and Refund Policy.
The full Procedures, Rules and Regulations of the University governing how it operates are set out in the Charter, Statutes and Ordinances and in the University Regulations, Policy and Procedures.
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