Recently my wife and I have considered whether it makes sense for me to go back to school to obtain a Doctorate in Business Administration. The pursuit would be to further my areas of expertise in the realm of school business and to further solidify my footing in my next career move as Deputy Superintendent/CFO where I work. 

Like many things in life, what we need to determine is whether the commitment is a reasonable objective to pursue. The end product is not the question, it’s the journey (time) to get there. Why this question is of prime importance, is because time is our most valued and constrained commodity. 

Marriage, children, and career. Those priorities exist above and beyond the pursuit of a new educational venture. It could be argued that some or possibly all three areas noted could be impacted positively through the completion of the degree. The effort needed to complete the degree could also impact the all three negatively.

The question that needs to be answered at this stage is, if the extra workload is manageable. Can 10-15 hours per week be budgeted and managed during the week to meet the needs of the program? 

I’ve spoken to a graduate of the Incarnate Word University about his experience in the program. He noted that in his program, some classes you need to attend live and others you could watch after the after (recorded). He said that his homework load varied between 5-10 hours per week. He took the route of getting three papers published in academic journals rather than the standard dissertation for his final project. He was very positive about the program.

Later this week, I am scheduled to call a current student at Marymount University. This is the other doctorate program I am considering. This program is focused on ‘business intelligence’ which means the courses are tilted toward leveraging technologies in order to be better at business. For example, one course is titled, Artificial Intelligence Applications. 

I look forward to my call with the current student and better understanding their experience, time management, and overall value they’ve received in the program.

Once I have an understanding of the Marymount program, I’ll be able to better contemplate and assess with my wife how reasonable this venture is given the level of commitment we have in the present and expect to have in the future. 

In short, is the juice of the doctorate of business administration worth the squeeze?