Postgraduate Students’ Perceptions of Support Services Rendered by a Distance Learning Institution

Mapheleba Lekhetho

doi:10.5430/ijhe.v11n7p24

Abstract

Postgraduate studies are generally draining for most students because of the high rigour and cognitive demands required. They are even more arduous for students in a distance-learning context as most of them are full-time employees and lack enough time for their studies. Consequently, they tend to have low success rates due to a lack of required academic and research skills, low English proficiency, and inadequate student support. Underpinned by Simpson's student support model, this research adopted a qualitative approach and a focus group technique to probe nine Ethiopian doctoral students about their perceptions of the support provided by the University of South Africa (Unisa). From a thematic analysis of the themes that recurred, the findings revealed that despite the challenges, most students appreciated the support provided, particularly by supervisors who guided them efficiently and gave them feedback promptly. To improve graduation rates, it is recommended that supervisors be trained in effective supervision and support of students from diverse linguistic and educational backgrounds.

Highlights

Distance education mode has gained currency as a viable alternative that increases access to higher education, it faces challenges of higher attrition and lower graduation rates than face-to-face learning in conventional universities (Simpson, 2016), at the postgraduate level, as most students are mature, full-time employees
This study focused on the Ethiopian doctoral students registered in the College of Education and probed their perceptions of the support provided by University of South Africa (Unisa)
The findings are presented thematically based on the prepared questions that probed the students' perceptions of the support services (SSS) they received from Unisa

Summary

Introduction

Distance education mode has gained currency as a viable alternative that increases access to higher education, it faces challenges of higher attrition and lower graduation rates than face-to-face learning in conventional universities (Simpson, 2016), at the postgraduate level, as most students are mature, full-time employees. The English language barrier is another hurdle that slows down progress and increases the dropout of many postgraduate students who are second-language speakers from diverse cultural, linguistic, and educational backgrounds (Manyike, 2017; Martirosyan, Bustamante & Saxon, 2019). This diversity makes the supervisory role more complex due to the increasing pressure on higher education institutions (HEIs) and supervisors to provide high-quality supervision to attract and retain more students (Baydarova, Collins & Ait Saadi, 2021).

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Results

Discussion

Conclusion