PhD in marketing - which colleges to target ??

Since you have scored a 720 on the real exam, you may reconsider giving GMAT once again and try to get a 720. I feel 720 along with other positives should do the trick for you.

All the best!

Praval -

Your GMAT score 'may be' on the lower side, but the primary question is, what do you want to explore as a researcher in Marketing?

Please understand, PhD pursuit is nothing like how you research MBA schools. I see so many misleading advises floating around from people who have absolutely no idea about PhD, and/or who are colored by this MBA search bias.

I'd say, first of all think about what general topic under marketing stream you'd like to explore, and then look for current themes of research in that stream. Next, look at the scholars who produced that research and connect with them. The universities where these scholars work, is your target university.

This is as simple or as difficult as that!

You need to have a topic (and ideally, a prelim research proposal) to even think about PhD application - whatever your GMAT score may be.

Cheers!

Hey,
Probably a lot like any other Ph.D.! A lot of back-breaking work, loneliness, and writing and rewriting ad nauseam! One place where you will win out over a PhD in sciences is no one expects you to go for a post doc! Job offers in academia in the US are reasonably easily available for Marketing PhDs and the salaries are very good. Check and learn

No offence, but a PhD in marketing?! what
I really never knew that this is even a thing.

Where is the academic / research background? I've seen that they have been handing out new PhD programs like candy but would you really like to be a "PhD" in marketing?

It's not like that get's you anywhere in corporate area, neither is it respected in the academical sector.

Probaly a huge waste of time for little to be gained if you ask me!

I will leave you with the following thoughts (insider knowledge).

- PhD admissions are very competitive, especially in the top programs.

- US schools differ from Euro/Asia ones in that the former do not expect you to have a research proposal in hand. Your application will be evaluated based on the usual criteria (grades, test scores, essays, references). Euro/Asia schools typically ask for detailed proposals at time of application. The philosophies of these schools are different.

- Regarding test scores: It is of course helpful to have "good" scores, e.g., anything over GMAT 690 would be competitive at many (but not all) programs.

- The primary points that will be considered will relate to your motivation for doing a PhD. You *must* clearly explain yourself and demonstrate that you understand what this program is designed for.

- There is NO connection between MBA programs and PhD programs. Your application process will be completely different.

- If you do not know or understand what PhDs do in their lives, then the PhD is not for you. Your entire life will be spent reading, writing, teaching, doing research, etc.

Hope that helps.

First you write, "I really never knew that this is even a thing." and then you claim, "It's not like that get's you anywhere in corporate area, neither is it respected in the academical sector.". Why do you have this compulsion to write about something you don't know? Have you pursued Marketing MBA? Who do you think taught you? What do you think your professors' academic profiles were?

Marketing is a joke. It should not be teached in University, I don't say it's bad in general but you shouldn't be able to achieve a Msc or PHD in marketing.
That is just unfair for all the real PhD holders.

Just my 2 cents, and I know that I am not the only one in the field of academics that has a similar view point. Even my business professors joke about marketing.

Well, while people are thinking that it's a joke, Marketing PhDs have a very good job market, with good salaries, good chance of getting a tenure-track position, access to money to do their research, a more friendly environment compared to many other areas of study, a high interest from industry (particularly now, in the age of digital marketing, big data, artificial intelligence, data science), etc.

At least for me, a mean salary of 167,000 for someone who just graduated from a Marketing PhD is not a joke. So, I don't think Marketing PhDs care whether other people think it's a joke or not. Why should they? In Quantitative Marketing, particularly, the mean salary is 200,000 for a recent PhD graduate. Like people have been saying, it's no wonder that the math guys are moving from Wall Street to Madison Avenue.

I think it's also important to remember that Marketing in a PhD program is very different from what we see in undergrad. It's usually much more about Economics (if you are in the Quantitative Marketing field) or Psychology (if you are in the Consumer Behavior field).