Doctoral Students’ Perceived Barriers that Slow the Progress toward Completing a Doctoral Dissertation: A Mixed Analysis

Hwang, Eunjin; Smith, Rachel N.; Byers, Valerie Tharp; Dickerson, Shirley; McAlister-Shields, Leah; Onwuegbuzie, Anthony J.; Benge, Cindy L.

doi:10.5296/jei.v1i1.7703

Cited by 16 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…The results show that the participants face some personal challenges, such as anxiety, stress, lack of motivation, and time management problems. These findings are similar to the ones in the recent literature (Bireda, 2015;Hwang et al, 2015;Kakupa, 2019).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…As a result, the low level of proficiency prevents them from making a sufficient discussion in the target language (Al Fadda, 2012). Consequently, PhD candidates may encounter negative feelings such as stress (Al Fadda, 2012;Moate et al, 2019) and lack of motivation (Hwang et al, 2015). These negative emotions might force some of them to leave the doctoral program (Hunter & Devine, 2016).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At the same vein, the inflexibility of doctoral program, intensive exams, absences of support (Hwang et al, 2015), thesis writing (Moate et al, 2019), publishing (Lei & Chuang, 2009), and limited resources accessibility (Warburton & Macauley, 2014) are some of the difficulties found in the review related to institutional challenges. Therefore, Alkathiri and Olson (2018) suggested equipping students with adequate skills to meet the needs of the doctoral program.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Thesis Challenges for Arab PhD Candidates in English Medium of Instruction Context

Aboud

Alafeshat

Shamsi³

2019

JSE

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The current study aimed to explore challenges faced by Arab doctoral students during their PhD program in an English Medium of Instruction (EMI) context. Besides, it intended to highlight the appropriate solutions provided by respondents to solve these challenges. Six Arab doctoral students (3 males and 3 females) were selected from different departments and Arab countries to participate in the study. The authors used semi-structured interviews as a qualitative method for obtaining specific responses by respondents. Later, the data were analyzed based on the content analysis technique. The findings showed different challenges facing Arab candidates during their program, specifically lacking experience in research methods, academic English, and publication. On the bases of the revealed results, the study provided implications, limitations, and future directions.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Thesis Challenges for Arab PhD Candidates in English Medium of Instruction Context

Aboud

Alafeshat

Shamsi³

2019

JSE

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“…Arguably, this suggests that the problem is worsening and has not yet received the attention it deserves. This is in concert with findings in other contexts where study delays are shown to be the most common manifestations of doctoral programs (Akparep et al, 2017;El-Ghoroury et al, 2012;Hwang et al, 2015;Lindsay, 2015;Pyhältö et al, 2012;van de Schoot et al, 2013). Reviewing the situation in various doctoral programs in the US, Hwang et al (2015), for example, note that PhD students complete their studies within seven to 10 years.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 73%

The PhD Journey at Addis Ababa University: Study Delays, Causes and Coping Mechanisms

Fetene

Tamrat²

2021

IJDS

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Aim/Purpose: This study was conducted to examine the rate of delay, explanatory causes, and coping strategies of PhD candidates at Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia’s premier university, over the last ten years. Background: Delayed graduation is a common theme in doctoral education around the world. It continues to draw the concern of governments, universities, and the candidates themselves, calling for different forms of intervention. Addressing these challenges is key to resolving the many obstacles into doctoral education. Methodology: Ten-year archival data consisting of 1,711 PhD students and in-depth interviews with ten PhD candidates were used as data-generation tools. The data collection focused on progression patterns, reasons for study delays, and the coping mechanisms used by doctoral students when they face challenges. While the candidates were interviewed to narrate their lived experience pertinent to the objectives of the study, the archival data regarding the PhD students were collected from the Registrar Office of the University under study. Contribution: Amid an ongoing global debate about best practices in doctoral education, the research on study delays contributes not only to filling the existing empirical gap in the area but also in identifying factors, for example, related to financial matters, family commitment, and student-supervisor rapport, that help address the challenges faced and improving the provision of doctoral education. Findings: The findings of this study revealed that the cumulative average completion time for a PhD study was 6.19 years— over two years more than the four years given as the optimum duration for completing a PhD program. The institutional pattern of delays over the last ten years indicates that doctoral students are requiring more and more years to complete their PhDs. The study further revealed that completing a PhD in time is a process that can be influenced by many interacting factors, which include student commitment and preparation, favourable academic and research environment, and positive student-supervisor rapport. Recommendations for Practitioners: It is important for practitioners and higher education institutions to find ways to improve the on-time completion of doctoral programmes in order to minimise the continued financial, emotional, and opportunity costs the higher education sector is currently incurring. Recommendation for Researchers: The fact that this study was limited to a single institution by itself warrants more studies about time-to-degree in PhD programs and causes for study delays as well as studies about successful interventions in doctoral education. Future research should particularly explore the nature of the advisor/advisee relationship and other critical factors that appear to have a significant role in addressing the challenges of study delay. Impact on Society: The expansion of PhD programmes is an encouraging development in Ethiopia. The findings of this study may help improve completion rates of doctoral students and reduce program duration, which would have significant implication to minimise the ensuing financial, emotional, and opportunity costs involved at individual, national, and institutional levels. Future Research: Given the growing number of universities in Ethiopia and their possible diversity, PhD students’ profiles, backgrounds, and expectations, more research is needed to examine how this diversity may impact doctoral students’ progression and persistence.

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“…Several challenges were reported in the literature that contributed to the difficulty of doctoral journey. For example, although the doctoral students' abilities to have a school-life balance is an important indicator for degree completion, doctoral students are more likely to experience a lack of school-life balance due to several reasons that include doctoral program requirements and family obligations (Alkathiri & Olson, 2019;Hwang et al, 2015;Martinez, Ordu, Della Sala, & McFarlane, 2013;Stimpson & Filer, 2011;Sverdlik, Hall, McAlpine, & Hubbard, 2018).…”

Section: Challenging Journey For Doctoral Studentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing Doctoral Student Development of Self-Authorship: The Epistemological, Intrapersonal, and Interpersonal Growths

Alkathiri

2019

IJDS

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Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess to what extent current doctoral students developed self-authored perspectives, as well as to assess whether or not there was an association between the number of years in the doctoral program and the development of three dimensions of self-authorship (i.e., Epistemological, Intrapersonal, and Interpersonal). Background: Self-authorship is a way of knowing that assists adults in the management of their lives in a way that helps them succeed in society. It is important to study the development of self-authorship in doctoral students because such development is necessary for individuals to overcome the challenges they experience in doctoral programs. The importance of this study rests on the fact that self-authorship development may prompt doctoral students’ ability to succeed in the completion of their doctoral degrees, as well as to meet the challenges of their future in academia. Methodology: Forty-five doctoral students in a Teaching and Learning program were surveyed on three constructs: Epistemological, Intrapersonal, and Interpersonal. The Doctoral Students’ Self-Authorship Questionnaire was developed by the author based on Baxter Magolda’s theory of self-authorship development. Three level-two constructs of self-authorship were conceptually and operationally defined. Contribution: There is no instrument available (i.e., a questionnaire) to assess the self-authorship perspectives of doctoral students. Although it is expected that people will develop self-authored perspectives as they get older, it is unknown to what extent current doctoral students develop self-authorship. No previous studies have assessed doctoral student self-authorship. Findings: The findings showed that participants had advanced levels in all three dimensions and continued to develop towards self-authorship. However, results showed a nonsignificant association between years in the doctoral program and self-authorship development. In other words, although doctoral students spend many years in certain programs, this spent time does not contribute significantly to their development of self-authorship. Recommendations for Practitioners: The current study suggested that doctoral programs should investigate their students’ development toward self-authorship and provide them with more opportunities to better improve their self-authorship. Recommendation for Researchers: The findings suggest further research into the developmental opportunities available for students within doctoral programs that assist students’ ability to develop self-authored perspectives. Impact on Society: The findings supported the importance of assessing doctoral students’ self-authorship as part of doctoral programs. Without the assessment of doctoral student development of self-authorship in their programs, less effort might be taken to address student needs in developing self-authorship. Future Research: Future research may continue the study of self-authorship for doctoral students from different disciplines or schools, especially where attrition rates are high.

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Doctoral Students’ Perceived Barriers that Slow the Progress toward Completing a Doctoral Dissertation: A Mixed Analysis

Cited by 16 publications

References 59 publications

Thesis Challenges for Arab PhD Candidates in English Medium of Instruction Context

Thesis Challenges for Arab PhD Candidates in English Medium of Instruction Context

The PhD Journey at Addis Ababa University: Study Delays, Causes and Coping Mechanisms

Assessing Doctoral Student Development of Self-Authorship: The Epistemological, Intrapersonal, and Interpersonal Growths

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