PhD Program

Program Overview

In addition to teaching courses for Wharton MBA and Executive MBA students, the Graduate Communication Program helps Wharton doctoral students with research presentations and job talks.

What We Do:

In collaboration with the Wharton Doctoral Program, we provide the following support to all doctoral students:

  • Communication workshops focusing on strategies and best practices for developing and delivering presentations based on their research.
  • One-on-one communication coaching throughout their doctoral studies on:
    • Research papers
    • Dissertation proposal
    • Job talks
  • Two individuals are seated on stage, engaged in a discussion as part of a leadership lecture at the Wharton School. Banners with the Wharton logo are visible in the background.
  • A person is speaking at a podium in a lecture room, with a screen and banner displaying "The Wharton Experience." Audience members are visible.
  • A person in a sweater is giving a talk or lecture to a seated audience in a large room. The audience is attentive, with many people visible.

Our Process: 

Our coaching process focuses on the preparation and delivery aspects of communicating their research to expert and non-expert audiences and includes a robust feedback system that gives students insight into the effectiveness of their presentations. We execute this in two ways: 

  • Video recording of every presentation. 
  • Feedback mechanism during the presentation to surface potential issues around clarity and delivery.  

 Our communication coaches typically meet with students twice for each presentation: once before the presentation to review the structure of the talk and slide deck, and again after the presentation to provide individualized feedback based on video review and faculty/peer feedback. Additional sessions are also available upon request. 

If you are interested in coaching or have questions, please contact Sunida Witayakarn at sunida@wharton.upenn.edu.