The Organization Studies Concentration
Philosophy and Objectives
The Ph.D. program in Organization Studies (OS) prepares students primarily for researching and teaching about organizations and management, and secondarily for working with various organizational constituencies for the purposes of organizational change. Given the critical role organizations play nationally and internationally in economic, political, and cultural developments, the program emphasizes multidisciplinary knowledge for innovative thinking. The program fosters critical reflexivity as a practical aim, for improving both theory and practice.
Our program provides students with strong grounding in the historical development of organization and management studies, as well as in the current developments and controversies surrounding organizations and their management. Students are encouraged to work on issues of organizational and social significance that they care deeply about, to explore multiple research paradigms, and to gain skills in both quantitative and qualitative methodologies.
OS majors take seminars within the School of Management on organizational behavior and theory and on organizational research. Additionally, students may choose courses in psychology, sociology, anthropology, political science, education, labor studies, and other departments on campus to broaden their knowledge and interests. Students are required to select a minor field of study, which may be drawn from inside or outside the School of Management. Examples of minor fields selected by recent OS graduates are: cultural anthropology, human resource management, strategic management, labor relations, social psychology, postmodern culture, and research methods.
The relatively small size of the Ph.D. program in OS allows for considerable individual attention. We encourage students to get to know the faculty and one another. We try to create a cooperative and stimulating intellectual climate, one that supports individual scholarly development and interest in examining critical organizational issues. In the past, faculty and students have collaborated in research and consulting activities and in presenting and publishing research findings. Our students are usually active participants at such professional meetings as the Academy of Management and the Organizational Behavior Teaching Society.
Graduates of the Ph.D. program in Organization Studies typically pursue academic careers. Recent graduates are on the faculty of such schools as the University of Michigan, Bryant College, Fairfield University, University of Calgary, University of Connecticut, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, North Dakota State University, Pace University, and University of Santa Clara.
Degree Requirements
The program of study is generally completed within four or five years, and is comprised of coursework, a comprehensive examination, and the completion of a doctoral dissertation. OS students who already have a Master's degree in Business Administration normally complete coursework within the first two years. They usually take three or four courses each semester of the first year, and serve as a research assistant to a faculty member. During the first year, students build foundational knowledge in Organization Studies and Research Methods, and they may also take a course in their minor field. Presuming satisfactory performance in the first year, students continue with an advanced set of courses in Organization Studies and their supporting field. In addition they are expected to develop advanced research skills in applied research methods courses. During the third year, most students are teaching assistants, responsible for their own undergraduate sections. They complete courses in Organization Studies, Research Methods, as well as their supporting field. The school requirement of a course in economics may be taken either in the first or second year (if necessary).
First Year Courses
| Fall Semester SOM 802 - Conceptual Found. of Org. Behavior & Theory PSYCH 640 - Statistical Inference I SOM 804 - Research Methods | Spring Semester SOM 833 - Org. & Admin. Theory PSYCH 641 - Statistical Inference II SOM 891 - Seminar in Strategy Elective |
| First Summer Paper and portfolio Teaching Seminar |
Second Year Courses
| Fall Semester SOM 803 - Organizational Behavior EDUC 771 - Advanced Statistics Qualitative Research Electives/Supporting Field | Spring Semester SOM 893A - Organizational Research SOM 893M - Advanced Org. Theory Electives/Supporting Field (2) |
Other Requirements
First Year Portfolio: After the first year courses, students prepare a "summer paper", a conceptual research paper based on a topic of their choice. At the completion of the first year, students present a portfolio of their accomplishments to a faculty committee for evaluation and feedback. The portfolio is to include a sample of the student's best work from the first year, as well as a statement detailing the students' own assessment of their first year.
Comprehensive Exam: At the completion of coursework (and after some period of preparation), students must complete a comprehensive examination process which involves a written examination that stresses integration of knowledge. The examination is designed by a faculty committee.
Dissertation (Ph.D. Thesis): The final stage of the program is the dissertation, a piece of original research conducted under the guidance of a dissertation committee. The dissertation proposal must be defended orally and approved by the student's four-person dissertation committee. This is followed by the completion of the dissertation and its formal defense before an open meeting of the faculty.
Recent dissertation titles include: "'Your Next Boss is Japanese': Negotiating Cultural Change at a Western Massachusetts Paper Plant", "The Consequences of Preferred Work Schedules on Work/Family Conflict: An Empirical Study and Model Extension", "Work Computerization as Symbol and Experience: An Empirical Inquiry into the Meanings of Technological Transformation", "Re-presenting the Knowledge Worker: A Poststructuralist Analysis of the New Employed Professional", "At Arms Length: Commercial Research Agendas, Academic Science, and the Construction of Organizational Boundaries", "Careers in Cross-Cultural Context: Women Bank Managers in Finland and in the United States".