Whose PhD is it? A Case of Supervision in Higher Education in South Africa
“Whose PhD is it?” This question arises from more than two fronts: the contribution each makes, the intellectual property rights, and the moral ownership of the product. There is a dearth of such literature, the available one concentrates mainly on the administration and intellectual property rights...
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Noyam Journals
2024-11-01
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| Series: | E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/EHASS202451412.pdf |
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| author | Maserole C. Kgari-Masondo Bernard Chingwanangwana Pfuurai Chimbunde Lungile P. Zondi Aboshioke L. Umejei Dineo F. Mosina |
| author_facet | Maserole C. Kgari-Masondo Bernard Chingwanangwana Pfuurai Chimbunde Lungile P. Zondi Aboshioke L. Umejei Dineo F. Mosina |
| author_sort | Maserole C. Kgari-Masondo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | “Whose PhD is it?” This question arises from more than two fronts: the contribution each makes, the intellectual property rights, and the moral ownership of the product. There is a dearth of such literature, the available one concentrates mainly on the administration and intellectual property rights, disregarding the gruesome activities that take place from the start to the completion of the degree itself. The purpose of this study is to answer that question using research. The study uses the qualitative self-study approach, and a case study was conducted from two purposively selected universities in South Africa, drawing data from five academics who lecture in these institutions. This study sought to unpack this question through a self-study methodology. Data generated from the discussions were communicated through WhatsApp, emails, and telephones and then thematically analyzed. The evidence indicates that the supervision style determines whose PhD it is. The authoritative, Eurocentric style of supervision disengages the student from ownership of the PhD, through a shared partnership between the supervisor and the student, the PhD journey becomes a ‘collective project’ and a student’s work. The study contributes to the administration, management, and retention of PhD candidates in universities by advocating for using the Ubuntu Style of Supervision that safeguards and promotes respect, love, care, freedom, social justice, and participation. Over and above this, the research contributes to the literature on PhD student supervision in terms of ethics, accountability, policy adherence, and planning purposes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-de29fb79a31d4120931cd7b339ed724b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2720-7722 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | Noyam Journals |
| record_format | Article |
| series | E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-de29fb79a31d4120931cd7b339ed724b2025-01-06T13:34:03ZengNoyam JournalsE-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences2720-77222024-11-0151425972612https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202451412Whose PhD is it? A Case of Supervision in Higher Education in South AfricaMaserole C. Kgari-Masondo0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1850-6363Bernard Chingwanangwana1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8370-3822Pfuurai Chimbunde2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3423-2163Lungile P. Zondi3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5201-1129Aboshioke L. Umejei4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4226-7841Dineo F. Mosina5https://orcid.org/0009-0001-0687-1427 University of Venda, Limpopo, South Africa University of Venda, Limpopo, South AfricaUniversity of the Free State: Bloemfontein, South AfricaUniversity of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.“Whose PhD is it?” This question arises from more than two fronts: the contribution each makes, the intellectual property rights, and the moral ownership of the product. There is a dearth of such literature, the available one concentrates mainly on the administration and intellectual property rights, disregarding the gruesome activities that take place from the start to the completion of the degree itself. The purpose of this study is to answer that question using research. The study uses the qualitative self-study approach, and a case study was conducted from two purposively selected universities in South Africa, drawing data from five academics who lecture in these institutions. This study sought to unpack this question through a self-study methodology. Data generated from the discussions were communicated through WhatsApp, emails, and telephones and then thematically analyzed. The evidence indicates that the supervision style determines whose PhD it is. The authoritative, Eurocentric style of supervision disengages the student from ownership of the PhD, through a shared partnership between the supervisor and the student, the PhD journey becomes a ‘collective project’ and a student’s work. The study contributes to the administration, management, and retention of PhD candidates in universities by advocating for using the Ubuntu Style of Supervision that safeguards and promotes respect, love, care, freedom, social justice, and participation. Over and above this, the research contributes to the literature on PhD student supervision in terms of ethics, accountability, policy adherence, and planning purposes.https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/EHASS202451412.pdfphddoctoral candidatesupervisionhigher educationubuntu style of supervision |
| spellingShingle | Maserole C. Kgari-Masondo Bernard Chingwanangwana Pfuurai Chimbunde Lungile P. Zondi Aboshioke L. Umejei Dineo F. Mosina Whose PhD is it? A Case of Supervision in Higher Education in South Africa E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences phd doctoral candidate supervision higher education ubuntu style of supervision |
| title | Whose PhD is it? A Case of Supervision in Higher Education in South Africa |
| title_full | Whose PhD is it? A Case of Supervision in Higher Education in South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Whose PhD is it? A Case of Supervision in Higher Education in South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Whose PhD is it? A Case of Supervision in Higher Education in South Africa |
| title_short | Whose PhD is it? A Case of Supervision in Higher Education in South Africa |
| title_sort | whose phd is it a case of supervision in higher education in south africa |
| topic | phd doctoral candidate supervision higher education ubuntu style of supervision |
| url | https://noyam.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/EHASS202451412.pdf |
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