Students in the program are expected to master graduate-level microeconomic theory and econometrics. In addition, they are expected to devote substantial time to mastering one additional complementary discipline, such as psychology, sociology, or political science, and developing expertise in research methodologies suited to their particular interests, such as qualitative analysis, designing effective fieldwork, and analysis of survey data.

Students in the Strategy doctoral program work closely with faculty in the Strategy Unit. In addition to the doctoral program in Strategy, the Strategy unit offers a program in Business Economics, which is designed to attract students interested in pursuing research using a purely economics-based methodology.

Our programs are full-time degree programs which officially begin in August. Students are expected to complete their program in five years. Typically, the first two years are spent on coursework, at the end of which students take a field exam, and then another three years on dissertation research and writing.

The program requires a minimum of 13 semester long doctoral courses. Students in the Strategy program complete courses in the areas of business management theory, economic theory, quantitative research methods, academic field seminars, and two MBA elective curriculum courses. In addition to HBS courses, students may take courses at other Harvard Schools and MIT.

Students in strategy begin research in their first year typically by working with a faculty member. By their third and fourth years, most students are launched on a solid research and publication stream. The dissertation may take the form of three publishable papers or one longer dissertation.

Examples of thesis research include the relationship between non-market experience and the use and outcome of patent strategies by pharmaceutical firms; the antecedents and consequences of corporate strategy decision-making, specifically focusing on divestitures and governance; the impact of religion on individual financial choices and institutional structures; innovation in emerging markets; and the causal effect of incentive policy reform, expatriates and social relationships on innovation.