Transcript Enhancement

SHAPING THE 21st CENTURY RESEARCH DEGREE:
learning from international practice
Avril Manners
Director, SUPA Graduate School
BENCHMARKING STUDENT
EXPERIENCES OF RESEARCH DEGREES
IN SCOTLAND
• identifying
• considering
• comparing
• learning
from developing practice internationally……
Background to Exercise
Scottish Higher Education Enhancement
Committee (SHEEC)
• International Benchmarking Working Group
(IBWG)
representative of Scottish HEI sector, working with
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Scottish Funding Council (SFC)
VITAE
Higher Education Academy (HEA)
National Union of Students (NUS) Scotland
21st Century Research Degree
1 Theory and discussion
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Department for Business Innovation and Skills (UK Government)
Funding Councils / Research Councils
VITAE / QAA / HEA
UK Council for Graduate Education (UKCGE)
EUA Council for Doctoral Education (EUA-CDE)
2 Practice
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Doctorates
Graduate/Research Schools
Diversity, richness and standards
Key Areas
Four meetings of the IBWG identified five key
areas for benchmarking work :
A Student experience – supporting the research degree
student
International research students. Part-time research students
B Standards, quality assurance and reviews
Professional Doctorates, examination and external examiners,
assessment, supervision and supervisors and the challenges of
Joint Degrees
Key Areas (cont)
C Developing and supporting critical mass and critical
diversity
Collaboration and Graduate Schools, Doctoral Training Centres; Inter- and
intra-national graduate schools, variations and models of graduate
schools
D Supporting the development of postgraduate skills and
attributes
Postgraduates who teach, public engagement,
leadership and management and professional skills
E Broadening the postgraduate experience
Internationalising the research degree experience
entrepreneurship,
• IBWG
Development
(6 meetings, 1 conference and 1 workshop on key areas)
• Case Studies
(Scottish, UK, Europe and world-wide)
• Bologna Seminar
The 21st century doctorate – sharing European
developments
(18 March 2011, Scotland House, Brussels)
• Final Conference and findings
(3 June 2011)
Europe – Salzburg Principles
Salzburg II Recommendations
i The core component of doctoral training is the
advancement of knowledge through original research
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Embedding in institutional
strategies and policies
The importance of diversity
Doctoral candidates as early
stage researchers
The crucial role of
supervision and assessment
vi. Achieving critical mass
vii. Duration
viii. The promotion of innovative
structures
ix. Increasing mobility
x. Ensuring appropriate funding
Doctoral Education in the Netherlands
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7400 doctoral candidates
14 universities
50.3 month completion rate
75% success rate
86% employment rate at defence (34 yrs)
53%(M):47%(F)
28% international students
Issues - Career preparation and international experience
Doctoral Education in the Netherlands
• System of local graduate schools with
national research schools
• Students to employees
• Masters students prepare PhD proposal
• Monitoring supervisor quality and
professional training
• External and internal QA
• National research schools accreditation by
the Royal Academy
Case Study – WIAS – Peer Review 2009
Wageningen University and Graduate Schools
Quality Control of Research
• PhD project – 2/3 external reviewers assess science and
the feasibility
• Selection – normal job application
• OS – entrance exam + English language lessons
• 18 months – go / no go
• Work in refereed journals and internal symposium
• Draft PhD approved by exam committee before public
defence of thesis
Case Study – WIAS – Peer Review 2009
Wageningen University and Graduate Schools
Education and Training
• Training and Supervision Plan (TSP) for every PhD
PhD Supervisor + Education Coordinator WIAS
Education Committee (within 6 months, then after 2 years)
• 30-60 ECTS (1ECTS=28 hours of study)
Mandatory WIAS Intro Course and Philosophy of Science
and Ethics Course ~1/3rd from WIAS
• Midterm job assessment
• WIAS Education Certificate issued at graduation
Discussion
A Student Experience – supporting the research degree student
How do we engage / empower the research student?
B Standards, quality assurance and reviews
How do we ensure the QA of research degrees?
D Supporting the development of postgraduate skills and
attributes
Can we agree to an enhanced Scottish doctorate common core?
To shape the 21st Century Research Degree