| Program start date | Application deadline |
| 2025-09-01 | - |
| 2026-01-01 | - |
| 2026-04-01 | - |
| 2026-09-01 | - |
| 2027-01-01 | - |
| 2027-04-01 | - |
| 2027-09-01 | - |
Program Overview
Business and Management
Overview
The Business School at the University of Exeter offers a PhD program in Business and Management, which provides students with the opportunity to work with and learn from inspirational and diverse faculty of leading researchers. The program tackles a broad range of subjects, covering all sub-disciplines within the faculty.
Research Overview
Research into management at the School tackles a very broad range of subjects, covering all sub-disciplines within the faculty. Specific research strengths include organisational studies, operations management and strategy, entrepreneurship, and marketing and consumer research. There is also a growing trend of research into sustainability issues in management, and the department is home to one of only two research centres in the UK that focuses on service as a major topic.
How to Apply
To be considered for the PhD program, applicants need to meet the following entry requirements:
- A good undergraduate degree (in the UK, at least an upper second class honours) in a relevant subject
- A taught Masters degree in a relevant subject
International students need to show they have the required level of English language to study this course. The required test scores for this course fall under Profile B2.
Deadlines
The University considers applications to the PhD program three times a year:
- 31st January
- 31st May
- 30th September
Application Documents
To be considered for the PhD program, applicants need to submit the following documents by either of the above deadlines:
- A research proposal that you have developed with a potential supervisor (no more than 2000 words)
- A letter from this potential supervisor stating that they are willing to supervise you
- A personal statement that explains why you wish to complete your PhD in our department and why you think you are well suited to this program of study (no more than 600 words)
- Academic transcripts from your relevant studies to date
- Two academic letters of reference from teaching staff at your previous institutions
- If necessary, evidence of English language ability
- If you have them, results from a GMAT or GRE test that are not more than 5 years old
Fees and Funding
Tuition Fees per year 2025/26
- Home: £5,006 full-time; £pro-rata part-time
- International: £23,000 full-time
For those studying for more than one year, our fees are expected to increase modestly in line with Consumer Price Inflation measured in December each year.
Current Funding Opportunities
Our Postgraduate Funding webpage provides links to further information. If you are considering a PhD in the future, in addition to University of Exeter funding, we have been successful at securing postgraduate funding for PhD research through our Funded centres.
Supervision
You can expect:
- High-quality research supervision to develop and nurture your potential
- A tailored supervision approach to help best suit your requirements
- Accessible supervisors who are enthusiastic about working directly with postgraduate research students
- Regular timetabled meetings with your supervisor
- 'Open door' policy to all postgraduate students - instant access to world-leading researchers who will share their expertise and ideas with you
- Regular meetings with your supervisory team, other members of your research group, and mentors
Careers
Skills Training
The skills and expertise that you build now are fundamental to your continuing professional development (CPD), and will be part of your toolset throughout your working life.
We strongly recommend that our students take part in the University's Postgraduate Researchers' Programme, which offers training in skills such as:
- Research management
- Personal effectiveness
- Communication
- Networking
- Team-working
- Career management
Working While Studying
The Business School provides research students with many opportunities to develop skills in teaching, as well as other forms of employment (both academic and non-academic). We actively support students who wish to take on ad-hoc or part-time work during their studies.
Alumni Employment Positions
We are very proud that our graduates have forged successful careers throughout the world in a variety of occupations. Here are just a few:
- Lecturer, Mahidol University International College
- Lecturer, University of Birmingham
- Lecturer in Accounting (E&R), University of Exeter
- Tax Inspector, Agency of Revenue Italia
- Post-Doctoral Researcher, FAU-Erlangen-Nuremberg
- Research Manager, Northwestern University
- Senior Lecturer in Economics, Oxford Brookes University
- Teaching Assistant, Queen Mary University of London
- Lecturer in Economics, RMIT University
- Lecturer, Shanghai University University of Finance and Economics
- Lecturer in Business Economics, Sheffield Hallam University
- Senior lecturer, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia
- Lecturer, University of Exeter
- Post Doctoral Associate, University of Exeter
- Visiting Faculty Member, University of Exeter
- Lecturer, University of Manchester
- Assistant Professor, University of the Punjab, Lahore Pakistan
- Real Estate Strategist, Zurich Insurance
- Programme Manager, Cambridge University
- Project Manager, Erasmus+ National Agency
- Statistician, Museums Galleries Scotland
- Senior Teaching Fellow, University of Warwick
Training
Your Future: Your Training Needs
The skills and expertise that you build now are fundamental to your continuing professional development (CPD), and will be part of your toolset throughout your working life, whether academic or elsewhere.
We’re also very keen that you should consider taking part in the University's Postgraduate Researchers' Programme which offers training in a wide range of generic and transferable skills in key areas such as research management, personal effectiveness, communication skills, networking, team-working, and career management.
External Training Experiences
We can source most training requirements within the University of Exeter, but where this is not feasible, for instance on specialist software, or cutting-edge methods or techniques vital to your studies, we work with partner organisations like research councils, professional associations and training companies to provide external training.
Employment Opportunities
The Business School provides research students with many opportunities to develop skills in teaching, and other academic and non-academic employment, and actively supports students who wish to take on ad-hoc or part-time work during their studies.
The School has a Code of Practice for Employment of PGR students, which complements the University's central Code of Good Practice for the Employment of Postgraduate Students. Students who wish to undertake work during their studies must ensure they read both the School Code and the University Code before commencing any duties.