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 a 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 10 different countries/ regions and research supervisors from more than 20 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, Corporate governance, Accounting and information system.

Economics

Foreign direct investment, International macroeconomics and trade, Environmental and energy economics, Financial economics, Applied econometrics and forecasting, The Chinese economy, Microeconomics, Spatial economics, Behavioral and experimental economics, Banking, Sustainable and inclusive finance

Entrepreneurship and Innovation

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

Finance

Corporate finance, Asset pricing, Capital markets, Fintech, International finance, Entrepreneurial finance, ESG Investing, Applied financial econometrics

Information Systems

E-commerce, Mobile commerce, Digital platforms, Business analytics, Social media, E-health, Healthcare information systems, Fintech, Design science, Digital ventures, Artificial intelligence, Blockchain implementation, Augmented reality applications, Sustainable digital ecosystems

Operations and Supply Chain Management

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

Marketing

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

Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management

Ethics and responsible management, Employee attitudes, behaviour, well-being and performance, Labour relations, Human resource management, Leadership and team dynamics

International Business and Strategy

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

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

EQUIS accredited

Nottingham University Business School China was re-accredited by EQUIS for the maximum 5-year period in June 2021. 

AACSB Accredited

Nottingham University Business School China earns AACSB accreditation in May 2022. 

United Nations PRME Champion School

Nottingham University Business School has once again been chosen as one of the Principles for Responsible ManagementEducation (PRME) Champion Schools for 2022-23.

Teaching Excellence Frameworks

The University was awarded Gold in the Teaching Excellence Framework.

Academic Qualifications

If you apply for a Postgraduate research programme, you will generally need to hold at least a UK honours bachelor degree at the second class upper division (2:1), and/or a master degree at merit level or above in a relevant subject from a British university.

For applicants with a degree from the USA, the minimum GPA sought is 3.0 out of 4.0.

For applicants with a degree from China, the minimum weighted average score varies from 78 to 83, depending on the university where they studied. 

Applicants with other international qualifications should meet the equivalent of the above UK minimum entry requirement.

When filing in the application form, please provide the final grade/result in the format used in your pervious university attended, e.g., 4.0/5.0, 7.5/10, 10/12 etc. (there is no need to convert it into its UK equivalent).

Please note that admission to UNNC is very competitive and that meeting the minimum entry requirements does not guarantee an offer of a place.

Key dates

Application deadlines

Nottingham University Business School China accepts applications all year, but new students are enrolled only in September and February. Please find the application deadlines on Graduate School’s official website (scholarship and self-funding). 

How to apply

Things you need to do before applying (Pre-application)

1. Demonstrate your research capability. Reviewing the relevant literature to identify a research gap and design a study to find out the answer to fill in the gap.

This is necessary because you are expected to have some research experience and capable of designing a study on your own before you apply for the programme.

1. You are encouraged to search the background and research interests of the faculty members and select at least one whose areas of research are close to yours. Then you need to write to them and ask if they would be willing to supervise, if yes, then you can submit your application with the name(s) of the potential supervisor(s). However, you should also be open to discussing with the potential supervisor(s) should they make suggestions or comments on your research proposal.
2. UoN Bachelors degree graduates from all three campuses with 1st class honours are eligible to apply for UNNC FoB PhD Programme.
3. Materials you need to submit along with the application:

• • Personal statement about your purpose of the study
  • Your undergraduate and postgraduate transcripts
  • If you have MBA degree or your postgraduate degree is of taught modules then you need to provide evidence for your research ability such a published article or similar write-ups etc.
  • Your English test scores (if English is not your first language)
  • Your research proposal
  • The name of a potential supervisor, who has agreed to work with you (For that, you need to look through the relevant faculty members’ research interests and contact one whose research interests overlap with yours, and write to ask him/her if he/she would be willing to work with you BEFORE you fill in his/her name in your application form)

  • You are advised to request the reference letters in the application system as early as possible because you cannot submit the application until your two reference letters have been received.

    Once a request is made, your referees will receive an email with a link sent from the online Application HUB. Your referees are expected to submit their reference letters via the link within 14 days (before the link expires). Once the reference letters are submitted, you will be notified by the application system.

    In a few circumstances, additional references may be requested to support your application. If this happens in your case, you will be contacted directly.

Fees

RMB 130,000 per year

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

For research proposal discussion, please contact: Dr. Saileshsingh GUNESSEE Saileshsingh.Gunessee@nottingham.edu.cn