Purpose: This study aims to reflect on "good practices" in doctoral research supervision and transfer the author's experience to other academics. The author explains the sources of his approach to doctoral research supervision drawing on traditional practice in adult learning and some reference to phenomenology as a "meeting of…

It is no longer sufficient for higher education providers to solely focus on fostering academic research communication skills in their doctoral candidates, as a broader skillset is needed to communicate research effectively to diverse audiences. Such knowledge mobilisation facilitates research impact beyond academia and is linked to funding…

This article argues that strong theories of neo-liberalism do not provide an adequate frame for understanding the ways that measurement practices come to be embedded in the life-worlds of those working in higher education. We argue that neo-liberal metrics need to be understood from the viewpoint of their social usage, alongside other practices of…

Research indicates that in disciplines such as social sciences, humanities and to a large extent in qualitative work across disciplines, writing plays a central role in doctoral education. The close association of writing with knowledge construction and identity building is acknowledged in the literature and in practice. Therefore, to facilitate…

Established models of doctoral education in Australia are generally based on an apprenticeship model, where doctoral students learn from their advisors. However, these are slowly being reconsidered in light of low completion rates. This study investigated doctoral students' perceptions of their candidature by way of focus group interviews. The…

While the time-honoured one-to-one supervisory model of higher research degree training has its advantages, recent research suggests that the model also has significant drawbacks, including its hierarchical nature. Nevertheless, this pedagogical model remains the default for higher research pedagogy. Using the discipline of music as a case study,…

The literature examining graduate attributes remains unclear regarding their value to work within and outside of the university context. The current article sought clarity through a quantitative analysis of the relationship between self-perceptions of PhD-related graduate attribute acquisition and both objective (e.g. productivity) and subjective…

Many universities have introduced team supervision as a means of intervening in the intensity of the traditional supervisor-student dyad. This policy is intended to provide students with a great support during their candidature and to share the burden of sole supervision. It is also a pedagogy that seeks to support students' engagement with new…

Discussions between new postgraduate students and potential supervisors prior to the formalisation of supervisor-student partnerships serve several useful purposes. One purpose is to explore the expectations that each partner has of the other and of themselves and the anticipated nature of the partnership. This article employs Freire's perspective…

Recent government intervention in research higher degree policy across the globe has sharpened universities' focus on the quality of their students' research education experience and on timely completion rates. Studies have sought to highlight the factors that predict research students' timely completion of their studies. Many universities have…

Evolution of an Australian program to provide professional development for university faculty involved in graduate student supervision is described. The externally-funded program began with an action research project to study the collaborative relationship between supervisors and students. When a group process was found impractical, individual…

A University of Sydney (Australia) program to enhance training of academic staff supervising graduate students is described. Program structure, training methods, and participant evaluations of workshops and seminars are detailed, and factors contributing to or inhibiting program success are discussed. (MSE)

Discussion of problems associated with graduate thesis supervision includes a report of a 1995 survey of Australian universities which found that such evaluations were minimal. Also identifies issues emerging from student-supervisor focus groups, including the importance of relational aspects of supervision and systematic feedback. Notes the lack…

This collection of papers discusses issues of quality, institutional research culture, and processes which encourage, achieve, sustain, and assure high quality teaching and research in universities, primarily from a British and Australian perspective. Part 1 is titled "Issues of Quality and Institutional Research Culture" and contains…

Seven articles on higher education and research and development in Australia are presented, along with 12 review articles. "Research into Postgraduate Education" (Ernest Rudd) reviews such topics as admission criteria, student characteristics, form and quality of instruction, and the employment market. "Postgraduate Education…