Assessing the challenges of Postgraduate research: perspectives from University of Zululand

Universities the world over are recognised as institutions for the development of knowledge, learning and innovation. The purpose of postgraduate research is to foster the ability to efficiently investigate niche subjects during the research process. The point of postgraduate research is not necessarily to innovate or expand knowledge but to produce academic-research scholars. Most postgraduate research comprises basic research, applied, and collaborative research (Mutula, 2009). This study assessed the challenges of postgraduate research drawing on perspectives from the University of Zululand (UNIZULU). As a comprehensive university, the focus on UNIZULU provides an opportunity to understand how the challenges of postgraduate research from a previously disadvantaged South African university environment can be addressed. The study seeks to understand students’ and academic staff’s insights about the challenges facing postgraduate research with reference to UNIZULU. It adopts a mixed-methodology approach by generating data from questionnaires, interviews and focus-group interviews. Four primary questions were directed to 34 study participants to gather data relevant to the challenges experienced when conducting postgraduate research. The questions sought to understand these challenges from two sides (students and authorities). The findings of the study reveal that the challenges facing postgraduate research include a lack of supervision and mentorship, understaffed university, a lack of research-writing skills, a lack of funding, quality control and status recognition (as mentioned by the participants). The study traces the postgraduate challenges to a number of sources such as the university being understaffed, funding issues, a shortage of postgraduate facilities and the mismanagement of research documentation. The study concludes that the institution should implement cohort supervision and create its own funding scheme. Doing so would address the issues arising from the postgraduate research challenges. The study further suggests that the KZN education sector, and specifically UNIZULU, reviews its postgraduate research policies, especially on issues related to funding and housing. Such an undertaking would justify the huge annual investment needed to sustain postgraduate research

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Zululand

Year dc:date.issued

2017

Author dc:creator

• Mthethwa, BukhulubenkosiNathaniel

• post graduate --challenges --research --South Africa

Licence

• https://devspace.unizulu.ac.za/bitstreams/d5c9b248-19e4-4c3a-b7ca-cc8434ae6223/download