University General Course Catalog 2025-2026 (DRAFT)

Dec 22, 2024

University General Course Catalog 2025-2026 (DRAFT)

Business Administration (Information Systems), Ph.D.

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The Ph.D. in Business Administration is the umbrella degree within the College of Business that will allow for the nurturing and training of the next generation of social scientists in the fields of Management, Marketing, Finance, Information Systems and Accounting. The fundamental core of this Ph.D. program is the development of experts who create and test theories that expand the knowledge base and can be translated into practical solutions for society.

The PhD program in Business Administration with a concentration in Information Systems will provide students with rigorous training in advanced theoretical and applied/interdisciplinary issues in the field of Information Systems. A hallmark of the program is close collaboration between students and faculty, through which students learn to create their own research agendas and develop their teaching skills. The program will prepare students mainly for academic positions; nonetheless, some students may choose to land research positions in industry or government. The program requires about two years of coursework and two to three years of dissertation work.

Contact Information

Arash Barfar, PhD
Department of Information Systems
Email: abarfar@unr.edu

Program Overview and Student Learning Outcomes

The PhD program in Business Administration (Information Systems) provides students with rigorous training in advanced theoretical and applied/interdisciplinary issues in the field of Information Systems. A hallmark of our program is close collaboration between students and faculty, through which students learn to create their own research agendas and develop their teaching skills. The program prepares students mainly for academic positions; nonetheless, some students may choose to land research positions in industry or government. The program requires about two years of coursework and two to three years of dissertation work.

Upon completion of the PhD program, students will:

acquire a broad and deep understanding of the theories and methods in behavioral and technical Information Systems research.
be able to create a research agenda in Information Systems and independently conduct research.
be able to develop methodological skills to design and conduct research as well as proficiency in data science techniques (statistical and machine learning) to analyze research data.
be able to develop the necessary communication skills to effectively explain, both orally and in writing, the results of applied, theoretical, and interdisciplinary research in Information Systems.
be able to develop Information Systems teaching skills at the academic level.

Admissions Requirements

The Ph.D. in Information Systems program is governed by University of Nevada, Reno Graduate School requirements. All material should be submitted online through the Graduate School.

Applicants should submit the followings:

All required application materials as outlined by the Graduate School admissions requirements, including official transcripts from all previous educational institutions, and resume (C.V.). While a master’s degree is not required for admission, most competitive applicants have already completed a graduate degree prior to starting the PhD.
A minimum of two and preferably three letters of recommendation from people familiar with the applicant’s academic records and aptitude for doctoral work in Information Systems. Prior professors who have had significant interaction with the applicant are the recommenders of choice. For applicants who are employed in a field related to Information Systems, a letter from an employer may be of value.
A letter of intent (statement of purpose), which must describe the applicant’s research interests, background, preparation, and experience. The letter of intent must also provide information on the applicant’s academic background, professional experience, and motivation for seeking a PhD in Information Systems and undertaking the research involved in earning that degree. Applicants are encouraged to highlight any qualifications that distinguish them from other applicants and why those qualifications are significant. They should also explain any envisioned plans after PhD graduation. Finally, applicants should have some idea of the targeted area of interest as it relates to research in the intended concentration. Applicants should outline their broad area of interest as it relates to Information Systems, identify any specific questions that might be considered for research, explain its significance, and, if applicable, explain how this research relates to that of current faculty in the department. This section should also highlight any prior research experience.
Interview.
Preferred (but not mandatory):
- GMAT or GRE scores.
- Examples of written work (articles published and/or working papers)

A. International Students

International students must fulfill all University of Nevada, Reno Graduate School requirements, including the English exam scores if your educational history is from a non-English speaking country. An exemption from English exams is granted if you are a US citizen or you have a degree from certain English-speaking countries.

International students are also encouraged to consult the Office of International Students and Scholars.

B. Application deadlines

To be considered for the Fall semester, all materials must be received by February 15. Materials that are received after the deadline will be considered based on availability.

C. Admission criteria

Students are admitted based upon a department-level holistic evaluation of prior academic works and degrees, grade point averages, GRE/GMAT scores (if submitted), as well as passion for research and alignment with faculty research streams. Successful applicants typically possess an aptitude for critical thinking and are knowledgeable about the state of art applications of information technology. Applicants are encouraged to review faculty publications and to discuss potential areas of interest/overlap in their letter of intent. While no minimum GRE score is required, students scoring below the 70th percentile are generally not admitted. Admission is competitive and meeting minimum qualifications is not a guarantee of admission.

I. Program Requirements

Minimum of 72 graduate credit hours (beyond the bachelor’s degree).
Minimum of 48 graduate credit hours of course work.
- Minimum of 30 credits of 700-level graduate credits, exclusive of dissertation credits.
- Students who have completed graduate courses prior to enrolling in the PhD program may request to transfer a maximum of 24 credits (out of 48 graduate credit) of coursework (with the minimum grade of “A”) no more than five years prior to admission to the doctoral program. The transferred courses may include a maximum of eighteen (18) 700-level credits. The PhD Program Director, the Student’s Advisory Committee, and the Dean of the Graduate School, must all approve a Credit Transfer Evaluation Request Form.
Minimum of 24 dissertation credits.
A GPA of 3.0 is the required minimum for maintaining student status.
All concentration courses, research methods courses, and foundation courses must be completed with a minimum grade of “B”. All other (pre-approved elective) courses must be completed with a minimum grade of “C”.
Continuous enrollment from matriculation to graduation (minimum enrollment of 3 graduate credits each fall and spring semester; minimum enrollment of 6 graduate credits each fall and spring semester in the case of graduate assistantship).
All requirements for the doctoral program must be completed within a period of 8 years immediately preceding the granting of the degree.
Gradaute students must fulfill the residency requirement as required by the Graduate School.
A minimum of 36 credit hours must be completed at the University of Nevada, Reno.

A. Degree Plan

Students typically devote the first two years of the PhD program to course work and research seminars. To develop and demonstrate competency to conduct Information Systems research, students must complete two research papers on topics of interest to them during the first two years. Students then take an oral comprehensive exam at the end of their second year. By the end of the second year, students begin to develop their dissertation research areas, which is usually completed over the next two to three years.

i. Required Concentration Courses (12 credit hours)

Students must successfully complete a minimum of five Information Systems concentration seminars. These courses cannot be transferred from other programs:

IS 771 - Seminar in Behavioral Information Systems Research (3 units)
IS 772 - Seminar in Data Science and Technical IS Research (3 units)
IS 773 - Information Systems Research at Interdisciplinary Interfaces (3 units)
IS 774 - Information Systems Doctoral Writing Seminar (2 units)
IS 775 - Practicum in Information Systems Teaching (1 unit)

ii. Required Research Methods Courses (15 credit hours)

The research methods courses are meant to provide a strong background in statistical as well as quantitative and/or qualitative research skills to ensure all doctoral students are competent with the research tools necessary for conducting high-level Information Systems research.

The required research methods courses consist of two mandatory courses followed by a three-course series (at least 9 credit-hours). The two mandatory research methods courses are:

The three-course series in research methods may be selected from the list of courses in Appendix 1 (attached) based on the student’s research and qualification and upon consulting with the student’s advisory committee. The three-course series must be pre-approved by the student’s advisory committee and the doctoral program director. Table 1 outlines a few examples of the three-course series in research methods, selected from Appendix 1.

STAT 705 -Probability Theory
STAT 757 -Applied Regression Analysis
APST 755 -Multivariate Statistical Methods

MATH 687 -Deterministic Operations Research
MATH 751 -Operations Research I
MATH 752 -Operations Research II

EDRS 752 -Qualitative Research in Education
EDRS 753 -Advanced Qualitative Research in Education
EDRS 755 -Mixed Methods Research in Education

CHS 700 -Research Methods for Public Health
CHS 703 -Applied Health Data Analysis
CHS 719 -Advanced Research Methods in Social and Behavioral Science

EDRS 740 -Univariate Statistics in Educational Research,
EDRS 743 -Multivariate Statistics in Educational Research,
EDRS 745 -Advanced Research Design

MATH 686 -Game Theory
BUS 710 -Behavioral Economics and Game Theory
MATH 786 -Cooperative Game Theory

Table 1. Examples of the three-course series in research methods
BUS 706 - Data Analysis in Management I (3 units)
BUS 707 - Data Analysis in Management II (3 units)
CHS 700 - Research Methods for Public Health (3 units)
CHS 703 - Applied Health Data Analysis (3 units)
CHS 719 - Advanced Research Methods in Social and Behavioral Science (3 units)

iii. Foundation Courses (12 credit hours)

Foundation courses consist of four graduate-level courses in the area of Information Systems. Suggested sequence of foundation courses is listed below. Upon consultation with the advisory committee and their approval, the student may elect to substitute the suggested foundation courses with other (equivalent) graduate-level Information Systems courses.

IS 675 - Database Design and Implementation (3 units)
IS 682 - Applied Data Science (3 units)
IS 615 - Data Integration and Transformation with Python (3 units)
BAN 706 - Predictive Modeling & Data Mining (3 units)

iv. Elective Courses (9 credit hours)

Elective courses are typically chosen in consultation with the chair of student’s advisory committee to support the student’s doctoral research and complement their research methods courses. Elective courses must be at graduate (600 or 700) levels (and may be chosen from the courses listed in Appendix 1). Students who are engaged in interdisciplinary research may take 600 or 700 level courses in related fields as long as they are pre-approved by the chair of the student’s advisory committee.

v. Paper Requirements

To develop and demonstrate competency and ability to conduct Information Systems research, students must complete two research papers on topics of interest to them during the first two years.

a. First-Year Paper

The first-year paper is viewed as a coaching exercise and will help students start thinking critically about research topics, explore the related literature, and get immersed in areas of interest to them. During the first year, students must interact with faculty to find those with similar research interests. Students must prepare their first-year paper with the goal of developing it further into a premier journal article. The first-year paper should not exceed 9,000 words in length and is due on the first day of Fall classes in the second year. The first-year paper must include:

Statement of purpose or problem statement.
Research question(s), gap(s) in the literature being addressed by the research question(s), and their significance.
Detailed literature review.
Coherent and logical development of hypotheses/propositions/conceptual/technical models.
Abbreviated approach to methodology or how the work will be tested.

The first-year paper must be submitted to the PhD director by the beginning of the fall semester of the second year in the program. The Information Systems PhD committee will review each student’s paper and students will present their papers to the committee sometime in Fall of the second year. The committee will provide review feedback at the presentation and the paper will be graded as “Acceptable” or “Unacceptable”. A student whose first-year paper is evaluated as “unacceptable” will be considered making “unsatisfactory progress” and might be terminated from the PhD program. Students are encouraged to submit their first-year paper for a conference presentation or poster session during their second year.

b. Second-Year Paper

The expectation for the second-year paper is that the student should develop a manuscript that could be submitted for a journal publication. While the second-year paper could use the same body of research from the student’s first-year paper, it must address a different (or significantly modified) research question from the one(s) explored in the first-year paper. The second-year paper must be submitted to the PhD program director by the beginning of the fall semester of the third year in the program. The Information Systems PhD committee will review the second-year paper and grade it as “Acceptable,” “Revise & Resubmit,” or “Unacceptable”. If the second-year paper is evaluated as “Unacceptable”, the student will be dropped from the PhD program.

B. Oral Comprehensive and Teaching Exams

Once the student has successfully completed the coursework and paper requirements in the first two years, oral comprehensive exams will be scheduled. The oral comprehensive exams evaluate the student’s research and teaching competency. The comprehensive exams are organized in two separate sessions. The first session of oral comprehensive exam starts with the student’s second-year paper presentation. In addition to the student’s work in their second-year paper, in this session the Information Systems PhD committee evaluates:

the student’s ability to analyze and synthesize research in Information Systems and related fields.
the student’s proficiency in the use of research methods and statistical/empirical methods to answer research questions.
the student’s knowledge of the contents covered in any of the Information Systems PhD seminars.

The second session of oral comprehensive exams evaluates the student’s ability to take on the role of an independent course instructor and teach a class. In this session, the student is asked to teach a subject to a class.

The final evaluation of student’s performance in the oral comprehensive exams will be undertaken by the whole Information Systems PhD Committee. In case of unsatisfactory performance on the oral exams, the student may be asked to leave the PhD program. Failure to sit for this examination without written permission from the PhD director will also be considered a failure.

BUS 795 - Comprehensive Examination (1 to 3 units)

C. Dissertation (24 credit hours)

Work on the dissertation can commence once the student has passed the paper requirements and comprehensive exams. The dissertation must reflect original research that meets high standards of scholarship and significantly contributes to the body of knowledge in Information Systems. A minimum of 24 credit hours may be granted for the dissertation toward the minimum 72-hour requirement for the PhD degree.

The dissertation is written under the direction of the dissertation committee. The dissertation committee consists of (at least) four faculty members, (at least) two of whom must be from the Information Systems Department. The student should select a chair (or two co-chairs) from the list of eligible PhD faculty members in the Information Systems Department based on mutual research interests. The selection of additional committee members should contribute to the mix of knowledge and skills across the committee.

The student will first develop the dissertation proposal once initial approval of the dissertation structure (i.e., traditional vs. three-paper) and topic is granted by the committee. The requirements for the proposal defense should be discussed with the dissertation committee. Upon approval of the dissertation committee, the student shall schedule the dissertation proposal oral defense. Students must successfully defend their dissertation proposal within four semesters after passing the comprehensive exams and at least one semester prior (unless waived by the dissertation committee) to the graduation semester.

Doctoral students advance to candidacy upon successfully defending the dissertation proposal. After the dissertation committee has carefully examined the final draft of the dissertation and finds it suitable for final oral examination, the candidate must defend the dissertation at a time mutually agreeable to the candidate and the dissertation committee.

BUS 799 - Dissertation (1 to 24 units)