21 March 2019
University World News has published an article about a new online course for doctoral supervisors which is aimed at building the capacity of higher education staff in the face of growing demand for PhDs throughout the African continent and concomitant low completion and high student dropout rates.
The Centre for Research on Evaluation, Science and Technology (CREST) and the Centre for Higher and Adult Education, both at Stellenbosch University in South Africa, and the Centre for Higher Education Research, Teaching and Learning at Rhodes University in South Africa joined forces to develop the course.
“If you want PhDs, you need supervisors,” Professor Jan Botha, one of the training facilitators based at CREST, told University World News.
Africa’s enhanced participation in the global knowledge economy calls for many more talented Africans who have been educated to the highest academic levels, and individuals who understand the socio-economic challenges of African countries, and are committed to the development of the continent, he said.
Botha said the link between the availability of high-level talent, PhD graduates and enhanced socio-economic development has been argued convincingly by academics such as Spanish sociologist Manuel Castells.
In Africa it has been driven forward by initiatives such as the World Bank’s African Centres of Excellence project and regional collaborations such as the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA), he said.
“If you want PhDs, you need supervisors,” Professor Jan Botha, one of the training facilitators based at CREST, told University World News.
