Doctoral Dreams

Bauer College welcomed Fall 2025 Ph.D. candidates to an orientation where they had the chance to meet their cohort and hear from leaders at Bauer.  

To complete one’s Ph.D. is to reach a pinnacle in higher education, Associate Dean of Research Vanessa Patrick-Ralhan said. She added that this is the time when students craft their own unique identity as scholars, and Bauer is invested in developing the future generation of thinkers and innovators. 

“I see the Ph.D. students as the stewards of our discipline,” she said. “They represent the future of research. As the Associate Dean of Research, the fact that we have this new group of students who are full of potential is very exciting.” 

Students shared their academic backgrounds as well as what they were excited about starting at Bauer. Many of them said that they were looking forward to the new challenges that would be presented to them, learning and collaborating with faculty on research and to learn new perspectives and disciplines from their cohort.  

Bauer College Dean Xianjun Geng welcomed students to the program by sharing with them key pieces of advice that he said have helped him tremendously throughout his career. 

Doctoral Program Director Ye Hu agreed with Geng, saying that he is a strong believer in hard work and that if students hold on to that characteristic, it can carry them through in the long run.  

The morning’s program also featured Assistant Professor of Accounting Linette Rousseau who led a session on navigating the Ph.D. Life. Drawing from her own experience, Rousseau shared lessons for building a successful academic career and offered practical guidance on managing each stage of the program.