This study had a purpose to understand the University of Namibia (UNAM)’s Doctoral Models and their performance in the recent past – 2012 to present. The method used was a simple desktop literature review on doctoral studies, the Namibian economy, state of higher education in the country, UNAM’s Policies and Practices on Doctoral studies, and performance of UNAM’s doctoral programs. It was found that the university is conformant to most international and national docterateness standards. As such there cannot be much doubt in terms of the quality of doctoral degrees that UNAM produces. However, limited doctoral supervisor’s capacity, over dependent on PhD by research mode – ignoring many other approaches, and the linkage of university financing formula to enrolment figures than to graduate figures – a disincentive to potential supervisors, are critically compromising the university performance with regard to numbers of PhD outputs. The effect is evident in poor fairing of the University on research, patents and industrial designs – a clear warning that the university fall far too shot of being a significant player in the aspiration of Namibian becoming a knowledge economy. Therefore, the study strongly recommends a change in the University financing formula by government (to take into account institutional outputs), investing more training and development for supervisory capacity, as well as more public investment into the production of intellectual property to enable the university to compete with its peers locally, regionally and internationally. Future empirical tracer study research need to narrow on the role PhD graduates play in a knowledge economy
Table of Contents
1. Introduction and Background
2. Conceptual Issues On Doctoral Studies
3. The Namibian Economy
4. UNAM Policies and Practices on Doctoral Studies
5. Performance on Doctoral Delivery at UNAM
6. Potential UNA’s Contribution to a Knowledge Economy
7. Conclusions and Recommendations
8. References
9. APPENDICES
Objectives and Themes
This study aims to examine the University of Namibia's (UNAM) doctoral models and their performance from 2012 to the present, evaluating their potential contribution to Namibia’s aspiration of becoming a knowledge-based economy.
- Identification of doctoral models utilized by UNAM.
- Assessment of doctoral success rates and graduation trends.
- Evaluation of university performance relative to international and national standards.
- Analysis of funding formulas and their impact on doctoral outputs.
- Examination of the role of doctoral research in the broader Namibian knowledge economy.
Excerpt from the Book
b. Types of Doctoral approaches
In his 2019 Class tutorials on the CREST Course (Module 2, Types of Doctoral Degrees and New Institutional Structures for Doctoral Education, Slide 8), Professor Botha outline 5 different types of doctoral studies. These are: Thesis-based Doctorate, publication-based thesis (PBT), practice-based doctorate, professional doctorate, and New route PhD. He acknowledges that there is a growing trend in the UK and South Africa towards doctorates by publication as a vivid response to policy-led pressures for research productivity within performative university (Botha, 2019, slide. 11).
Although there may be a compelling case for embracing a diverse model of doctoral degrees such as PBT, professional doctorate and others, logistical requirements and capacity challenges implicitly coming with such other (non-traditional) models could compromise the intentions. Faced with such a dilemma, an institution could thus settle for what is reasonably manageable. Perhaps this explains why nearly all University of Namibia doctoral research between 2013 and 2018 follow a monogram research-based approach.
For example, adopting a publication-based doctorate opens up opportunities for prospective candidates not fit to follow the traditional research-based doctorate approach. However, a doctorate by publication demands a slightly additional number of supervisor, as opposed to the number required in the traditional monogram format – See (Botha, 2019, slide. 23). As outlined later, there are more determinant factors though.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction and Background: Outlines the study's objective to analyze UNAM's doctoral models and performance since 2012.
2. Conceptual Issues On Doctoral Studies: Defines the requirements for doctoral degrees and explores various approaches to doctoral research.
3. The Namibian Economy: Analyzes Namibia's standing as a knowledge-driven economy and the role of higher education within it.
4. UNAM Policies and Practices on Doctoral Studies: Examines the regulatory frameworks and guidelines governing doctoral education at UNAM.
5. Performance on Doctoral Delivery at UNAM: Reviews enrollment and graduation statistics to evaluate the effectiveness of doctoral programs.
6. Potential UNA’s Contribution to a Knowledge Economy: Assesses the university's research output and patent production relative to regional peers.
7. Conclusions and Recommendations: Summarizes the findings and suggests policy shifts to improve supervision capacity and doctoral output.
8. References: Provides a list of academic sources and reports cited in the study.
9. APPENDICES: Lists doctoral topics completed at UNAM between 2012 and 2018.
Keywords
University of Namibia, doctoral models, knowledge economy, doctorateness, PhD graduation, research output, supervision capacity, higher education funding, postgraduate studies, patent production, human capital, academic performance, Namibia, thesis-based doctorate, doctoral success.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
The paper evaluates the doctoral education models at the University of Namibia (UNAM) and assesses their effectiveness in contributing to the country's aspirations of becoming a knowledge-based economy.
What are the primary themes discussed in the work?
Key themes include doctoral success rates, the impact of university funding formulas on degree completion, the influence of supervision capacity, and the alignment of research output with national development goals.
What is the main research objective?
The objective is to understand UNAM's doctoral models from 2012 to present, determine the rate of doctoral success, and evaluate how these programs contribute to the Namibian knowledge economy.
Which methodology was employed for the study?
The study utilized a desktop literature review concerning doctoral studies, the Namibian economic landscape, higher education policies, and the performance indicators of UNAM's doctoral programs.
What topics are covered in the main body of the paper?
The main body covers the conceptual definitions of doctorateness, the status of the Namibian economy, UNAM's institutional policies, performance metrics on doctoral delivery, and a comparative analysis of research output.
Which specific keywords define this research?
Keywords include University of Namibia, doctoral models, knowledge economy, doctorateness, research output, and PhD graduation, among others.
Why does the author argue that the current funding model is insufficient?
The author argues that the current formula emphasizes enrollment rather than graduation, which provides a disincentive for departments to focus on student completion and output quality.
What is the significance of "doctorateness" in this study?
Doctorateness refers to the synergy of components such as research design, methodology, and contribution to knowledge, which the author uses as a benchmark to confirm the quality of UNAM's degrees.
How does UNAM compare to other regional universities regarding research?
The study notes that UNAM ranks relatively low in comparison to its regional peers in the SADC region, particularly regarding research output and patent registrations.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Gurvy Kavei (Autor:in), 2022, University of Namibia's Recent (2007-2018) Doctoral Models in a Knowledge-Economy, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/1284949
