Salem University graduate Amanda Watkins earned her online Doctor of Business Administration while working full time in IT and raising two kids under 10.
Here is how she made a doctorate fit into an already full life, and why she says the fully online format was the only way it could have happened.
From an offhand wish to an enrolled student
Amanda Watkins once mentioned to someone that she wished there were a doctorate version of an MBA. She had earnestly loved the process of getting her master’s, and if a degree like that existed, she said, she’d enroll tomorrow. That degree does exist, her colleague told her. It’s called a Doctor of Business Administration. Within two weeks, Watkins was enrolled — though not, at first, at Salem University.
That two-week sprint matters, because Watkins’s road to an online DBA wasn’t a straight line. She had spent nine months at another online university first, drawn in by a tuition model that capped costs until she finished. What she found instead was a program that felt impersonal — work assigned and graded with little contact, professors she never really met, and a cheating problem she felt was brushed aside. It left a bad taste.
Falling for business after a technical career
The pull toward a doctorate had been building for a while. Watkins came from a science-heavy world — a technical undergraduate degree and an equally technical early career — until an MBA opened a door she hadn’t expected. Taking business classes for the first time, she said, “I just fell in love.” The online DBA was a chance to go deeper, and to claim a milestone she had quietly set for herself. “A doctorate in and of itself is a huge accomplishment,” she said.
She also had a full life to fit school into. Watkins — now a recent graduate of Salem University’s Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) program — is the IT business partner for commercial and medical systems at Genetix Biotherapeutics, where she keeps critical systems running and works across vendors and business teams. At home, with two children under 10, she was often the parent on call — not for any lack of help from her husband, who simply travels for work. When she started her master’s, her youngest was a newborn. “There were times I was taking timed exams while I was nursing my son,” she said. “You just do what you’ve got to do.”
Why it had to be fully online
When Watkins found Salem’s online DBA program through a simple internet search, the contrast with her first school was immediate. “When I discovered Salem, it was like night and day,” she said. “You had access to these amazing professors, and you got to talk to them. It was just a lot more personal.” The fully online format wasn’t a nice-to-have; it was the reason she could attend at all. “That was the number one thing — a non-negotiable for me,” she said. “I wouldn’t have been able to do it if I didn’t have that opportunity.”
Wondering if an online DBA could fit your schedule? Book a quick call with a Salem enrollment advisor to talk it through.
Salem’s focused learning model gave her the rest. Instead of splitting her attention across competing courses, she could pour everything into one core class at a time. “It gives you time to put all your focus and energy into that one thing,” she said. “You don’t have to shift gears.” She hadn’t always worked that way — early on she doubled up on courses — which only sharpened her appreciation for the single-class rhythm once she settled into it. For a working parent learning at a distance, that focus was what kept the workload from tipping over — one core class, one month, at a pace she could actually sustain.
How she studied with two kids and a full-time job
Watkins figured out early that the secret wasn’t more hours — it was steadier ones. During her master’s, she would wear herself out cleaning up after dinner and putting the kids to bed before finally sitting down to study near midnight. So, she flipped the order. “I learned that the dishes can wait,” she said. She protected bedtime with her kids, then worked while she still had energy — about 90 minutes most nights, treated like a standing appointment. “Instead of doing eight hours on a Saturday, I’d do an hour and a half here and there,” she said. “It became very manageable.”
Is an online DBA worth it?
For Watkins, the payoff was immediate. The online coursework rewarded her consistency, and what she learned, she could use right away. “I was learning things I could turn around and apply the very next day,” she said. “It’s complementary to your work life.” Some of it reshaped how she works with people altogether — research on emotional intelligence, ontological humility and her own unconscious bias opened her eyes to dynamics she hadn’t noticed before.
Ready to see the curriculum and admission requirements? Explore the online DBA program.
The hardest stretch came near the end. Recruiting participants for her culminating body of work took far longer than she expected, and her momentum stalled. The support went beyond any one professor. At residencies, she traded ideas with her cohort and faculty late into the evening — conversations she counts among her biggest takeaways. When other students confessed to imposter syndrome, she didn’t share the feeling. “They want you to succeed, and they’ll do what they can to help you,” she said.
Today, Watkins is Dr. Watkins — still leading IT systems at Genetix Biotherapeutics, now with the sharper business lens she went back to school to build. What surprised her most was how much she enjoyed the climb. “It wasn’t quite as hard as I expected, just because I enjoyed it so much,” she said. Since finishing, working professionals have already reached out to her on LinkedIn, weighing the same decision — and she’s happy to talk any of them through it.
Her honest read for anyone hesitating is that the obstacles never fully disappear — you just begin in spite of them. “There’s always going to be some reason not to do it,” she said. “But once you get started, you see that you can actually make it work.”
For all the planning and the late nights, the moment Watkins pictured throughout was simple: walking across the stage. “We all worked so hard,” she said. “Getting to walk across that stage together and be called doctor — it was so rewarding.” Her advice for anyone facing the decision she once faced is shorter still. “If you’ve made it this far to consider Salem, do it,” she said. “It was the best choice for me, but it’s just such a great choice for anyone.”
Ready to follow a similar path? Explore Salem University’s online Doctor of Business Administration program, or apply now to get started.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is an online DBA worth it?
For working professionals like Amanda Watkins, the payoff was immediate. She applied what she learned at work the next day and finished while keeping her full-time IT leadership role. The value is in advanced, applied business skills you can use right away, plus the credential itself.
Can you earn a DBA while working full time?
Yes. Amanda earned hers while working full time and raising two children under 10. The key for her was a steady rhythm of about 90 minutes most evenings rather than long weekend marathons, helped by Salem’s one-class-at-a-time format.
How is a DBA different from an MBA?
An MBA builds broad business fundamentals. A DBA goes deeper into applied research and advanced practice and ends in a culminating body of original work. Amanda described the DBA as the chance to go deeper after an MBA first opened the door to business for her.
What does Salem’s online DBA format look like?
Salem’s program is fully online with a focused, one-core-class-at-a-time model, so students concentrate on a single subject at a time instead of juggling several courses at once.
How do I apply to Salem’s online DBA?
You can review the program details, book a call with an enrollment advisor to talk it through, or start your application online.
