PhD or DBA, No GRE/GMAT

[shawn]

Hi I am a long time lurker, first time poster. This site is a treasure trove of information and I essentially owe a part of my success in obtaining my BSBA and MBA to the information contained here. That being said I am hoping that you guys (and gals) will be able to help me out once more.

I am looking for a DBA or PhD program in Business Administration. As this will greatly boost my standing in my current career.

A few details:

Regional accreditation is a must, non-profit is a bonus/preference.

No GRE or GMAT, I work full-time and I want to devote my time to studying for my courses not entrance exams.

Online mostly, I can do week long residencies here or there. However, I cannot do a full on campus program. Do not mind traveling for the residencies.



Schools I am currently looking at, any input on these is welcome:

California Southern University

Liberty University

Argosy University

Kennesaw State University



Staying away from these two. I have heard to many bad reviews. I do not necessary put stock in bad reviews but when they repeat the same problems over and over again, I start to question the schools integrity. I see my PhD (or DBA) as my final step along my path, for that reason I do not want to chance it:

Capella University

Walden University

[sanantone]

California Southern University and Argosy are for-profit, but at least they aren't as well-known as Capella and Walden. When attending for-profit schools, you want to go to the lesser-known ones. Almost all the well-known ones make people turn up their noses. California Southern University doesn't accept financial aid, so keep in mind that you will be making payments to the school for possibly longer than you attend. Some people prefer this over federal loans, but federal loans allow for forbearance, deferment, forgiveness, and income-based payments. I don't know what schools do when you can't make your payments to them.

[RANSOMSOUL]

There are a decent amount of Ph.D./DBA Non-GRE options available and multiple sites ranking a top 10 (google search can go on for hours . In addition to the initial ones you listed, here are some schools that I have looked into:

Baker College DBA

University of the Cumberland
(great value/ non-profit/traditionally requires GRE but is not currently requesting one in the application stage - coin flip if that means the requirement has been removed)

UNISA PhDL

Grand Canyon University DBA (for-profit)

[bjcheung77]

Shawn, where/which state are you located? How much are you looking to spend on a DBA/ Ph.D.?
Are you looking at AACSB, ACBSP? You may want to check out the 5 that Ransomsoul is looking into as well.

If you want Regional Accreditation and a Canadian school, Athabasca U just removed their requirement for GMAT/GRE.
Athabasca: https://business.athabascau.ca/doctorate...istration/
Then there's Franklin University, which is just a few hundred dollars more expensive than Athabasca ~ $41.5 grand.
Franklin U: https://www.franklin.edu/degrees/doctora...nistration

Grand Canyon University was mentioned - I would at least take a look at them as well.
https://www.gcu.edu/admissions/tuition-a...ancing.php
Then there's Trident: https://www.trident.edu/admissions-and-t...doctorate/

If you're in the state of OK, you can go for the DBA at $294.55/credit, if you're not in OK state, it's EXPENSIVE.
https://business.okstate.edu/watson/busi...ition.html
Note: In the admissions section, it does indicate it requires a GMAT/GRE, but through the grapevine, I heard they don't care.
You can verify with them obviously, it's the "best" choice to go to your own state university if you can.

[shawn]

@ bjcheun77

Hi bjcheung77, I am sorry about that I should had explained my situation better.

I am a Active Duty Army Officer (newly Officer, prior Enlisted) and will be using my GI Bill. In a field where a Bachelor's is a requirement and my peers struggle to get Master's to make the next rank. A Doctorate can advance my career and make me stand out from the pack. I am also currently located in Kansas but that can change. Online/hybrid is preferred but I can get leave and attend week long residencies.

That being said I can afford to go slightly higher and pay out of pocket for some of it. I believe the max the GI Bill will cover is approximately $21k a year, although I am hoping that my GI Bill will cover most of it.

@ Sanantone

I knew California Southern University was a for-profit school, although I was considering it due to the fact that it has been around for a decent amount of time and reviews were decent. However, I was under the impression that Argosy was a non-profit.

After reviewing this link:

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017...nary-group


@ RANSOMSOUL

Thank you, University of the Cumberland seems appealing.

An Extra Detail:

I can show at least 3 years of management experience. It is military and some schools are iffy about accepting it.

[sanantone]

@ Sanantone

I knew California Southern University was a for-profit school, although I was considering it due to the fact that it has been around for a decent amount of time and reviews were decent. However, I was under the impression that Argosy was a non-profit.

After reviewing this link:

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017...nary-group

I forgot that that EDMC was bought out this year. I'm not sure if the public knows that Argosy is now non-profit, so it still may carry that stigma. However, Argosy is mostly only known in California and in the psychology field.

[Thorne]

There are a decent amount of Ph.D./DBA Non-GRE options available and multiple sites ranking a top 10 (google search can go on for hours . In addition to the initial ones you listed, here are some schools that I have looked into:

Baker College DBA

University of the Cumberland
(great value/ non-profit/traditionally requires GRE but is not currently requesting one in the application stage - coin flip if that means the requirement has been removed)

UNISA PhDL

Grand Canyon University DBA (for-profit)

UNISA is an awesome bet. If I ever go after a Doctoral degree, it'll have to be DL across the big blue pond.

[dfrecore]

 I am also currently located in Kansas but that can change. Online/hybrid is preferred but I can get leave and attend week long residencies.

That being said I can afford to go slightly higher and pay out of pocket for some of it. I believe the max the GI Bill will cover is approximately $21k a year, although I am hoping that my GI Bill will cover most of it.

A lot of schools will give active-duty military in-state tuition.  So check into that if you are interested.

[Sagan]

The OP is operating under some questionable assumptions.

First, the entrance exam is a small matter; if it affects one's choice of school, take the exam.

Second, the school may consider waiving the exam for people with good academic and/or work records. They won't publish that, but you can negotiate it.

Third, the OP lists schools that are utterly non-competitive. Of course the GRE isn't required at these. They admit virtually anyone who meets their entrance requirements, or can get them waived.

Finally, the OP mentions both the GRE and the GMAT. These exams cover wide and non-overlapping areas. This suggests a lack of focus--deadly when considering the pursuit of a doctorate. The decision will drive the need to take the exam, not the other way around.

(P.S.: The OP's comments about Walden and Capella are utterly unfounded. Both have been accredited for decades with no problems. Anecdotes from individual students are widely available on just about any school. These are in no way particularly problematic. More research in this area seems to be indicated.)

[sanantone]

(P.S.: The OP's comments about Walden and Capella are utterly unfounded. Both have been accredited for decades with no problems. Anecdotes from individual students are widely available on just about any school. These are in no way particularly problematic. More research in this area seems to be indicated.)

The OP didn't say anything about their accreditation. You don't need integrity to maintain accreditation. University of Phoenix has lost lawsuits, been fined, and temporarily banned from recruiting on military bases and is still accredited. Then, there was the whole UNC scandal. Of course, those things are on their records, but a lot of things go on for years without being found out or properly investigated or reported. I think it's safe to assume that some of the well-known, for-profit schools do carry a stigma, and one should decide if it makes sense to pay more for a school with a bad reputation.

Here's a class action suit against Walden because of deceptive advertising on how long their doctoral programs will take to complete, which affects how much tuition is paid. 

http://kstp.com/news/walden-university-f...s/4357485/
https://www.classaction.org/news/walden-...c-hit-with

It is well-known that non-traditional schools that depend on adjuncts do have high turnover rates. This affects doctoral students working on their dissertations because their chairs can change once or multiple times during the process and committee members have to be replaced before going forward.