PhD Program for Executives

4 years

The PhD programme for executives is a four-year, research-based programme for senior executives

11 modules

Facilitate your work-life-study balance as a Senior Executive: the programme consists of 11 modules (3 to 4 days each) spread over 4 years.

60+ year of experience

Antwerp Management School has been at the forefront of innovation, transformation, entrepreneurship and ecosystems for 60 years, always in the best interest of people and society.

Why the PhD program for executives at AMS?

For the past 60 years Antwerp Management School has been at the forefront of innovation, transformation, entrepreneurship and ecosystems, always in the best interest of people and society. In all these years our ambition has remained unchanged. Our baseline perfectly captures what we stand for: “Opening minds to impact the world”. Our three key values are at the heart of everything we do: global perspective, societal consciousness and self-awareness.

Highly ranked and accredited business school

We, at Antwerp Management School, continuously strive to provide high quality management training and research which has given a powerful impulse to economic and social activities in Belgium and far beyond. The AACSB and NVAO accreditations awarded to Antwerp Management School clearly demonstrate AMS's permanent attention to quality education. On top of that, AMS is also listed in the Financial Times Rankings and takes into account the principles for responsible management education as presented by PRME.

Find out more about our accreditations.

Research that matters and that strives for a positive impact on the world

As an excellent management school, we want to remain at the forefront of business innovation and transformation. Thanks to our extensive research team, we stay on top of business, management and organization science. We achieve this by both creating new knowledge through research and bringing about effective changes together with our partners. Thus, our ambition is clear: “Opening minds to impact the world”.

Three pillars that make us stand out as a business school

We motivate our students to create sustainable value by becoming Global Citizens, mastering the art of decision-making and leading people. To accomplish this mission, Antwerp Management School delivers state-of-the-art management knowledge, anchored in a business and organizational context. This is the fundamental basis on which we put three value pillars that we believe are needed to become Global Citizens:

Self-Awareness
That leads to better cooperation with others. All our programs offer specific tracks to improve your leadership and personal development skills.
Global Perspective
That leads to ingenuity for providing adequate and responsible solutions to problems and issues.
Societal Consciousness
Which contributes to the development of a sustainable society.

The PhD program for Executives here at AMS is fantastic. You get to know a lot of exciting peers, industry experts and professors from all over the world. Combined with fast response times and strong support from my PhD promoters makes it a well-tailored program fitting my situation as a busy manager. I’m very happy that I made the right choice.
— Fabian Hänle - Managing Director of the Blickle Group, China

Program

Practical information

The PhD Programme for Executives is a 4-year programme offered in collaboration with the University of Antwerp. Over a period of 4 years, you will acquire competencies that are crucial for successfully advancing your career, both at an academic and a business level. You will gain the latest theoretical and practical insights in your chosen field of management and learn the skills to advance knowledge through methodologically robust applied research methods.

Start date: 7 October 2026
End date: June 2030

Why choose this programme? Our programme and curriculum have been carefully designed:

Facilitate your work-life-study balance as a Senior Executive: the programme consists of 11 modules (3 to 4 days each) spread over 4 years;
Immerse yourself in a combination of theory & practice;
Enhance your academic insights and enrich your day-to-day management challenges;
Become part of an international PhD cohort: share knowledge and network with fellow Executives from around the world;
Receive support and guidance from our international top faculty members;
Develop your personal, professional and academic leadership.

Download the Key Stage dates file

Why this program?

Our program and curriculum have been meticulously crafted in order to allow you to:

Ease your work-life-study balance as a Senior Executive: the program consists of 11 modules (3 to 4 days long) spread over 4 years;
Dive into a combination of theory & practice;
Sharpen your academic insights and enrich your everyday management challenges;
Become part of an international PhD cohort: share knowledge and network with fellow Executives across the globe;
Receive support and be advised by our top international Faculty members;
Develop your personal, professional and academic leadership.

The added value of an Executive PhD according to Tracy

Curriculum

The PhD program for executives is divided into 2 general stages. The program contains both compulsory and elective elements.

Stage 1 leads to the preparation of a PhD research proposal
Stage 2 focuses on supervised research, advanced teaching competencies and lecturing skills, and culminates in the defense of a doctoral dissertation

Find a detailed curriculum in the downloadable brochure

Now what makes this program unique?

Research Cluster Track

As we aim to foster dialogue between PhD candidates and the AMS research community, we have created a Research Cluster Track, that is based on the broader Research Domains within AMS. The idea is that PhD candidates can be embedded into the AMS research domains and its thought leaders.

Within your Cluster of interest, you will be able to share your ideas and challenges with your academic peers and cluster leaders/members.

This track will run 2-3 times a year, outside the core modules and will be offered in a virtual mode.

Learning outcomes

After attending this program, you:

are able to generate, interpret and transfer academic knowledge within your professional and academic network;
will master business research tools and methods and will be able to independently apply them to practical business challenges;
possess knowledge and experience in all our Academic Tracks.
might collaborate with the Faculty team at Antwerp Management School and continue your research activities in one of our Expertise Centers.

Admission procedure

Entry requirements

Antwerp Management School provides a straightforward yet thorough application and admission process. It will help you determine how you can get the most out of the PhD program and gives us better insight into who you are and how your profile will fit into the select group of PhD students.

Antwerp Management School only admits participants to the PhD program for executives with the intrinsic motivation and eagerness to contribute to academic research and to become the next generation business leaders. Candidates must hold an MBA or master's degree from an accredited academic institution and must have extensive managerial experience. The program is taught in English therefore an excellent knowledge of English is required, both verbally and in writing.

Applicants whose native language is not English might be required to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)

Application procedure

Step 1: Create a profile and fill in the non-binding online application form. Attach the requested documents.
Step 2: After positive evaluation of your application, you will be invited for an in-depth intake interview on our campus or via Teams/Zoom. During this interview we will discuss your previous work and study experience in general, your motivation to embark on this PhD journey and whether you fit in our target group as a candidate.
Step 3: If your candidacy is accepted, you will receive an offer for a place in the program and a link to finalize your enrollment.
Step 4: To ensure your place in the program you will be requested to pay a deposit of 3000 euro.

Fees & Funding

Fees

The program tuition fee for the 2026 – 2030 PhD cohort is € 67.950 (€ 38.500+€ 29.450) (VAT exempt)

The respective fees will be invoiced according to the invoicing milestones hereafter, on a yearly basis. All invoices are payable within 30 days.

Invoicing milestones:

Stage 1: € 38.500 will be invoiced in July 2026, of which:
o € 19.250 (minus your deposit paid) will be due in July 2026
o € 19.250 will be due in April 2027
Stage 2: € 29.450 will be invoiced in August 2028, of which:
o €14.725 will be due August 2028
o €14.725 will be due April 2029

In case you need an additional academic year (and/or need an extension of the program support), there will be an additional fee of € 6.500.

For further details about the tuition fees, please contact the PhD Program Advisor.

Financial benefits

SME conditions: You can receive 20% to 30% subsidy from the “KMO portefeuille” of the Flemish Government.
A similar subsidy is available for SMEs that are located in Brussels.
Public and Social Profit sector: candidates from public and social profit organizations can contact the Program Advisor for special conditions.
Antwerp Management School Alumni: please contact the Program Advisor for the requirements.

Testimonials

We can try to explain why you should choose the AMS PhD program for executives, but the best publicity comes from the people who are actually in the program right now, or who are already graduated and are taking full advantage of their new knowledge in an exciting international career or a personal venture.

Our current PhD candidates and alumni are the real hands-on experts when it comes to explaining how they experience(d) the program, how it changed their careers and lives and how it helped them grow.

We invite you to go through these testimonials and immerse yourself in the life of a PhD candidate at Antwerp Management School.

From coffee cups to configurational thinking: How Dr. Paula Peng brewed her PhD dream

"It is never too late to pursue your dream. It is never too late to grow." These are the words of Dr. Peng (Paula) Peng, who turned her passion for customer experience into a powerful academic journey. Today, she is not only the owner of a café and vinyl record shop in Guangzhou, but also an independent lecturer, corporate trainer, and a graduate of the PhD for Executives programme at Antwerp Management School. Her PhD journey did not begin in a lab or a boardroom, but behind the counter of her coffee shop. Fascinated by the everyday human interactions she observed, Paula decided to immerse herself in the world of creating customer value. "I believe that the small and beautiful things deserve more attention because they reflect the complexity of the real world." In her research, she examined how value is created between service providers and customers. Her dissertation, "Brewing Value: Probing Multi-Dimensional Factors Shaping Value Co-Creation in Chinese Coffee Shops", combines academic rigour with business reality. The findings? A meaningful balance between human connection and operational efficiency is crucial for long-term success. What attracted Paula to AMS and the University of Antwerp was more than reputation — it was flexibility. The PhD for Executives programme allowed her to continue running her business while conducting in-depth research. "AMS respected my subject. They didn't force me to chase big data or corporate case studies. They let me focus on what mattered to me." It was Professor Bart Cambré who introduced Paula to QCA (Qualitative Comparative Analysis), a configurational approach that resonated with her. It reflected the way she sees life — not as a single straight path, but as diverse combinations that can lead to meaningful outcomes. "It aligns with my philosophy of life. And Bart also compared our journey to that of a tortoise — slow is okay, but if you keep moving, you will get there eventually. This motivated me enormously." Throughout the programme — and even through the challenges of the pandemic — Paula grew not only as a researcher, but also as a communicator, thinker and professional. She now applies her research in the real world: she designs courses on emotionally engaging commercial spaces and trains her baristas in mindful, personalised customer service. And for those wondering whether it is too late to take a bold step? Paula has a message: "Pursuing your dream is not bound by an age limit. The PhD for Executives programme has changed the way I see the world. It can change yours too." Bonus recommendation from Paula's vinyl shop: "Listen to Solution by Cui Jian. We are confronted with many problems, but we always find the solution."

Endgame to Evolution: How Dr. Hendrik Leder Turned Research into Reinvention

When Dr. Hendrik Leder enrolled in the PhD for Executives program at Antwerp Management School, he wasn’t chasing prestige. He was searching for answers. As CEO of a software company serving the postal industry, Hendrik could see the writing on the wall: digitization was accelerating, and the market for physical mail was shrinking fast. What do you do when your entire industry is in decline? That question led Hendrik to research the rarely studied concept of "endgames" in business: industries that are not just challenged, but existentially threatened. What started as a personal mission soon became something bigger—a research journey that offered insights for companies everywhere. "Some people in my company thought everything was fine. Others saw the decline. I wanted to understand that disconnect—and what to do about it." A PhD that mirrored real life Hendrik's research helped him recognize it was time to move on from his company. Midway through the program, he made the leap: founding a new company in the same industry, but with a model built for the future. Today, that company has more than 40 employees and continues to grow. "The research helped me solve the problem I started with—not for the old company, but for myself." Resilience, structure, and support Balancing a PhD with starting a company, parenting three kids, and surviving a pandemic wasn't easy. But the experience transformed him. "I learned to be precise, persistent, and analytical. You think differently after a PhD." Support came in the form of a uniquely collaborative supervision model. His two academic supervisors didn't just guide him—they became equal partners in the research. To this day, they remain collaborators and friends. "I still say 'we' when I talk about my PhD. It was our project." Research with real relevance Hendrik’s work has already made an impact—reaching the second round of the Academy of Management Journal and earning recognition at the University of Antwerp. His findings shed light on how companies can turn around prolonged decline, offering both theoretical depth and hands-on strategies. And his story shows what’s possible when you bring academic rigor to real-world problems. "I didn’t expect it to be life-changing. But it was. And I’m not done yet." Explore how the PhD for Executives program at Antwerp Management School can help you tackle real business challenges—and transform your future.

From C-suite consulting to classroom conversations: How Dr. Tracy Nickl Is Paying It Forward

When Dr. Tracy Nickl walked across the stage to receive her PhD from Antwerp Management School in 2023, it marked not just the completion of an academic journey—but the launch of an entirely new chapter. With a successful corporate career behind her, including executive roles in marketing and branding, Tracy sought to pivot toward purpose: a role that allowed her to give back, support others, and share the tools she had developed over the years. Today, she’s an Assistant Professor of Marketing at California Lutheran University, a consultant, and a mentor—empowering students from underrepresented backgrounds to believe in themselves and build personal brands that open doors. Why a PhD for Executives—and why in Europe? "Antwerp Management School was a perfect fit," Tracy says. "It allowed me to continue working and chart a path toward academia. I pinch myself every day—this opportunity changed my life." Inspired by a mentor who studied at Oxford at age 60, Tracy was drawn to the global perspective and personalized structure of the European PhD model. For U.S.-based professionals like her, the flexibility to tailor the program around work commitments was critical. "Education in Europe is different. It stretches you in all the right ways. You are supported, but are also encouraged to forge your own path – great for people with an entrepreneurial mindset. And it gives you access to a network and structure that’s built to support working professionals." Bringing research to life Tracy’s dissertation explored how professional social media profiles, content, and networks shape both personal and corporate brands. Her key insight? People trust people—not companies. That research now directly influences how she teaches and consults. Her students take on real-world branding projects—and succeed. "I told my students if they could make a video go viral, I’d give them an A. Three of the five teams did it." Paying it forward Tracy’s motivation wasn’t just career change—it was impact. After mentoring a first-generation student from inner-city Indianapolis through college, she realized just how much of a difference the right support can make. Now, she teaches at a Hispanic-Serving Institution, where 60% of students are the first in their families to attend college – many while balancing multiple jobs. For Tracy, being a professor is about more than teaching, it's about being a mentor as they build their futures. "It’s rewarding to watch them go from not being confident to getting amazing jobs. One of my students now runs her own company backed by NASA." Support that makes a difference "The support at Antwerp Management School was top notch—from the professors to the dissertation guidance to navigating an unfamiliar academic system. They knew when to push, when to listen, and how to help me keep going." That personalization, she says, is what sets the program apart: "They got to know me. They understood my environment and helped me build a plan to succeed." A new chapter—and a new mission Whether through her classroom, consulting work, or student mentoring, Tracy’s goal is clear: to use what she’s learned to empower others. "I couldn’t have imagined it would turn out this well. But when you pursue what matters, it often does." Interested in transforming your career and making an impact like Tracy? Discover the PhD for Executives program at Antwerp Management School.

Find answers to the questions we get asked most.

Who is the PhD Program for executives for?

The program is designed for senior executives who want to apply research skills and academic knowledge to contemporary business problems in their industry or workplace.

Can I combine the Executive PhD with work?

Yes. The program is designed to support work-life-study balance. It runs over four years and consists of 11 modules of 3 to 4 days each.

When does the program start and end?

The next program starts on 7 October 2026 and ends in June 2030.

What is the tuition fee?

The total price is €67,950. Stage 1 costs €38,500 and Stage 2 costs €29,450. A €3,000 deposit is required to secure a place.

How does the application process work?

Candidates complete an online application and add the requested documents. After a positive evaluation, they are invited for an intake interview on campus or via Teams or Zoom. If approved, they receive an offer and enrolment link.

What funding options are available?

Flemish SMEs may use the SME portfolio subsidy, Brussels-based SMEs may use a similar subsidy, and public, social profit, and AMS alumni participants can contact the program advisor for applicable conditions.

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