PhD in Business (Strategy & Entrepreneurship)

Admission Requirements

• Undergraduate Bachelor's degree
• GRE or GMAT
• Cover letter
• Curriculum Vitae
• Statement of Purpose
• 2 referee reports (A link will be sent to your referees' email directly; Please ensure that you have entered the official organisational email address of your referees accurately.)

TOEFL/ IELTS

Applicants must show proficiency in the English language. Applicants, whose medium of instruction at the Bachelor's/Master's level was not in English, are to sit for either TOEFL or IELTS.

PhD Programme Fees and Tuition

Please refer to SMU PhD Programme Fees page for detailed and latest breakdown of fees and tuition. SMU scholarship provides waiver of the registration fee as well as full subsidised tuition for all students admitted into the programme from August 2016 intake.

SMU Scholarship

The scholarship provides waiver of the registration fee and full subsidised tuition for all the full-time PhD students admitted into the programme. Subject to satisfactory progress¹ scholars also receive a monthly living stipend. The maximum scholarship duration is 4 years for PhD programmes. Beyond the scholarship duration, students may receive continued support through research assistantship (RA) or teaching assistantship (TA).

¹At the end of each year, the School will assess the student's academic performance and recommend whether to renew the scholarship.

Monthly Living Stipend 

From August 2015, Singapore Citizens will be provided with 17% CPF contribution

SMU PGR Scholars are not allowed to take up any other gainful employment during the period of their scholarship without prior approval from the University.

As part of their Post-Graduate by Research training, SMU PGR Scholars are expected to work, without extra remuneration, as part-time Research Assistant/Teaching Assistant for up to seven hours per week.

Conference Funding

Students are encouraged to attend academic conferences, and to present research papers at conferences. PhD students with papers accepted for presentation at reputable conferences may apply for funding up to a maximum of S$4,000.

Presidential Doctoral Fellowship

Presidential Doctoral Fellowships are awarded to outstanding PhD students. Students awarded the fellowship receive a higher monthly stipend for one year, and additional conference support of up to S$4,000 during the award period.

Postgraduate Insurance

For more information on Postgraduate Insurance, please click here.

Application

Applicants should indicate in their applications which programme they are applying for. Admission will be subject to the consideration by the Admission Committee.

How to Apply

Please click here on General Instructions for completing your Application.
For Applicant's Self Service Guide, click here .
For Applicant's Guide to Admissions, click here .

Online Application:

Online Application opens from 1 Aug 2025 - 31 Dec 2025 for AY2026 Aug Intake.

*If your application is received early, we may be able to interview you earlier and make you an early offer. 

Kindly note that applications without supporting documents will not be reviewed.

Students are encouraged to complete the programme in 4 years.

The minimum duration of the programme is three years. Most students, however, are expected to take about four years to complete the programme. The maximum registration duration of the programme is five years, unless special approval for a longer duration is given by SMU.

The curriculum consists of

• 6 Foundation courses (6 course units)
• 2 Electives (2 course units)
• 4 Advanced Research Topics (ART) courses (4 course units)

The programme also requires the preparation and completion of a PhD Dissertation (28 course units).

Programme Schedule (Sample)

Year 1 & 2

Foundations:
Introduction to Business Research
Strategic Management
Organisation Theory
Applied Econometrics
Statistics for Business Research
Applied Quantitative and Statistical Methods

Electives:
Elective 1: selected from Foundation courses in LKCSB or core courses from other schools subject to approval.
Elective 2: selected from Foundation courses in LKCSB or core courses from other schools subject to approval.

ART:
Research in Innovation and Technology Management
Research in Entrepreneurship
Research in Networks
Research in International Business

Independent Study
​​​​​​​Each course meets for three hours per week during the Term. 

Years 3-4 (+ Year 5 if warranted)

Completion of PhD Dissertation

Students are expected to form the PhD Committee in Year 2, including selection of a PhD Supervisor. Then, under the supervision of the PhD Supervisor, students will prepare and defend their dissertation proposal, conduct dissertation research, and conduct a final defence of the dissertation.

Years 3 and 4

Completion of PhD Dissertation:

Students are expected to form a PhD Committee in Year 2, including the selection of a PhD Supervisor. Then, under the supervision of the PhD Supervisor, students will prepare and defend their dissertation proposal, conduct their dissertation research, and conduct a final defence of the dissertation. 

Graduation Requirements

• Research Foundation Courses (6 course units)
• Electives (2 course units)
• Advanced Research Topics (ART) courses (4 course units)
• PhD Qualifying Examination
• Oral Defence of Dissertation Proposal
• PhD Dissertation (28 course units)
• Oral Defence of completed Dissertation