PhD in Management Science and Operations Management
The Management Science and Operations Management PhD Program applies the underlying methodologies of management science to deal with problems of developing, producing, and delivering goods and services.
In collaboration with faculty who are recognized leaders in their fields, you’ll use rigorous research methods and theory to help guide organizations to better outcomes.
Our Distinguished Management Science and Operations Management Faculty
Chicago Booth faculty in management science and operations management conduct pioneering work with lasting impact. As a doctoral student here, you’ll gain from their knowledge and experience through advising, mentorship, and research collaboration.
A Network of Support
Chicago Booth is home to several research centers that offer research funding to PhD students. They also bring together a network of like-minded scholars who guide and support our students in their research.
Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation
Chicago Booth’s destination for people committed to tackling social and environmental problems, the Rustandy Center supports the work of PhD students and others who are focused on transforming the social sector.
Scholarly Publications
Chicago Booth is home to some of the world’s most prestigious business and economic journals. Today, the school is responsible for the management of three high-impact journals, while four others were founded at Booth.
Alumni Success
Our alumni have gone on to successful careers in academia and industry.
S. Alex Yang, MBA ’10, PhD ’10
Associate Professor of Management Science and Operations
London Business School
S. Alex Yang’s main research focus is on how operational and financial decisions are coordinated within value chains. His other research interests include fintech, value chain management, and platform economy. His PhD is in management science and operations management.
Spotlight on Research
Faculty and student research in management science and operations management is regularly highlighted in Chicago Booth Review.
Amy R. Ward Says Customers Are Getting Impatient
In this digital age, customers expect what they want when they want it. Chicago Booth’s Amy R. Ward explores ways business can provide that.
Amy R. Ward Says Customers Are Getting Impatient
Dan Adelman Says Health Care Has a Data Opportunity
The Charles I. Clough Jr. Professor of Operations Management explains why health care is behind in data analytics, and why it’s poised to improve.
Dan Adelman Says Health Care Has a Data Opportunity
How Bookies Can Outwit Smart Bettors
Chicago Booth’s John R. Birge and Booth PhD candidate Yifan Feng identified a set of policies that enables bookies to strike a balance between learning from market participants and bluff-proofing their business.
How Bookies Can Outwit Smart BettorsThe PhD Experience at Booth
For Vishal Ahuja, PhD ’13, a key strength of the Chicago Booth community is its interdisciplinary nature.
Vishal Ahuja '13: 00:03
I find one of the strengths of University of Chicago is the interdisciplinary nature of the work, and then as long as you've got ideas people like to work together. I started getting interested in health care after I took a course in public policy. My research deals with clinical trials. What we are trying to do is to improve the way trials are conducted. As patients come in and are allocated one to the treatment arm and one to the placebos. Now, let's say after a year you find that one treatment in particular is doing extremely well, which means great patient outcomes. On the other, it's just bad.
Vishal Ahuja '13: 00:40
Wouldn't you want to allocate the patients on the bad arm to the better arm? The problem is that if you find out after a year that one arm is better than the other, or one treatment is better than the placebo, or the generic, you can't stop, because otherwise that you're violating the protocol. There has to be a scientific protocol that says, if this, this, this, and this happens, then do this. If eight out of 10 patients see success, and four out of 10 on B don't see success, then allocate one patient, move one patient from B to A. There has to be a scientific, what I call a policy, that the FDA is aware of, and is building the protocol.
Vishal Ahuja '13: 01:15
The fundamental idea is being adaptive about how you allocate patients, but do so in a scientific way, and when there are multiple patients present. My dissertation committee was very much interdisciplinary in nature, one from economics, three from operations and one for Pittsburgh School of Medicine. And I think I benefited a lot from having that interdisciplinary committee. I find that medical community is much more amenable to these kinds of methodologies and the ways of addressing the problem. What I find is that we're missing that language barrier where we think we're doing this great work and they think these guys are just doing some work that's not applicable. So fighting that communication barrier, I think, is the key. And you get to appreciate how some of the work that Booth students do, including myself, it could potentially impact patient lives.
Current Management Science and Operations Management Students
Chicago Booth is a top destination for students interested in management science and operations management. They come from all over the world to work with faculty whose work has had an impact on the way industry professionals, government leaders, and scholars conduct business.
Jayoung Byun
Tongqing (Angelina) Chen
Farbod Ekbatani
Feiyu Han
Ebru Kasikaralar
Cagla Keceli
Chun Li
Zi Ling
Robert Montgomery
Emin Ozyoruk
Fabricio Previgliano
Tingrui Shi
Dilara Sonmez
Duygu Soylemez
Maximiliano Stock
Gulin Tuzcuoglu
Jose Velarde Morales
Tong Xie
Yaqi Xie
Angela (Jingyuan) Yang
Yucel Naz Yetimoglu
Yueyang Zhong
Program Expectations and Requirements
The Stevens Program at Booth is a full-time program. Students generally complete the majority of coursework and examination requirements within the first two years of studies and begin work on their dissertation during the third year.
For details, see General Examination Requirements by Area in the Stevens Program Guidebook below.