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DBA in Higher Education Management

MEANINGFUL CONNECTIONS. POWERFUL RESEARCH. THOUGHT(FUL) LEADERSHIP.

The Bath DBA

Most DBA programmes lead to a doctorate in business or management. But the Bath DBA in Higher Education Management is the only programme of its kind.

We've developed our DBA specifically for university leaders. Gain the research skills you need to address the challenges of higher education in the 21st century.

What makes the Bath DBA in Higher Education Management unique

  1. A specific focus on higher education management
  2. Delivered by one of the UK's best business schools
  3. Develop research skills relevant to higher education managers
  4. Combine research with professional practice by applying your increased knowledge to your work
  5. A strong global alumni network who support current students and the programme

The expertise you need to make a genuine impact in your area

As well as developing your leadership expertise, the Bath DBA will give you the skills you need to apply research to your own professional area.

We bring together the latest scholarship and an applied focus on research. You'll develop a thorough understanding of how and why things happen in contemporary higher education.

You'll graduate with research skills appropriate for higher educational managers, and be better equipped to deal with the ethical and political issues facing higher education today.

Applying your DBA research to your own organisation will allow you to:

  • understand emerging trends in higher education
  • improve national and international policy
  • establish and share best practice in management and leadership

We regularly invite graduates to visit and feed back into our programme to keep it relevant and up-to-date. We're confident that our DBA students go on to produce some of the most significant and influential research in this area.

Read more about DBA programme content.

A DBA made for busy higher education professionals

We know how busy leaders are. We've designed our DBA to be flexible around your personal and professional demands.

The DBA in Higher Education Management is more structured than a traditional PhD. It has two phases:

  1. a two-year taught programme phase delivered through a series of residentials (on campus attendance compulsory)
  2. a thesis phase (can be completed remotely)

Most students complete the programme within six to eight years (taught and thesis phases).

Key information

Find out more about the entry requirements, assessment and duration of the DBA.

Designed for:

  • Mid to senior level managers working in higher education
  • Leaders from governmental ministries
  • Leaders from organisations with a higher education brief

Duration:

Minimum three years, maximum eight years

Start date:

17 November 2025

Calendar of residential modules

  • Residential 1 (eight days): 17 – 24 November 2025 inclusive
  • Residential 2 (eight days): 15 – 22 June 2026 inclusive
  • Residential 3 (eight days): 15 – 22 February 2027 inclusive (subject to change)
  • Residential 4 (eight days): 4 -11 October 2027 inclusive (subject to change)

Mode of study:

Part-time

Admissions requirements:

  • To be a university graduate or have a graduate level professional qualification (Bachelor 2:1 or equivalent)
  • A postgraduate or advanced graduate qualification (normally a master’s degree)
  • You must have at least three years' senior management experience in higher education
  • Acceptable qualification in English dated within two years of your course start date

Scholarships

Assessment methods

  • Thesis
  • Attendance
  • Coursework
  • Essay

Course code

RMMN–APD03

A global network of higher education leadership expertise

We welcome students from all over the world, and emphasise sharing knowledge. You'll meet higher education professionals from around the globe facing similar challenges to you. Residentials, our virtual learning environment and peer-to-peer support make networking and sharing good practice simple.

We're also home to the International Centre for Higher Education Management (ICHEM). Since 1994, ICHEM has been at the heart of higher education research, bringing together leading scholars as a centre for higher education research. See video for a recent webinar on the future of higher education leadership with Professor Rajani Naidoo.

ICHEM experts lead the DBA in Higher Education Management, teach on the programme and supervise research.

See a list of our core and associated faculty members.

View current DBA students and find out what our alumni are doing
A studio portrait of DBA student Amine Moussa stood smiling at the camera with his arms crossed.
‘The residentials play a major part in bringing us closer together and developing a strong global network.’
Amine Moussa DBA in Higher Education Management

Fees for 2024/25

  • £10,500 a year for years one and two
  • £2,100 a year for subsequent years

Find out more about DBA fees and scholarship opportunities.

These fees are for the 2025/26 academic year only. Tuition fees are liable to increase annually for all University of Bath students.

Read more about tuition fees.

Get in touch

Contact the DBA team with any questions or to arrange a visit.

We would love to hear from you so get in touch if you have any questions about the programme.

If you want to come to Bath (on a work day, during normal working hours), we can meet you, talk to you about the DBA and show you around. If you visit during one of our residentials, you'd be welcome to sit in on a session. This will give you the chance to experience how we teach on the course and meet current students and staff.

Apply for the DBA

Contact us

If you have any questions about applying for the DBA in Higher Education Management, please get in touch.