Doctorate Degree
Interested in developing your research skills and becoming an accounting academic?
The doctoral program at Virginia Tech prepares students for successful careers at top business schools in the U.S. and around the world. We heavily emphasize research skills, which students develop over 4 to 5 years through coursework, research-focused program requirements, regular faculty interactions, and co-authored projects.
The Ph.D. program application for Fall 2025 will open August 1, 2024. We encourage you to apply here before December 15.
Our faculty are experts in a variety of research methods (archival, experimental, and qualitative) and topics (audit, financial, managerial, governance, and tax), giving each student a personalized experience that caters to their unique area of interest.
#25 on BYU’s ranking of PhD graduate publications in the last 6 years
Find your fit:
Our faculty have the 11th most publications (70+) based on BYU’s author rankings for the last six years. Examples of the faculty’s elite publications from the past few years can be found here:
Our Ph.D. Students
- Our Ph.D. students are a collaborative group with diverse interests and experience.
- Current student profiles can be found in the directory.
- We’re proud of our students for several recent awards and achievements, including:
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Coursework (2.5 years):
- Students must complete a minimum of 90 graduate credit hours, including dissertation hours.
- We currently offer accounting seminars taught by Dr. Sarah Stein (research methods), Dr. Jeff Pittman (audit archival), Dr. Sudip Bhattacharjee (experimental), and Dr. Robert Davidson (financial archival).
Weekly workshops on Friday mornings
First year paper and presentation
Second year paper and presentation
Comprehensive exam
Dissertation
The Ph.D. Program is a full-time job. All offers include graduate assistantships to compensate you for research and/or teaching appointments. Generally, in the first two years, our students serve as a research assistant in one semester and a teaching assistant in the other semester. Students showing high performance in their coursework and research projects will not be required to teach in subsequent years.
The compensation for the assistantship includes a full tuition waiver, health insurance, and a monthly cash stipend. Specifically, each student currently receives an annual stipend/scholarship of approximately $45,000 for the first two years and $39,000 for the following years (with the chance to earn competitive summer grants and other scholarships).
Additional funding is available for coding camp, conference attendance, and research support (e.g., computer, software, data).
Recent Ph.D. Student Placements
2024
- Jessica Filosa, University of Alabama
2023
- Gabe DiYorio, Fairfield University
- Karneisha Wolfe, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Mark Zhang, Belmont University
2022
- Delia Valentine, University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee
2021
- Adam Du Pon, Georgia Southern University
- Carissa Malone, North Carolina State University
- Mike Truelson, Mississippi State University
Ph.D. Program Social Events
Graduation celebration
Ph.D. students attending the Virginia Accounting Research Conference (VARC)
Social following a research workshop
Social to celebrate milestones
Ph.D. student wedding reception
Service event to give back to the community