Business and Management

These are some of the topics we are currently researching:

• Business nature and value
• Service organisation management
• The tales top bosses tell to keep ahead of the game
• Operations and strategy in micro-businesses
• Strategy in conflict and developing country environments
• Effective business strategies
• ‘Servitization’ and how to develop it
• The social context of markets
• Events management
• Small businesses and entrepreneurship
• How can we engage people in learning and discovery?
• Workplace equality / diversity
• Organisational storytelling
• Venture capital and high tech young firms
• The process of innovation
• Retail innovation
• Tourism, supermarkets, faith-based institutions and Cadburys

The Business School is at the cutting edge of research into leadership. Faculty interests range from applied evaluation of leadership development processes, to the philosophical underpinnings of modern leadership, and we have some of the most respected academics working here. We link our excellence to the real world via accredited post-experience Masters programmes.

We encourage well-rounded theoretical research among each other and our PGR students. We take pride in the quality of our publications and our positive influence on leadership thinking.

These are some the topics we are currently researching:

• Informal leadership more influential for academics says new research
• Leading FTSE companies: a continuing study of corporate directing
• The gender pay gap in managerial positions
• “Leadership is one of the most talked about yet misunderstood concepts in business and management”
• How can we develop leadership and procurement skills for climate change?
• Leadership – relating to ethics, innovation and change
• How do teams ‘do teamwork’?

Find out more

Tuition Fees per year 2025/26

• Home: £4,950 full-time; £pro-rata part-time
• International: £23,000 full-time

For those studying for more than one year, our fees are expected to increase modestly in line with Consumer Price Inflation measured in December each year. More information can be found on our Student Finance webpages.

Tuition Fees per year 2024/25

• Home: £4,786 full-time; £pro-rata part-time
• International: £22,600 full-time

For those studying for more than one year, our fees are expected to increase modestly in line with Consumer Price Inflation measured in December each year. More information can be found on our Student Finance webpages.

Our Postgraduate Funding webpage provides links to further information. If you are considering a PhD in the future, in addition to University of Exeter funding, we have been successful at securing postgraduate funding for PhD research through our Funded centres.

Current available funding

The skills and expertise that you build now are fundamental to your continuing professional development (CPD), and will be part of your toolset throughout your working life, whether academic or elsewhere. We’re also very keen that you should consider taking part in the University's Postgraduate Researchers' Programme which offers training in a wide range of generic and transferable skills in key areas such as research management, personal effectiveness, communication skills, networking, team-working, and career management.

It’s great if you can enter the programme with research training and experience of research at Masters level, but we don’t expect you to be the finished article. You’ll get together straight away with your supervisor to identify your training needs, and you’ll both monitor and adapt them as your research develops and new challenges emerge.

In the first year of your PhD study the appropriate department(s) in the Business School will specify discipline and subject-specific training which may be methods training, research philosophy, or thematic modules to upgrade your knowledge of the subject. You may be asked simply to attend some modules; you may be required to pass others that are vital to your doctoral studies.

You’ll also need to attend staff-postgraduate seminars addressed by visiting speakers and School staff and you’ll present your research to fellow students and academic staff at our annual research conference or a similar event. This is a key opportunity to get feedback from staff and fellow students on your research, as well as giving you the chance to enhance your presentation skills. Successful presentation is a criterion of upgrade from MPhil to PhD status

We can source most training requirements within the University of Exeter, but where this is not feasible, for instance on specialist software, or cutting-edge methods or techniques vital to your studies, we work with partner organisations like research councils, professional associations and training companies to provide external training. 

You need to be able to communicate your research clearly and effectively to a variety of audiences, and we encourage doctoral students to present their work to external audiences at seminars, symposia and conferences. Each student is allocated a yearly allowance for professional development.

You should enter your doctoral programme in October at the start of the academic year if at all possible. This is when taught modules commence within the School, as does the University’s research training programme and the widest array of training courses. After the training-needs assessment with your supervisor you may be asked to attend one or more first semester modules commencing in October and, if the training is deemed essential to your programme, this may be a requirement for any offer of a place.

October is also the start of the academic year for all students, with a formal induction programme as well as a vibrant calendar of events, and you’ll definitely benefit socially if you start your studies with other new students.

The Business School provides research students with many opportunities to develop skills in teaching, and other academic and non-academic employment, and actively supports students who wish to take on ad-hoc or part time work during their studies.

The School has a Code of Practice for Employment of PGR students which complements the University's central Code of Good Practice for the Employment of Postgraduate Students. Students who wish to undertake work during their studies must ensure they read both the School Code and the University Code before commencing any duties.