Executive DBA in Healthcare Leadership

Where healthcare leadership becomes rigorous applied research

The Executive DBA in Healthcare Leadership is a professional doctoral program designed for experienced managers, executives, entrepreneurs, consultants, and healthcare professionals who want to transform their professional experience into rigorous applied research.

The program supports participants in developing advanced research capabilities while addressing complex problems in healthcare leadership, strategy, innovation, governance, transformation, and value creation. It is designed for professionals who want to remain active in their careers while conducting doctoral-level inquiry grounded in real organizational and sectoral challenges.

This program is in cooperation with the European University Miguel de Cervantes: https://www.uemc.es/titulos_propios/executive-dba-in-healthcare-leadership

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the duration and the format of the program?

The program represents 3000 hours of learning and corresponds to 120 ECTS.
The program is delivered in a hybrid format, combining face-to-face sessions with online academic support and supervision when appropriate.

What kind of research topics can candidates work on?

Possible research areas include healthcare leadership, hospital transformation, patient experience, digital health, innovation, healthcare value chains, governance, organizational change, healthcare entrepreneurship, quality improvement, and strategic management in health organizations.

Is the program compatible with a professional career?

Yes. The Executive DBA is designed for experienced professionals who want to remain active in their careers while developing doctoral-level applied research.

What is the final DBA project?

The final DBA project is an applied doctoral research project focused on a relevant issue in healthcare leadership, management, strategy, innovation, or transformation.

Who are DBA candidates?

The Executive DBA in Healthcare Leadership is designed for:

  1. senior executives and managers in healthcare organizations;
  2. hospital, clinic, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, insurance, or health technology professionals;
  3. entrepreneurs and founders in the healthcare ecosystem;
  4. consultants working with healthcare institutions or health-related industries;
  5. public-sector or policy professionals involved in healthcare transformation;
  6. academics and lecturer-practitioners who want to develop applied research in healthcare management;
  7. professionals with significant experience who want to contribute to knowledge and practice through doctoral-level research.

Why choose the Executive DBA in Healthcare Leadership?

Professional experience

Participants build on their own leadership, managerial, entrepreneurial, or sectoral experience.

Academic rigor

The program develops advanced competencies in qualitative methods, quantitative methods, research design, academic communication, and applied doctoral inquiry.

Healthcare transformation

Research projects are connected to real challenges in the health industry, including leadership, strategy, innovation, digital transformation, patient value, organizational change, governance, and the healthcare value chain.

Program presentation

Healthcare systems and health-related industries are undergoing profound transformation. Leaders must deal with digital innovation, demographic change, patient-centered service models, regulatory pressure, financial constraints, talent challenges, and the need for sustainable organizational performance.

The Executive DBA in Healthcare Leadership helps participants move from professional experience to structured research. With academic supervision, candidates learn how to formulate relevant research questions, engage with literature, design robust methodologies, collect and analyze evidence, and generate actionable insights for healthcare organizations and the broader health ecosystem.

Program goals

The program aims to help participants:

  1. design, develop, and communicate applied doctoral research in business administration and healthcare leadership;
  2. formulate research problems relevant to healthcare organizations and the health industry;
  3. use qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze complex managerial phenomena;
  4. connect academic theory with professional experience and evidence-based decision-making;
  5. analyze contemporary challenges in healthcare strategy, innovation, leadership, and value chains;
  6. generate research-based recommendations for organizational transformation;
  7. produce a final DBA project with practical relevance and academic quality.

How the DBA works

1

From professional experience to research question

Candidates begin with a real issue emerging from their professional experience, organization, sector, or leadership responsibilities.

2

From research question to doctoral design

With faculty support, candidates transform their issue into a researchable problem, identify relevant literature, and develop a coherent methodology.

3

From evidence to contribution

Candidates collect and analyze evidence in order to produce insights that are useful for healthcare organizations, professional practice, and academic understanding.

4

From DBA project to impact

The final DBA project is expected to generate applied knowledge that can inform decision-making, transformation, innovation, or leadership practice in the healthcare sector.

Program Admission

In China

CEIBA Business School cooperates with Shanghai Zhengjian Biotechnology to deliver this program in China, please contact us at: [email protected]

  • Shanghai
  • Hangzhou
  • Suzhou