Curriculum

A typical course sequence is outlined below, but you should refer to the PhD Handbook for complete information on all program requirements. You must take an independent study every semester for the first two years.

Fall Semester

  • MGB 702 Organizational Behavior I
  • SOC 607 Statistics I
  • MGM 700 Core Methods (Research Design)

Spring Semester

  • MGB 702 Organizational Behavior II
  • CEP 523 Statistics II    
  • PSY 704 Research Methods I

First-Year Paper: Your required research paper must be completed by the end of your first year of study. This paper will preferably be developed into a dissertation or a co-authored paper submitted to a top journal.

Fall Semester

  • MGB 702 Organizational Behavior Special Topics I
  • SOC 606 Research Methods II
  • CEP 509 Measurement

Spring Semester

  • MGB 702 Organizational Behavior Special Topics II
  • Minor course 1
  • Minor course 2

Second-Year Paper: Your required research paper must be completed by the end of your second year of study. This paper will preferably be developed into a dissertation or a co-authored paper submitted to a top journal.

You are required to take a series of seminars that include the professional development series and brown-bag presentations.

PhD Proposal and Dissertation

Working with your faculty advisor, begin exploring research topics during your first and second year. By your third year and beyond, you're focused on your original research, forming your proposal, researching and then writing your dissertation. Your dissertation usually takes the form of three publishable papers or a longer single dissertation paper. 

Additional PhD Program Requirements

Refer to the PhD Handbook for complete information on:

  • PhD core requirements
  • First-year paper
  • Second-year paper
  • Qualifying exams
  • Teaching skills
  • Responsible conduct of research training requirement
  • Application to candidacy

Contact Us

Organization and Human Resources Department
School of Management
University at Buffalo
280 Jacobs Management Center
Buffalo, NY 14260-4000

Tel:  716-645-3280
Fax: 716-645-2863

To speak to a faculty member, contact Emily Grijalva, PhD, associate professor, organization and human resources.

Alumni Viewpoints

“The PhD program at UB translated my aspiration into reality. The program embeds a systematic curriculum that helped instill in me high expectations for myself for conducting high quality of research and scholarship. My years of experience at UB became a solid foundation and provided me the confidence for conducting cutting-edge research in the fields of organizational behavior and leadership.”

Jeewon Cho, PhD ’07
Assistant Professor
College of Business
Oregon State University