African higher education institutions.
The average doctoral supervisory load of permanent academic staff is expressed in terms of the number of doctoral students per staff member. This was obtained by dividing the total number of doctoral enrolments by the number of permanent academic staff with doc- toral degrees (i.e. those who are considered as meeting
the minimum requirement for doctoral supervision).
Even though this serves as one indicator of supervisory capacity, these ratios do not capture the full supervi- sory load of doctorate staff. Often these staff members are also responsible for the supervision of masters students. Co-supervisory arrangements are also com- mon practice, meaning that each student will often have more than one supervisor.
This being said, approximately two doctoral students per supervisor appear to be the norm in the University sector, compared to a lower supervisory load of about 1.2 doctoral students per supervisor at the Universities of Technology (see Figure 15).
Figure 14: % PAS with a doctoral qualification per institution, 2007
Source: Doctoral students in South Africa: A statistical profile (refer to Appendix 1) 70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
5% 7% 9% 11%12%13%16%18%19%
29%30%34%34%35%38%38%
43%43%45%49%50%
58%61%
Mangosuthu UT Durban UT Walter Sisulu Cape Peninsula UT Vaal UT Tshwane UT Limpopo Johannesburg Fort Hare Central UT KwaZulu-Natal NMMU UNISA Venda Pretoria Zululand North -West Western Cape Witwatersrand Free State Rhodes Cape Town Stellenbosch
Significant individual differences exist among the various institutions in terms of their student-to-super- visor ratios. Perhaps surprisingly, the highest ratios are not associated with the five strongest research- orientated universities (UCT, UKZN, UP, Wits and SU) but with the Universities of Johannesburg (UJ) and
Fort Hare (UFH) – 3.4 and 2.8 doctoral students per doctorate staff member in 2007. Table 14 (below) shows the ratio of doctoral students enrolled at South African public higher education institutions to perma- nent academic staff members who hold a doctorate.
Figure 15: Average number of doctoral students per permanent academic staff member (with a doctoral qualification) by university classification, 2000-2007
Source: Doctoral students in South Africa: A statistical profile (refer to Appendix 1)
Table 14: Average number of doctoral students per permanent academic staff with a doctoral qualification (supervisors) by institutional type and individual university, 2000-2007
Institutional type/Institution 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Comprehensive Universities 0.7 0.8 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.8 1.8
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University 1.2 1.5 1.7 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.7 1.8
University of Johannesburg 2.1 2.3 2.7 3.3 3.1 2.8 2.7 3.4
University of South Africa 0.2 0.2 1.3 1.5 1.7 2.1 1.9 1.7
University of Venda 0.1 0.2 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.5
University of Zululand 1.2 1.6 1.8 1.9 2.2 1.7 1.4 1.8
Walter Sisulu University 0.1 0.1 0.1 0 0 0 0.4 0.3
Universities 1.5 1.7 1.8 2 2.1 2.2 2 2
North-West University 1.3 1.4 1.4 3.4 3.7 3.8 2.1 2.2
Rhodes University 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.3 1.6 1.5 1.6 1.5
Stellenbosch University 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.9 2.2 2.3 1.7 1.7
University of Caper Town 1.7 1.7 2.3 2.5 3 2.5 1.9 1.9
University of Forth Hare 0.6 0.7 0.7 0.9 1.2 3 1.7 2.8
University of the Free State 1.7 1.6 1.8 1.4 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.8
University of KwaZulu-Natal 1.2 1.5 1.7 1.8 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.4
University of Limpopo 0.4 1.4 0.9 1.1 1.2 1.4 1.4 1.3
University of Pretoria 2.1 2.4 2.9 2.7 2.5 2.3 2.4 2.4
University of the Western Cape 1 1.2 1.3 1.3 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.7
University of the Witwatersrand 1.5 1.5 1.4 1.7 1.3 1.7 2 2.2
Figure 15: Average number of doctoral students per permanent academic staff member (with a doctoral qualification) by university classification, 2000-2007
Source: Doctoral students in South Africa: A statistical profile (refer to Appendix 1)
Table 14: Average number of doctoral students per permanent academic staff with a doctoral qualification (supervisors) by institutional type and individual university, 2000-2007
Institutional type/Institution 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Comprehensive Universities 0.7 0.8 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.8 1.8
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University 1.2 1.5 1.7 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.7 1.8
University of Johannesburg 2.1 2.3 2.7 3.3 3.1 2.8 2.7 3.4
University of South Africa 0.2 0.2 1.3 1.5 1.7 2.1 1.9 1.7
University of Venda 0.1 0.2 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.5
University of Zululand 1.2 1.6 1.8 1.9 2.2 1.7 1.4 1.8
Walter Sisulu University 0.1 0.1 0.1 0 0 0 0.4 0.3
Universities 1.5 1.7 1.8 2 2.1 2.2 2 2
North-West University 1.3 1.4 1.4 3.4 3.7 3.8 2.1 2.2
Rhodes University 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.3 1.6 1.5 1.6 1.5
Stellenbosch University 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.9 2.2 2.3 1.7 1.7
University of Cape Town 1.7 1.7 2.3 2.5 3 2.5 1.9 1.9
University of Fort Hare 0.6 0.7 0.7 0.9 1.2 3 1.7 2.8
University of the Free State 1.7 1.6 1.8 1.4 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.8
University of KwaZulu-Natal 1.2 1.5 1.7 1.8 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.4
University of Limpopo 0.4 1.4 0.9 1.1 1.2 1.4 1.4 1.3
University of Pretoria 2.1 2.4 2.9 2.7 2.5 2.3 2.4 2.4
University of the Western Cape 1 1.2 1.3 1.3 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.7
University of the Witwatersrand 1.5 1.5 1.4 1.7 1.3 1.7 2 2.2
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Universities
Comprehensive Universities Universities of Technology Total public HE
1.5 0.7 0.8 1.3
1.7 0.8 1.0 1.4
1.8 1.6 0.9 1.7
2.0 1.7 1.1 1.8
2.1 1.8 1.2 2.0
2.2 1.9 1.2 2.0
2.0 1.8 1.3 1.9
2.0 1.8 1.2 1.9
Most doctoral students at South Africa’s public higher education institutions have at least two supervisors (see Figure 16, below). About 64% of co-supervisors are from the same institution as the main supervi- sor – mostly from the same department (45%) – and only a small percentage are from industry (3%) or a
science council or national research facility (6%).
There is variation between broad fields of study, with students in the social sciences and humanities being significantly more likely to have only one supervisor than those in other fields.
Universities of Technology 0.8 1 0.9 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.3 1.2
Cape Peninsula University of Technology 0.6 0.5 0.8 0.8 0.9 1 1.4 1.2
Central University of Technology, Free State 1.1 1.6 2 1.9 1.9 2.2 1.9 1
Durban University of Technology 1.1 1.4 0.5 0.8 1.2 1.4 1.4 1.4
Tshwane University of Technology 0.8 1 1 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.3 1.3
Vaal University of Technology 0.7 0.6 0.6 1 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.9
Total 1.3 1.4 1.7 1.8 2 2 1.9 1.9
Source: Doctoral students in South Africa: A statistical profile (refer to Appendix 1)
Social science and humanities students also receive significantly less supervision time. About 80% of stu- dents in these fields indicate that they spend less than two hours per month with their supervisor(s), as opposed to just over two-thirds of students in health sciences, natural and agricultural sciences and engineering science, materials and technologies.
Across fields, only 26% of doctoral students indicate
that they receive two or more hours of supervision per month (see Figure 17, below), with supervisors spending progressively less time with their students from the third year onwards – by the 6th year of enrol- ment, only 14% of students spend two or more hours per month with their supervisor(s). As can be expected, full-time students receive significantly more hours of supervision than their part-time counterparts.
Figure 16: Supervisors per doctoral student at public higher education institutions in South Africa by broad field of study, 2007
Universities of Technology 0.8 1 0.9 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.3 1.2
Cape Peninsula University of Technology 0.6 0.5 0.8 0.8 0.9 1 1.4 1.2
Central University of Technology, Free State 1.1 1.6 2 1.9 1.9 2.2 1.9 1
Durban University of Technology 1.1 1.4 0.5 0.8 1.2 1.4 1.4 1.4
Tshwane University of Technology 0.8 1 1 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.3 1.3
Vaal University of Technology 0.7 0.6 0.6 1 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.9
Total 1.3 1.4 1.7 1.8 2 2 1.9 1.9
Natural & Agricultural Humanities
Materials AVERAGE
Sciences
Engineering Science, Health Sciences
Social Sciences
More than one supervisor One supervisor ACROSS FIELDS
& Technologies
Figure 16: Supervisors per doctoral student at public higher education institutions in South Africa by broad field of study, 2007
Source: A survey of current PhD students in South African universities (refer to Appendix 1) Source: Doctoral students in South Africa: A statistical profile (refer to Appendix 1)
67% 55% 44% 35% 32% 30%
33% 45% 56% 65% 68% 70%
The fact that only about 40 to 50% of the academic staff at South Africa’s more research-intensive univer- sities have doctorates poses a serious constraint on any substantive growth in doctoral enrolments in the near future. Coupled with the continuing ageing of the same cohort, the ‘burden of supervision’ is possibly the single largest threat to any major initiative to increase doctoral output in the next decade.
At the time of writing this Report, the first Higher Education Quality Committee (HEQC) audit cycle (which commenced in 2005) was nearly complete.
Inspection of the HEQC Audit Panel reports of nine universities indicates that quality assurance mecha- nisms in many cases were found wanting73. Universities are criticised, amongst other things, for:
• not providing adequate support for their postgraduate students;
• a lack of clarity on guidelines to postgraduate students on the doctoral process;
• a lack of formal training for supervisors;
• inconsistent application of rules regarding supervision and examination across faculties within the same university;
• inadequate monitoring and information systems to track postgraduate students.
Interestingly, many of these critical comments were directed at the established and strong research universities, and they were encouraged to improve
their quality assurance and support structures for post- graduate education.
Finding 12: It is evident that the traditional appren-