PhD in Management

  • Do you want to dig deeper?

The PhD programme in Management offers a unique opportunity for ambitious and highly talented students to pursue an outstanding education and research experience.

The PhD programme in Management covers the core areas of specialisation within the field of management. As a PhD student at the Department of Management, you will be part of an excellent research environment with a team of internationally highly ranked supervisors. This offers students the best possible conditions for developing a PhD project of the highest quality.

The open application rounds are biannual and occur expectedly in January-primo/medio February and primo/medio September.  


Application and the next steps

We have biannual open calls in spring and autumn.

We welcome applications from people with a wide variety of academic backgrounds (e.g. accounting, business, economics, engineering, political science, psychology, and sociology).

Frequently asked questions

What do we offer?

Favorable employment terms

The PhD programme at the Department of Management is a paid, three-year research programme.  

As a PhD student, you get the opportunity to study a self-chosen topic within the department’s academic fields in close dialogue with experienced researchers.

In addition, you will most likely carry out teaching (in 1-4 different subjects), participate in seminars and conferences in Denmark and abroad, and disseminate your research in leading international journals. The programme also includes a study period abroad, and during the course of your PhD, you will build up valuable professional networks - both in and outside the department.

Highly relevant academic and interpersonal skills

Doing a PhD is an exciting and challenging experience that calls for specific competences such as:

  • Analytical and problem-solving skills
  • Interpersonal and leadership skills
  • Project management and organisational skills
  • Research and information management skills
  • Self-management and effective working skills
  • Written and oral communication skills

Excellent research facilities

The Department of Management offers an excellent and modern office environment. Each PhD student has an individual office space in two or three person offices, a personal laptop and other necessary IT equipment and programs, access to a fully equipped behavioral laboratory, etc.  

The department has its own doctoral training program and all PhD students are affiliated with the research unit(s) of their supervisors.

The Department of Management is part of a national network of faculty and PhD students in the field of Management.

National and international cooperation

The Department of Management has a long-held tradition for cooperating with a number of Danish and international providers of research training and associated faculty e.g.:

  • Yale School of Management, Yale University, USA
  • Texas A&M University, USA
  • Essex Business School, UK
  • Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, Germany
  • University of Zurich; Switzerland
  • Toulouse Business School, France
  • ESMT Berlin, Germany
  • Universidad de la República, Uruguay
  • WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management, Germany
  • Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
  • Technical University of Munich, School of Management, Germany
  • Faculty of Management, University of Economics, Prague
  • BI Norwegian Business School; Norway
  • Leibniz University Hanover, Germany
  • Copenhagen Business School, Denmark
  • USI Lugano, Switzerland
  • Loughborough University London, UK
  • Centre of Research in Marketing and Consumer Psychology at School of Business, Reykjavik University, Iceland
  • Department of Management, Technology and Economics, ETH Zürich, Switzerland
  • School of Construction and Project Management, the Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment, University College London, UK
  • University of Lausanne, Switzerland
  • Department of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, BI Norwegian Business School, Norway
  • Centre for Trust, Peace and Social Relations (CTPSR) at Coventry University, UK
  • Cass Business School, City, University of London, UK
  • Carnegie Mellon University, Qatar
  • Arizona State University, USA
  • Duke University, Fuqua School of Business, USA
  • Saint Mary’s College of California, USA
  • Haskayne School of Business, University of Calgary, Canada
  • Department of Management Studies, Aalto University, Finland
  • ESSEC Business School, France
  • Agder University, Norway; Strategic Organization Design Unit at University of Southern Denmark, Denmark
  • Department of Methodology at London School of Economics and Political Science, UK.

Promising career paths

After their PhD study, some MGMT PhDs continue their careers within the university sector. Others find employment outside academia in a wide range of public or private companies or organisations, such as:

  • Novo Nordisk
  • LEGO Group
  • Vestas
  • KMD
  • Waoo
  • Fertin Pharma
  • Spark Works AG
  • AltaPay
  • Bisnode
  • Digitaliseringsinstituttet
  • isi GMBH
  • Kidvertising
  • Region Hovedstaden
  • Region Midtjylland

Why study this degree at Department of Management?

A core element of our ambitious PhD programme is to ensure that each student receives guidance from academic supervisors during their doctoral study. We believe that the foundation for a successful academic career is based on a close student - supervisor relationship. In addition to enjoying a close relationship with the department’s academic staff, our PhD students also engage in collaborations with fellow PhD students, carry out independent research activities and conduct coursework at the Department of Management and other leading research departments in Denmark and abroad.

As a PhD student at the Department of Management, you will benefit from our collaborative research community and seminar series, which involves leading researchers from other educational institutions. You will also benefit from our close links with researchers worldwide and from participating in leading academic conferences. Finally, our PhD programme is distinct as it offers PhD students the opportunity to gain different types of teaching experience at different levels.

Views
What motivated our students?

Who are we?

About the department

  • The Department of Management (MGMT) consists of two sections: Organisation, Digitalisation and Accounting (ODA) and Strategy, Innovation and Marketing (SIM)
  • The department is also home to three research centres: ICOA, MAPP and Center for Hybrid Intelligence
  • The number of PhD students is approximately 40.
  • The department and the PhD programme have a long-standing tradition for offering an internationally diverse and stimulating environment with faculty and PhD students representing many different cultures and experiences from various international universities.

​Research areas

  • Accounting
  • Digitalisation
  • Innovation
  • Marketing
  • Organisation
  • Strategy

You can find more information on the different research areas here:
https://mgmt.au.dk/research

What our students say

"Being a PhD student at the Department of Management is a privilege that only the lucky few get to enjoy. It is a place filled with experts from different fields and a learning environment that allows you to become one yourself eventually."
- Martin

"I’m towards the end of my PhD and can tell that (despite covid) it has been a great experience. Even though the PhD is a self-managed project I never felt lonely and could always count on the support of my colleagues and senior researchers. Having experienced other academic environments (universities abroad) I can tell that the Department of Management at Aarhus University is a well-equipped, welcoming and supporting place for PhD students." 
- Andreia


Please contact us if you have any questions

Head of programme

PhD administration

Annette Hein Bengtson

Talent Development Supporter