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High-touch mentorship sets students up for success

Our high-touch mentorship approach ensures students receive the guidance needed to complete the program in a reasonable amount of time and have success securing a job upon graduation.

Faculty Mentorship

Strong mentoring relationships are an essential component of our doctoral program. Through intensive mentoring and student-faculty co-authorship, our faculty helps students to publish academic research, develop interpersonal and presentation skills, and establish professional networks that set the foundation for a successful research career.

Our approach to mentorship has both informal and formal elements.

  • We ask that, at the time of application, prospective students describe faculty members they would like to work with. As part of our application review process, we ensure that those faculty are able to provide students with the intensive mentoring support they need to be successful.
  • During their first year in the program, students are encouraged to meet with members of our faculty with similar research interests. These meetings often develop into continuing conversations and guidance throughout the program.
  • Students often collaborate with faculty on papers and projects outside of their research appointments or curricular requirements.

Assigned faculty mentor

  • Upon entering the program, students initially work with the Director of Doctoral Studies to schedule courses and gain familiarity with the college and the doctoral program. By the end of their second year in the program, students select a faculty advisor and, together with that advisor, plan their dissertation research.

Annual review

  • Each spring, students participate in an annual review process, which serves both to document progress over the past year and to encourage reflection on successes, room for growth and plans for the coming year. Glenn College faculty meet one-on-one with students to provide supportive and constructive feedback on how to continue making the most of the doctoral training experience.

First year paper

  • Students begin writing an empirical research paper during their first year in the program. A faculty member serving as a First Year Paper Advisor leads and designs the research, with the aim of eventually coauthoring a published article with the student. This early introduction to research and publishing is also an opportunity to begin a working relationship with a potential doctoral advisor.

Dissertation process

  • After passing candidacy exams just prior to their third year in the program, students formally enter the dissertation phase of doctoral training. Students select a dissertation chair and a larger dissertation committee (often also consisting of faculty mentors from other departments).  These mentoring relationships helps students to produce rigorous research and to form professional networks that will help them secure a research or teaching position upon graduation.

Student Experience

"I chose the Glenn College for my PhD because of its distinctive blend of rigorous management scholarship, management scholars, and its commitment to engaged public service. The program’s interdisciplinary approach and emphasis on real-world impact strongly aligned with my professional values and academic interests. Currently, my research interests explore the dynamics of leadership in public institutions, focusing on how leaders navigate legitimacy, find belonging, and fit within bureaucratic structures. My experience at Glenn has been deeply rewarding – the mentorship I've received has been both intellectually challenging and personally supportive, and the community here is remarkably collegial. Through research collaborations, teaching preparation, and colloquia, I've felt consistently supported in my development as a scholar and public affairs professional."

"I chose John Glenn College for my PhD because I learned about the strong commitment faculty and staff had to student during my undergraduate career here and knew I would receive the support I needed to become a flourishing scholar in the program. Besides this sense of community, the wide range of research areas among faculty members drew me to John Glenn as it allowed me to fluidly explore my own scholarly interests. I am currently able to study how developments built using the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) lead to income mobility for residents, while also conceptualizing how public organizations will need to evolve in the wake of artificial intelligence. My time at Glenn so far has allowed me to solidify my interests, grow my methodological toolkit, and truly find my footing as a young scholar."

Graduate Student Life

Students at the Glenn College are part of a collaborative community of supportive students, faculty, staff and alumni.

The broader Ohio State University community also provides students access to the resources and opportunities of a large and prestigious research institution, including world-renowned scholars across numerous fields and cutting-edge facilities.

The Ohio State University’s urban campus is in the U.S.’s 14th largest city, yet with a reasonable cost of living.

Living in Columbus

Earn your Doctorate in Public Policy & Management in Ohio’s capital and largest city, with access to state and federal organizations that often collaborate with our faculty on important and impactful research initiatives.

Ohio State's Columbus campus is located in the middle of the nation's 14th largest city. With a metro population of more than 2 million, Columbus is a top ranked city with a young, educated workforce and vibrant cultural scene.

skyline of downtown Columbus during a sunset with a clear blue sky and green foliage on the foreground.

Explore the Doctoral Program

Read more about Glenn College’s selective, research-oriented doctoral program: