(Commissioned reports and papers listed in alphabeti- cal order by title).
1. The context for increasing the quantity and as- suring the quality of doctoral education in South Africa: What we know about the increase in PhD pro- duction and reform of doctoral education worldwide Prof Maresi Nerad, Centre for Innovation and Research in Graduate Education (CIRGE), University of Washington
• The paper, commissioned by ASSAf, begins by in- troducing the concept of the knowledge economy and doctoral education from an international perspective.
• Trends in the expansion of doctoral education from an international perspective are then considered.
• Issues relating to reform efforts to improve the quality and efficiency of doctoral education are then addressed.
• This is followed by a description of new models of knowledge production – in particular those linking universities with industry, and models used in vari- ous countries to develop world-class universities.
• Worldwide changes in postgraduate education sys- tems are provided, with pertinent examples from Europe, Ireland, Iceland, Brazil, India and Malaysia.
• In spite of differences in doctoral education systems and practices, a number of converging practices are then identified.
• Finally, recommendations are made based on inter- national experience.
2. Destination study: a survey of doctoral graduates across a sample of fields and institutions
Centre for Research on Science and Technology, Stellen- bosch University, 2009
• The report is based on qualitative and quantitative analyses of a web-based survey conducted during 2009 of doctoral graduates who graduated from 15 South African higher education institutions.
• A total of 1 076 completed questionnaires were received.
• Comparison of the sample against the population of doctoral graduates for the period 2000 to 2007 indicates that:
o the sample is representative for field of study (with natural science graduates slightly overre-
presented) and nationality (South African stu- dents slightly underrepresented);
o male students are overrepresented (60% versus 42%);
o the majority of respondents are between 36 and 45 years of age (30%) and between 46 and 55 years of age (29%);
o 65% of respondents indicated that they are white, 8% black, 4% Coloured and 3% Indian (20% of respondents did not provide details about their race);
o the majority of respondents (64%) graduated after 2000, a further 12% between 1994 and 1999 and about 25% before 1994;
o the average time-to-degree of the survey respon- dents (four years) was significantly shorter than the average for the population;
o the average age at completion for the sample is 36 and the majority of respondents were 29 at the time of graduating.
3. Doctoral attrition study
Centre for Research on Science and Technology, Stellen- bosch University, 28 July 2009
• The report is based on a thematic analysis of in-depth interviews conducted with 20 doctoral candidates who studied at six South African higher education institutions, but did not complete their studies or graduate.
• More than half of the 13 men and eight women interviewed were white.
4. Doctoral students in South Africa: a statistical profile
Centre for Research on Science and Technology, Stellen- bosch University, 16 July 2009
• The profile presented in the report is based on the 2000 to 2007 records of the Higher Education Management and Information System (HEMIS) of the South African Department of Education.
• HEMIS was introduced in 1999/2000 and requires all state-subsidised higher education institutions to submit annual data returns on their students and staff members.
5. Employer study report
Centre for Research on Science and Technology, Stellen- bosch University, 2009
Appendices
• The report is based on a qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with 20 staff members at 16 organisations that employ doctoral graduates outside of the higher education sector in South Africa.
• The interviewees represented national science councils and research facilities; non-profit, non- governmental and charitable organisations; the private sector; and government.
• The sample was selected from employers who advertise positions in two national newspapers.
6. Exemplary PhD programmes
Dr Chaya Herman, University of Pretoria, July 2009
• The report is based on computer-assisted qualita- tive analysis of in-depth interviews conducted dur- ing 2009 with 16 leaders of doctoral programmes from nine different South African higher education institutions.
• Programmes were selected from Department of Science and Technology (DST)-National Research Foundation (NRF) Centres of Excellence, recipients of National Science and Technology Forum (NSTF) awards specifically commended for graduating doctoral students, and Research Chairs with an exemplary doctoral graduate track record.
• Relevant documents (such as audit reports, promo- tional literature and websites) were also consulted for each programme.
7. The capacity to fund doctoral students Dr Carlton McLellan, University of Fort Hare, 2009
• In this segment of the Study the goal was to deter- mine what funding sources outside of govern- ment and its research agencies, such as the NRF, were available to fund doctoral studies in an expanded programme as proposed in the recom- mendations.
• In-depth interviews were conducted with lead- persons in agencies such as the Ford Foundation, the Volkswagen Foundation, the German Embassy, the US (American) Embassy, the British Council, the Royal Netherlands Embassy, the French Embassy, the Bank- and AgriSETA, and three selected universities - the University of Fort Hare, the Uni- versity of Cape Town, and Rhodes University.
8. The interface between the doctorate and indus- try: Reconceptualising doctoral education from an international perspective
Prof Kay Harman, Centre for Higher Education Manage-
ment & Policy, University of New England, 2009
• The paper, commissioned by ASSAf, begins by iden- tifying pressures that have influenced a number of governments to support strategies aimed at rein- forcing the interface between doctoral education and users of research.
• Cases of innovative responses in doctoral pro- grammes that have evolved in the UK, Europe, the United States and Australia that support integrated learning in collaborative industry settings are pro- vided.
• Programmes that are geared to producing enter- prising graduates who can enhance the transfer- ability of the skills they have developed and their marketability as ‘industry ready’ to a range of users on graduating, are a particular focus.
• Finally, focusing on the potential for South African PhD researchers to collaborate in a more structured way with industrial partners during their candi- dature, some suggestions stemming from ideas gleaned from international experience are offered.
9 The purposes of the doctorate—policy analysis Prof Jonathan Jansen, University of the Free State, 2009
• This segment examined a range of higher educa- tion and training policy documents from the Department of Education (now reconstituted in part as the Department of Higher Education and Training), SAQA, the CHE and DST, among others.
• The goal was to determine what could be extracted about the purposes of the doctorate over time and in the current period, and how such goals and conceptions of the doctorate could impact on a recommended growth and escalation in the number of doctoral graduates in South Africa.
10. A survey of current PhD students in South Afri- can universities
Dr Chaya Herman, University of Pretoria, September 2009
• The report is based on qualitative and quantita- tive analyses of a web-based survey of doctoral students enrolled during 2009 at 12 South African higher education institutions. The 12 institutions produce approximately 90% of all doctorates in the country.
• A total of 936 responses was received.
• As a result of a technical fault, the responses to six of the survey questions were only captured for the last 438 respondents, which included only four institutions. These are referred to as sample 2.
• Comparison of the main sample (N = 936) against
the population of 2007 doctoral enrolments across all 12 institutions indicate that:
o social sciences are under-represented and natural and agricultural sciences are over-re- presented in this sample;
o women, white students and younger students are also over-represented;
o the sample is fairly representative for nationality;
o 57% of the respondents were married or in per- manent relationship, and 45% had children.
• Comparison of sample 2 (N = 438) against the main sample indicates that sample 2:
o is slightly biased towards the natural sciences and social sciences are under-represented;
o is representative of the main sample in terms of respondents’ gender, but white students are slightly over-represented and respondents are slightly younger;
o includes more full-time students than the main sample.
11. Systemic blockages in postgraduate education and training
Prof Johann Mouton, Stellenbosch University, and Ms Lise Kriel, University of the Free State, 28 September 2009
• The report is based on a desktop study of literature and debates relevant to the aim of the study, i.e. to
“identify the structural, legal, policy and organisa- tional blockages in postgraduate education and training that might impede the escalation in the number of PhDs in South Africa”.
12. The capacity to train doctoral students Dr Chaya Herman, University of Pretoria, June 2009
• The aim of this segment of the Study was to es- tablish the capacity of the national system for train- ing more doctoral students outside of the universi- ties.
• This study involved in-depth interviews with leaders in science councils knowledgeable about and responsible for doctoral training or the super- vision of doctoral students/graduates.
• The target groups included the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), the Council for Geo- sciences, the Agricultural Research Council (ARC), the Council for Mineral Technology (MINTEK), the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the Medical Research Council (MRC), and the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (NECSA).
Table 25: Doctoral production worldwide, 2000-2007 Graduates Country
Headcount of ISCED 6* graduates% increase in ISCED 6* graduates 200020012002200320042005200620072000- 20072001- 20072004- 20072005-2007 Australia3687380239104315476348865276555950.8%46.2%16.7%13.8% Austria1790187121252197244322282158208516.5%11.4%-14.7%-6.4% Belgium1147131714131432147916011718171649.6%30.3%16.0%7.2% Brazil----3574236042-9919-72.2%-72.5% Canada3978---370941164200460815.8%24.2%12.0% Chile----1888529021715.4%155.3% Czech Republic8951066132715461732190820232272153.9%113.1%31.2%19.1% Denmark9139007328597889559109736.6%8.1%23.5%1.9% Estonia-----13114315316.8% Finland189117971797175118631957189819865.0%10.5%6.6%1.5% France990310404104048420842095789818106507.5%2.4%26.5%11.2% Germany2578024796238382304323138259522494624439-5.2%-1.4%5.6%-5.8% Greece----12951248-243688.1%95.2% Hungary717793983106789310691012105947.7%33.5%18.6%-0.9% Iceland235610141510400.0%233.3%0.0%-28.6% Ireland5015725206686838109791035106.6%80.9%51.5%27.8% Israel688859863999113512061210128887.2%49.9%13.5%6.8% Italy355740443977445663518466960410188186.4%151.9%60.4%20.3% Japan121921317913642145121516015286159791681037.9%27.6%10.9%10.0% Korea6143620866907172794684498657908247.8%46.3%14.3%7.5% Mexico10361496180112302325243228002950184.7%97.2%26.9%21.3% Netherlands-253325562584267928792993316024.8%18.0%9.8% New Zealand46448751052962364363875662.9%55.2%21.3%17.6% Norway65876874071475683888298048.9%27.6%29.6%16.9% Poland-440044005450546057225917607238.0%11.2%6.1% Portugal1586--37233963415053426038280.7%52.4%45.5% Slovak Republic4465327342126854102212181371207.4%157.7%60.5%34.1% Slovenia-----36939541512.5% South Africa#8238439811031108711761100127454.8%51.1%17.2%8.3% Spain6007645369057479816869027159715019.0%10.8%-12.5%3.6% Sweden3049338835173558383427783781390428.0%15.2%1.8%40.5% Switzerland2733274528002742295233033381342825.4%24.9%16.1%3.8% Turkey2124198524722815268028382594335758.1%69.1%25.3%18.3% United Kingdom115681414714232149351525715778164661754551.7%24.0%15.0%11.2% United States of America448084490444160459944837852631560676061635.3%35.0%25.3%15.2% * International Standard Classification of Education Level 6 (ISCED 6) refers to tertiary education programmes that lead directly to the award of an advanced research qualification, e.g. PhD. For a detailed description of the ISCED, refer to http://www.uis.unesco.org/TEMPLATE/pdf/isced/ISCED_A.pdf # Data source for South Africa: Doctoral students in South Africa: A statistical profile (refer to Appendix 1) # Data source for other countries: OECD.StatExtracts (http://stats.oecd.org)
Graduates Country