Joint Programs

In some cases, a doctoral student in a department outside the Rutgers Business School (RBS) may simultaneously satisfy the requirements of his or her home program and one of the ten majors in the RBS doctoral program. In this case, the student will be awarded a single Ph.D. joint in the home program and in the RBS major. The student's transcript will be annotated to indicate that the student has satisfied the requirements of both Ph.D. programs.

A doctoral student interested in such a joint degree should consult as early as possible with his or her graduate director, who will ask the RBS doctoral director to appoint a business-school faculty member to help advise the student on courses and on dissertation topics suitable for both programs. The student and his or her advisers will draw up a detailed course plan that is appropriate for the student's background and interests, satisfies the requirements of both programs, and is feasible given the best available information concerning course scheduling. The course plan should be designed to enable the student to take the qualifying examination for the RBS major as soon as possible after passing the qualifying examination for their home program. Upon receipt of the course plan, the RBS director will confirm whether it is adequate to prepare the student for the RBS qualifying examination. During the coursework stage, the student will need to check course schedules every semester to verify that the plan remains feasible. Any needed changes should be approved by the advisers and the directors.

In order to remain a joint candidate after passing the qualifying examination, the student must remain in good standing in both programs. Withdrawal or dismissal from one will not change their status in the other. The student's dissertation committee will be appointed by the two directors acting jointly.

The following pages give examples of plans for coursework that would prepare students starting in Fall 2009 to take qualifying examinations and write joint dissertations for a few of the possible combinations of non-RBS departments and RBS majors.

• Psychology (Rutgers-Newark) and Accounting
• Psychology (Rutgers-Newark) and Marketing Science
• Psychology (Rutgers-Newark) and Organization Management
• Statistics (Rutgers-New Brunswick) and Accounting
• Statistics (Rutgers-New Brunswick) and Marketing Science
• Organization Communication (School of Communication & Information, Rutgers-New Brunswick) and Organization Management
• Global Affairs (Rutgers-Newark) and International Business

These are only examples, which may or may not be suitable for a particular student and may or may not prove feasible when the most recent schedules are checked for time conflicts. Because some courses are offered only every other year, the possibilities for course plans will depend strongly on the date at which one begins.

• Rules for the joint doctoral degrees, approved by the Graduate School - Newark and the Graduate School - New Brunswick, April 29 & 30, 2009
• Approval of the joint degree program by Vice President Furmanski, May 13, 2009