Entrepreneurship Specialisation PhD programme
The Entrepreneurship Specialisation aims to dramatically bridge the gap between academic and business activities, increase the relevance of research in real world settings as well as provide students with a practical „beyond research“ tool-box for implementing their ideas in practice.
The academic and business journeys of candidates under this track are highly individualised and tailored to the research subjects and professional backgrounds of individual applicants.
Volume
4 years (240 ECTS)
Language
English
Location
A. Lauteri 3, Tallinn, Estonia
Prerequisites
Master's degree or equivalent
Study form
Session-based
Diploma
PhD in Management
Price
€600/month (€7200/year); payable directly or through in-kind means (participation in teaching, involvement in external projects or spin-off companies etc).
Who is this specialisation for
There are two different routes within the track. Upon admission to the programme, candidates may either apply for a Junior Research Fellow position or study as an individual doctoral student. EBS also accepts visiting PhD students from similar focus areas.
At the beginning of the doctoral studies, an individual study plan, in cooperation with the supervisor, is established based on the individual goals of the doctoral student.
Target Audience
- Graduates seeking academic or research-intensive careers in entrepreneurship
- Experienced professionals and entrepreneurs aiming to investigate entrepreneurial phenomena through doctoral research
- Candidates working on company-funded or venture-based projects that can serve as sites of scholarly inquiry
Programme Structure and Duration
The programme duration is 4 years full-time (240 ECTS). The programme consists of two phases:
Phase 1: General Coursework (60 ECTS)
Shared with the Management specialisation, ensuring equivalent doctoral standards:
- Theories in Management, Economics and Entrepreneurship (9 ECTS)
- Research Philosophy, Ethics, and Design (6 ECTS)
- Writing, Reviewing, and Positioning Doctoral Research (3 ECTS)
- Research Methods for Management and Entrepreneurship Studies (12 ECTS)
- Development of the Theoretical Framework of the Doctoral Project (6 ECTS)
- Research design of the Doctoral Project (6 ECTS), including two courses:
- Peer Review, Publishing, and Proposal Development in Doctoral Research (3 ECTS), including Idea Puzzle by Ricardo Morais
- Data Handling and Security (3 ECTS)
- Developing the methodological framework of the Doctoral Project (6 ECTS)
Specialisation module
Entrepreneurial Inquiry and Venture-Based Research Specialisation module (12 ECTS)
Outcome
Defence of a doctoral research or venture-based research proposal grounded in theory
Phase 2: Doctoral Project (180 ECTS)
Doctoral research may involve:
- empirical study of entrepreneurial processes
- design, piloting, or evaluation of entrepreneurial artefacts or ventures
- action research or intervention-based inquiry
The venture, MVP, or organisational intervention is treated as a research object, not as the doctoral output itself.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
Graduates of the PhD Programme with specialisation in Entrepreneurship will be able to:
- critically evaluate and synthesise entrepreneurship theories and paradigms
- identify and justify original academic contributions in entrepreneurship research
- design and conduct rigorous qualitative, quantitative, or intervention-based academic research
- articulate the philosophical and ethical foundations of their research
- produce publishable academic work meeting international academic standards
- communicate research findings to academic and professional audiences
- contribute to entrepreneurship education through teaching and supervision
Admission Requirements
Applicants must hold a relevant Master’s degree and demonstrate:
- a strong interest in entrepreneurship research
- an initial research problem or entrepreneurial phenomenon suitable for doctoral inquiry
- capacity for critical reflection, theoretical engagement, and academic writing
Applicants submit:
- Academic transcripts (Master’s and Bachelor’s level)
- Master’s thesis
- Motivation letter
- Preliminary research or problem statement
Doctoral students enrolling as individual doctoral students have to pay a tuition fee. The tuition fee is €600/month (€7200/year), which provides PhD candidates with full and unlimited access to all EBS resources.
The tuition fee is payable either directly or through in-kind means (such as participation in teaching, involvement in external projects, involvement in spin-off companies etc.).
In addition, for the applied track, a separate pricing applies to the validation/acceleration module depending on the direction chosen by individual students.
Admissions process and checklist:
- Non-EU: May 1st, 2026
- EU: August 1st, 2026
- Non-EU: June 4th, 2026
- EU: August 25th, 2026
- Bachelor’s and Master’s degree diplomas and academic transcripts.
- The Research Idea must be presented by May 1st (non-EU), or by August 1st.
- Holds sufficient proficiency in English at B2 level
For example: IELTS 6.0; TOEFL iBT score 85 or 45 (exams after 21 January 2026); Cambridge English Exam CEFR level B2; Duolingo English Test score 110; or previous studies fully conducted in English. - Curriculum Vitae, including education, professional and research development activities.
- Application fee.
The application fee is 120€. Application and relevant documents will be processed only after the application fee is received. The application fee invoice will be sent via DreamApply after the application has been received. The application fee is non-refundable.
Candidates from EU/EEA countries, as well as from Ukraine and Kazakhstan, are exempt from paying the application fee.
Ready to get started?
If you have any questions, please contact us: doctoral@ebs.ee
Submit your application via the DreamApply platform.
