Keehn Berry Chair of Banking and Finance Paul Spindt is among the senior finance faculty set to teach in the relaunched PhD program.
One of the top priorities identified in the Freeman School’s 2013 strategic plan was the need to
investigate the potential revitalization of the school’s dormant PhD programs. This summer, Freeman takes a big step toward realizing that goal by relaunching the PhD program in finance and financial accounting.
“It’s very exciting,” says Sheri Tice, A. B. Freeman Chair of Finance, who led the faculty committee charged with developing the new curriculum. “The PhD program enhances research, it keeps the faculty focused on what’s current, and it gets our name out there.”
“The Freeman School has enjoyed an outstanding reputation in finance for nearly 50 years,” adds Freeman School Dean Ira Solomon. “With the curriculum and student-support package that the faculty and school have put together for this program, I feel confident that our reputation for excellence will
continue to grow.”
Prior to Hurricane Katrina, the Freeman School’s PhD program stood out by preparing PhD candidates to conduct empirical research in both finance and financial accounting. Graduates of the program could join either accounting or finance departments, giving them greater flexibility in the job market.
In the wake of Katrina and the university’s subsequent restructuring, the Freeman School was forced to downsize the program and eliminate the financial accounting component. Since 2011, no new students have been admitted to the program.
Recently, however, the situation has improved. With a growing tenure-system accounting faculty and with Tulane’s economics department once again offering doctoral-level courses, the time became right to relaunch the finance/financial accounting PhD program.
“We started from scratch,” Tice says. “We didn’t really look at what we had done prior to Katrina. We thought, ‘What do we have to do to do a good job today?’”
Professor of Finance Sheri Tice says the PhD program will help enhance research and improve the school’s academic reputation.
“We wanted, number one, to create a high-quality program that would make an impact on the
field and produce high-quality graduates,” adds Morton A. Aldrich Professor of Business Ted Fee, the
finance area coordinator.
After collecting extensive benchmarking data, the faculty recommended substantial increases to stipends and fellowships to help attract the best candidates. PhD students are also now required to teach more classes and serve as teaching assistants and research assistants.
“It’s becoming more and more important that PhD students demonstrate that they’re good teachers to get a job,” Tice says. “We’re trying to set them up for success, and we think you need to do these things in order to be successful.”
“Having a high-profile PhD program is something that is noticed within the academic community,” says Fee. “It helps to enhance our reputation, and it’s also something that can help professors at other schools recommend Tulane to their students who are applying to master’s programs. So for a number of reasons, I think this program will be a huge asset to the Freeman School.”
{ 0 comments… add one now }