The Master of Business Administration (MBA) is already available at HTW Berlin. In fact, there are three degrees, namely the MBA General Management, the MBA Real Estate Management and the Master of Business Administration and Engineering. These are now complemented by a Doctor of Business Administration. It is due to start in the 2024/25 academic session. A corresponding cooperation agreement with the renowned Edinburgh Napier University was signed in May 2024. In this interview, Prof. Dr. Thomas Henschel reveals more about how the doctoral programme came about, and describes the various prospects it opens up. The Faculty 3 professor is the degree’s contact person at HTW Berlin.

Prof. Dr. Thomas Henschel: The DBA is the degree which follows on from the MBA. A research-based doctoral programme, it is aimed at anyone who is interested in applied economic research and is seeking to contribute to the development of current management and professional practices in their respective field of specialisation.

Before my appointment at HTW Berlin, I was a lecturer at ENU’s Business School for several years, where I not only taught but also supervised doctoral students and got to know the doctoral programme personally. The degree has been on offer for around 20 years, is very well structured and a real model for success. The ENU has AACSB accreditation. This is the gold standard for business schools, which only a few Universities of Excellence have in Germany.  

I was therefore delighted when the ENU approached us and asked whether HTW Berlin was interested in a cooperation regarding the DBA. We are the fourth German university to offer it after Hamburg, Giessen and Stuttgart. The then Vice-President for Studies and Teaching, Prof. Dr. Tilo Wendler, was very open to the Scottish enquiry. I would like to take this opportunity to thank him. After several discussions, it took a few months before the contract was ready to be signed.

Students study part-time and take holidays for the in-person modules in Edinburgh, Scotland. The DBA takes three years, and it is possible to complete it within this time frame. This is because the degree is intensively mentored, with two supervisors at the ENU and me taking care of things at HTW Berlin. The four or five modules are geared towards the subsequent doctoral thesis. Students are therefore already doing the groundwork for what will be their eventual doctoral subject. This applies, for example, to the literature review or the chosen research method. The groups are also quite small. Although no admission restrictions exist, experience shows that there are never more than ten to twelve students. They come from all over the world, which makes for an inspiring and intercultural atmosphere. 

The annual fee is £9,800. This is appropriate insofar as the supervision during the three years is really excellent and the students are studying while working, i.e. earning money via their various professions. In some cases, the employer even funds the degree. Incidentally, the programme is also open to employees of HTW Berlin if they meet the requirements. We agreed a ten per cent discount in the contract for those affiliated to HTW Berlin. 

Well, HTW Berlin already has three professional MBA programmes whose graduates might be interested in the DBA. And we are broadly positioned in terms of research. The spectrum of possible topics ranges from human resources, marketing, entrepreneurship and finance/accounting to business ethics, law and logistics.

Let me give you an example: one of my students on the MBA Real Estate Management - I teach the ‘Management Accounting’ module there - works in the family office of a Berlin property group. She is looking to give her professional career an academic boost and has chosen a topic that she is regularly confronted with in her everyday life. As someone who was born in China, she wants to compare the communication challenges faced by property management professionals in different countries, using Germany and China as examples. This is a good example of the DBA’s professional focus!  

The application process for the first intake group will start in mid- or late July 2024. The interviews are conducted online and the final decision is made by the representatives of the ENU, which also handles the entire application process. I am naturally also involved in the selection process. The course itself starts in the autumn and spring of each year.

I see the DBA as a real win-win situation. HTW Berlin has decided to offer an established doctoral programme with a good reputation. I have the opportunity to mentor proficient students, help the next generation with their qualifications and supervise a range of interesting research topics. All this in close co-operation with a renowned university with which I have always maintained contact. Incidentally, the DBA is not limited to Faculty 3. It is naturally also open to all disciplines whose graduates are seeking to expand their management expertise. I am available for enquiries from all university students and am happy to be approached by colleagues in this regard.