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I know that the end product of a master's thesis can be not only a scientific finding, such as the relationship found between certain variables, but also the business plan, or even a concept for a new product or service.

What can be the end product of my PhD dissertation? My idea is to actually to carry out a research project, in other words, to have some 100-200 interviews, collect some qualitative data etc. But can a business plan / model be my actual finding? Can I make a business case, develop that something [and later sell it as a finished product], but still call this everything a PhD by turning the idea into a scientific problem, and having a product as a result / finding?

Can a PhD be an applied research?

Working title: Development of an innovative marketing product (or service) for tourism industry, and understanding a demand for such a product (or service).

Field of study: Marketing / Innovation / Tourism

Tema
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  • You have not mentioned your field of study. So how would one supposed to answer the question?! –  Oct 19 '15 at 15:06
  • @matinking Marketing / Innovation / Tourism – Tema Oct 19 '15 at 15:07
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    What does your advisor say? – Bill Barth Oct 19 '15 at 15:09
  • @BillBarth I am still working on developing the idea myself. What I want to know is, if a PhD is a pure scientific work or it can be something for practice / business? – Tema Oct 19 '15 at 15:11
  • You would come up with any case study to resolve a related case, plan a new strategy or something else, as most of the humanity-driven fields and their corresponding researches often lead to suck kind of accomplishments. Actually, such outcomes would be even practical, if they are both need-based and investigated by means of enough depth, –  Oct 19 '15 at 15:12
  • Sometimes the output of a PhD (say in English) is most of a book on a topic. Maybe you can go talk to a few Marketing professors at your university and see what they think. They're much more likely to know what is acceptable in your field. – Bill Barth Oct 19 '15 at 15:14
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    @Tema that would depend on the specifics of the field and on your particular university requirements for being awarded a PhD. If you don't have an advisor yet nor contacts at the university, you can look at former theses of previous students; if no one has that it probably means the answer is no. – Davidmh Oct 19 '15 at 15:14
  • There are huge funding opportunities for students and startups available in my country, the government and institutions support everyone who has an idea, but if with startups it is understandable, the question is if my startup-like research project would count for a PhD. Is it really depending on a country / university? Are there any / many PhD dissertations leading to a product / startup idea at all? – Tema Oct 19 '15 at 15:24
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    Typically if you do a PhD, the IP will belong to the university (at least partially, but often entirely), so the eventual product would not be yours to sell. Based on your post, I must ask the question why you want a PhD? I get the feeling you misunderstand PhDs on a conceptual level. – Marc Claesen Oct 19 '15 at 15:53
  • @MarcClaesen I need to define "a research problem", which is now more like "a practice problem". I want a PhD to enrich my academic writing skills at the same time and have a title so that I may also have a possibility to teach and do a more scientific job in the future. Plus the PhD develops analytical thinking, which is also not bad for entrepreneurs. There are even courses like PhD in Management / Entrepreneurship available today. – Tema Oct 19 '15 at 15:58

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