The quality culture in doctoral education: Establishing the critical role of the doctoral supervisor

Abstract

In doctoral education, both the student’s success and the quality of the degree are important, especially in view of the global demand to increase the number of doctoral graduates. A fundamental component of doctoral education is supervision. A qualitative study was conducted to collect information on the critical role of the supervisor in creating the quality culture in doctoral education. Eighteen schools offering doctoral programmes were contacted and requested to assist in the recruitment of doctoral supervisors. A total of 23 doctoral supervisors from various disciplines then volunteered to participate in structured interviews. Content analysis was performed to identify recurring themes. Nurturing personal and professional attributes of the students to prepare them for employment, effectively managing the supervisory process and dealing with supervisory challenges emerged as themes that impact the quality of doctoral education, with these aspects being strongly influenced by the doctoral supervisor.

Keywords:

• Postgraduate research supervision
• quality culture in doctoral education
• the critical role of the doctoral supervisor

Acknowledgments

We thank Dr S. Queener, Graduate Office, Indiana University, Indianapolis, for her assistance and valuable input; and Dr Daleen Struwig, medical writer/editor, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Free State in Bloemfontein, South Africa, for the final technical and editorial preparation of the manuscript.