Graduate Academic Programs

Doctoral Degree Program (PhD)

Human Performance Major, Emphasis - Sport Management

Description of Program

The doctoral sport management program at Indiana University was founded in response to a growing demand for researchers and professors in sport management. This doctoral program has produced several scholars who are professors at universities from California to Florida. The Ph.D. program is focused on developing in doctoral students the research, critical thinking, and teaching skills necessary for them to be successful in academia. Students in the doctoral program are generally interested in pursuing professorial or administrative careers in the academic field of sport management. The coursework in the Ph.D. program provides an interdisciplinary approach to the study of sport management intended to build upon the each student’s interest and thorough foundation in sport. Through elective coursework and doctoral seminars taught by graduate sport management faculty members, the program allows flexibility for students to explore a wide variety of opportunities and interests within the field of sport management (i.e., business, communication, history). Admission into the program is highly competitive, and courses are research intensive. Click on this link to learn more about the Ph.D. in Sport Management at Indiana University.

Degree Requirements

Requirements for this degree are prescribed by an advisory committee for each individual student. Common requirement components include:

  • Research Skills – Typically 9 credits of course work providing required skills to conduct research, such as statistical analysis.  These credits to not count toward the 90 credits required in the major, minor, electives, and dissertation portions of the degree.
  • Major – 30 credits minimum
  • Minor – 12 to 15 credits
  • Electives –  0 to 28credits (may include second major or minor)
  • Dissertation – 20 to 30 credits
Special Opportunities

Doctoral students are selected to work on a myriad of ongoing research projects at the discretion of their program advisors. The doctoral mentors in the sport management program are Drs. Fielding, Pedersen, Sailes, and Lim (click on the individual professors to read about their backgrounds and interests). The doctoral students in the sport management program have a wide variety of interests and backgrounds (click on the "doctoral students" link to read more about the current students).

Careers

The Ph.D. in Sport Management prepares students for research and teaching careers in academia. Please click on this link to learn more about alumni of the program.

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