At Nottingham University Business School China, we are committed to training the next generation of business scholars. We offer PhD opportunities in many areas of business with supervisors available for wide range of interests and with excellent facilities on campus. 

Uniqueness of our PhD degree programme:

• Rigorous Research Training: Our PhD programme combines taught modules with personal research supervised by at least two academic staff.
• International Diversity: Current PhD students come from 13 different countries/ regions and research supervisors from around 25 countries/ regions.
• Scholarships: A growing number of full scholarships covering tuition, medical insurance, housing and living costs are available. Application is competitive.
• Teaching Opportunities: We offer teaching training and Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) opportunities to our students to help prepare for an academic career.

Special features

Research areas include:

Accounting 

Environmental accounting and disclosure, Taxation, Audit and assurance, Financial reporting, Management accounting and decision making, Accounting and corporate governance 

Economics 

Macroeconomics, International economics and trade, China economic development and Chinese firms, Financial economics, Health economics 

Entrepreneurship and Innovation 

Governance in science, technology and innovation, Start-ups, Family business, Technology innovation, Entrepreneurial platforms, Economics of innovation 

Finance 

Corporate finance, Asset pricing, Capital markets, Finance and innovation, International finance, Applied financial econometrics 

Human Resource Management and Organisational Behaviour
Ethics and responsible management, Employee attitudes, behaviour, well-being and performance, 

Organisation studies/organisation theories, Human resource management leadership 

Information System 

E-commerce, mobile commerce, digital platforms, business analytics, social media, e-health, healthcare information systems, fintech, design science, digital ventures, artificial intelligence 

International Business and Strategy 

Global strategy and organisation of MNEs, International management, Foreign direct investments, Management in emerging economies, Strategic management, Innovation 

Operations and Supply Chain Management 

Strategic sourcing, Sustainable supply chains, Supply chain innovation, Supply chain optimisation, Social and environmental supply chain, Made-in-China 2025, The Belt and Road initiative 

Marketing 

Services marketing, Consumer behaviour, Transformative potential of digital innovation, Retail management, Digital marketing, Customer experience management, Tourism and hospitality management 

Potential Research Topics

If you plan to study for a research degree, you will have to make contact with a potential supervisor in a department/school before submitting an application. When one faculty member expresses a willingness to be your supervisor, you can fill in his/her name in your application form. Regular supervision helps to ensure that the research progresses in the appropriate way. Full-time PhD students meet with their supervisors on at least 10 occasions during the year. For part-time students, at least 6 meetings take place.

This section lists the general research areas of staff members at Nottingham University Business School China (NUBS China) who supervise PhD research. Please refer to the research interests of members of faculty concerned to determine if your research interests coincide with those of a potential supervisor. Their contact information can be found here.

You may also refer to Research at NUBS China to determine if your research interests correspond with the wider research agenda within the School.

The PhD Programme offers flexible supervision between UNNC and the University of Nottingham UK (UNUK). Depending on the proposed research, students may be required to spend part of their studies at UNUK, but students will be registered at UNNC, and graduates will be awarded a University of Nottingham UK degree which is also recognised by the Chinese Ministry of Education.

In addition to the trainings provided by Graduate School, all NUBS China PhD students must attend and pass assessments for a series of taught modules. Moreover, all full time students are expected to attend and participate at least ten research seminars (five for part time students) during the first year of registration and at least eight research seminars (four for part time students) during the second year of registration. Students are expected to summarize the date, topic, presenter and the learning points from these seminars/workshops they attended in the annual review report in order to pass the annual review.

Rules and Regulations

Please refer to the Graduate School and the Quality Manual. 

Accreditations

QS World University Ranking

The QS World University Rankings 2019 ranks us 82nd in the world. MSc Finance and Investment, MSc Management and MSc Business Analytics ranked in top 100 globally.

EQUIS accredited

Nottingham University Business School China is one of the 176 accredited business schools in 42 countries. Uniquely, EQUIS accreditation applies to all our campuses in the UK, China, and Malaysia.

Academic Ranking of World University 

32nd of all Chinese universities in Management discipline ranking.

United Nations PRME Champion School

Nottingham University Business School has once again been chosen as one of the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) Champion Schools for 2018-19.

Ningbo Municipal Key Discipline and Programmes

• Key Discipline: Business Management
• Key Programmes: Finance, Accounting and Management; International Business

Academic Qualifications

Academically, you need to be:

A graduate of an approved UK university holding a Master's degree in a relevant subject (normally Master degree with Merit for self-funded applicants and with an average over 65% in both taught modules and the dissertation for scholarship applicants).

Or international equivalent to the above, e.g., a graduate of an approved US university holding a Master’s degree in a relevant subject (normally with a GPA over 3.0/4.0 for self-funded applicants and with a GPA over 3.5/4.0 for scholarship applicants); or a graduate of an approved Chinese university holding a Master’s degree in a relevant subject (normally with an average over 80% for self-funded applicants and with an average over 85% for scholarship applicants).

Or if you only hold a Bachler degree with an exceptional track record (i.e., first class honours) from one of the three University of Nottingham campuses and has a very strong passion for research in a particular area.

Key dates

Application deadlines

Nottingham University Business School China accepts applications all year, but new students are enrolled only in September. Please note for 2021-2022 intakes, the deadline for applying for the scholarship is 16:00, 15 March 2021 (China Time); and the deadline for self-funded studies is 11 June 2021 (China Time).

How to apply

Please find the detailed information here.

Fees

2019/20 Academic Year: RMB 90,000 per year

2020/21 Academic Year: RMB 110,000 per year

2021/22 Academic Year: RMB 110,000 per year

Note*1: please note that the tuition fees will be subject to change.

Scholarships

PhD Scholarships

University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) offers a wide variety of scholarships to potential PhD students seeking to study at UNNC. In addition to faculty full scholarships, we also offer strategic research scholarships and other scholarships attached to our prestigious research institutes. The following PhD scholarships are open to applicants for 2020 entry only.

Available Scholarships

Faculty Scholarship -Faculty of Business (2106FOB)

High Flyer Scholarship for Bachelor Degree Holder (2106HFB)

High Flyer Scholarship for Master Degree Holder (2106HFM)

UNNC General PhD Scholarship (2105PHD)

Doctoral Training Partnership Scholarships at UNNC and ZUFE (2110DTPZUFE)

Eligibility

• Applicants must have a first class honours undergraduate degree or 65% and above for a Masters’ degree from a British university, or the equivalent from other institutions;
• Applicants must meet the required English language proficiency for the relevant subject area;Please be advised that IELTS 6.5 ( minimum 6.0 in any element) or its equivalent is required.
• More details can be found on the ‘ entry requirements’ page of the website.

How to apply the Scholarships

No separate application is required for applying for a scholarship but please make sure you quote the scholarship reference number in your PhD application form. It normally takes 5-6 weeks for a final decision to be made after the closing date.  List of required documents can be found on the ‘ ‘how to apply’ part above. 

For research proposal discussion, please contact: Professor Jie Wang (Fifi): Jie.Wang@nottingham.edu.cn