Doctoral Degree Programs Research Articles

Doctoral Degree Programs and Soft Skills: Reflections by Faculty Members

Soft skills are people-oriented skills, and they, like technical (hard) skills, are essential for employees including faculty members. A qualitative pilot study was conducted with eight current and retired faculty members to learn how they acquired and/or honed soft skills during their doctoral program. The analysis of semi-structured interviews revealed that the participants explicitly and implicitly gained soft skills through formal and informal opportunities during their program of study. This study will contribute toliterature related to soft skills, particularly in the context of academic work. The study also aims to draw attention to the ways in which soft skills can be systematically and intentionally taught and nurtured during a doctoral student’s program of study.

Supporting Doctoral Candidates through Completion and Final Examination

Completion and final examination comprise the final stages of a doctoral program and represent the culmination of the doctoral candidates’ years of research. In this entry, completion is defined as the writing and submission of a doctoral thesis, and final examination is defined as the viva voce. Over the years, the format and scope of doctoral degrees has expanded and a variety of formats are now offered. In addition to the traditional research-only doctoral degree, professional, practice-based, and new route programs also contain a taught element alongside research. However, the creation of a substantive thesis or practice-based alternative addressing a novel research question is common to all. In contrast, processes and formats of viva voces vary across the globe. These range from private, closed-door defenses to assessed or ritualistic public defense presentations. For both completion and final examination, there are many practical and psychological hurdles that need to be navigated in order for the candidate to attain their doctoral degree. This entry will highlight these aspects as well as provide evidence-based guidance for supervisors in supporting their doctoral candidates through these daunting final stages.

Thinkings on the reform of medical education system in China

Thinkings on the reform of medical education system in China

Socialization Into and Through Doctoral Programs in Adapted Physical Activity.

This study examined doctoral students' occupational socialization experiences in U.S. adapted physical activity doctoral programs. Twenty-eight doctoral students were recruited and participated in semistructured, in-depth interviews. Interview transcripts were analyzed through a collaborative qualitative analysis, which resulted in the construction of four themes: (a)early socialization experiences foster a positive, but limited impression of physical education and physical activity; (b)doctoral education is pursued to have a greater impact on the disability community; (c)relationships with socializing agents provide support during doctoral education; and (d)coursework and learning in the community facilitate preparation for faculty roles. The findings indicate that there are several similarities between doctoral students and their peers in other doctoral degree programs. Some of these similarities point to issues that may concern prospective doctoral students and faculty members in adapted physical activity terminal degree programs.

Professional Commitment of 8-Year Medical Doctoral Degree Program Students in China: The Mediating Role of Self-Efficacy, Learning Engagement, and Academic Performance.

Studying the professional commitment of a student in an 8-year medical training program of China, especially its association with academic performance, can enhance the understanding of professional loyalty in future doctors. This study aimed to investigate the self-efficacy, academic performance, professional commitment, and learning engagement of 8-year program medical students, and explore the mediating roles of professional commitment and learning engagement on the associations between self-efficacy and academic performance. We conducted a cross-sectional study in a Chinese medical university and collected the General Self-Efficacy Scale, Professional Commitment of Undergraduates Scales, and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale-Student from self-reported students. Academic performance was ascertained using course examination scores in the most recent year. We conducted a structural equation model (SEM) analysis to examine the mediating roles of professional commitment and learning engagement on the relationship between self-efficacy and academic performance. A total number of 402 medical students were included in this study. Students in the clinical practice stage had significantly lower professional commitment and learning engagement than students in the pre-medical and medical course stages. The professional commitment of students from low-income families was significantly lower than that of students from high-income families. Professional commitment and learning engagement were mediators in the relationship between self-efficacy and academic performance. This study is the first to investigate professional commitment among students in the China 8-year medical program. Professional commitment plays an intermediary role between self-efficacy and academic performance.

Students’ Life Concerns and Graduate School Journey

Pursuing graduate studies is a fulfilling and rewarding experience, and sometimes challenging. Thus, this study examined the life concerns likely to contribute to the students’ graduate school journey. The study was conducted in the College of Graduate Studies, Palompon, Leyte, Philippines, utilizing a descriptive-correlational research design, with respondents recruited from the master's and doctoral degree programs. Relevant data were collected using survey questionnaires prepared in Google Forms. Data were analyzed using means, standard deviations, and the Spearman rank-order correlation. Results showed that the current study sample found their graduate school journey slightly good. Study findings revealed further that two demographic factors - age and work positions, were found negatively correlated with the graduate school journey, and this implies that younger graduate students tend to have better graduate school experience than older ones; and students holding supervisory positions have struggling graduate school experience. Correlation analysis indicated a significant negative relationship between work-related concerns and graduate school experience. Overall findings pinpoint the need for graduate school practitioners to consider initiatives that address students' life concerns and likewise formulate policies and guidelines that may provide them with a support system that helps students find their graduate school journey smooth, happier, and fulfilling.

STATISTICS ATTITUDES AFTER USING GUIDED PROJECT-BASED LEARNING AS AN ANDRAGOGICAL STRATEGY IN A GRADUATE STATISTICS COURSE

This study builds on previous studies that have examined guided project-based learning in undergraduate statistics courses to examine students’ attitudes toward statistics after participating in a graduate-level statistics course that used guided project-based learning as an andragogical technique. This phenomenological qualitative case study utilized multiple student interviews and reflections over a semester-long statistics course in a doctoral education degree program. The results showed that guided project-based learning immersed students in the quantitative inquiry process and emboldened them to read and use statistics in their academic and professional lives. It also revealed several elements of guided project-based learning that are important for instructors looking to implement this approach in their own courses.

Determination of the relationship between the Vocational Qualifications and Academic Programs on a Perceived Competencies Basis Approach: A Case for Geographical Information Systems

GIS education and training activities become widespread as GIS utilization inevitably increases worldwide. Besides, vocational standards and qualifications are developed to form a quality assurance basis for GIS-related jobs and services and the employment of qualified personnel. From this perspective, this study aims to examine to what level the graduates of GIS associate degree, master, and doctorate programs have gained the necessary knowledge and competencies defined in the GIS Specialist (Level 6) National Qualification throughout their academic education. Within this context, an online survey was developed based on 43 performance criteria derived from the vocational qualification units (A1, A2, A3). The respondents were asked to self-evaluate the achievement of the given criteria during their academic education on a 5-point Likert scale. It was detected that 39.1% of the 174 survey participants have associate degrees, 61.7% have master's degrees (with thesis, without thesis, and distance education), and 6.9% have doctorate degrees. In comparison, 3% of them completed the GIS certificate program. The results showed that the competency achievement perceptions in the A3 section increased following the education level of the graduates. No significant difference was determined for A1, while an insignificant difference was detected for the A2 unit between the graduates of doctorate and distance education master's degree programs. The results are expected to be adopted by the relevant parties to align the GIS education programs with the sectoral needs and vocational qualifications.

The 4th Southeast Asian Conference on Geophysics (SEACG) 2022: Great Challenges and Opportunities of Geophysics Today and Future

The Southeast Asian Conference on Geophysics (SEACG) is a biannual event held by the Geophysical Engineering Department, Faculty of Mining and Petroleum Engineering, Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB), Indonesia. The SEACG has been successfully conducted since 2016, and several selected papers have been published in the IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science. The first (2016) and second (2018) conferences were held offline in Bali, Indonesia, while the third conference (2020) was held virtually due to the Covid19 pandemic. Along with the end of the Covid19 pandemic, the current event (2022) is being run as a hybrid conference (physical and virtual), live from Bandung, Indonesia.The conference theme of the SEACG 2022 is “Great Challenges and Opportunities of Geophysics Today and Future.” The program lasts two days, from August 9, 2022, to August 10, 2022, and is sponsored by the Institute of Research and Community Services, ITB. There are 11 invited international speakers (30-minute duration) and 88 contributed speakers (20 min duration) who presented their ideas. With five panel rooms, 35 contributed speakers delivered offline presentations and 53 virtually via Zoom. The speakers, both invited and contributed, presented and introduced new geophysical insights and techniques.The panel discussion featured intriguing topics and invited speakers from various institutions, such as Institut Teknologi Bandung – Indonesia (Dr.rer.nat. R. Mohammad Rachmat Sule, Dr. Tedi Yudistira, Prof. Sri Widiyantoro, Prof. Wahyu Srigutomo, and Prof. Wawan Gunawan Abdul Kadir), CSIRO – Australia (Dr. Erdinc Saygin), Australian National University – Australia (Prof. Phil Cummins), University of Tokyo – Japan (Prof. Takeshi Tsuji), JGI, Inc. – Japan (Moeto Fujisawa, M.Sc.), Ocean University of China – China (Dr. Zhijun Du), and Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris – France (Dr. Jean-Philippe Metaxian). The event was opened by Dr. Fatkhan (the Head of the Geophysical Engineering Master and Doctorate Degree Program, ITB) and closed by Dr. Warsa (the Head of the Geophysical Engineering Bachelor Degree Program, ITB).The SEACG 2022 provided a platform for academics, professionals, and students to discuss and promote scientific results related to recent advancements in geophysical methods and related sciences. The conference covered various session topics, such as Fault and Deformation Study, Passive Seismic, Environmental Geophysics, Geophysical Approaches in Hydrocarbon, Geophysical Approaches in Geothermal, Advance Geophysics, Vulcanology, Tomography, Seismic Hazards, Geomagnetic, and Seismology.We would thank the organization’s team members, the reviewers, and the faculty staff. They have worked very hard to make this event possible. We wish all attendees of SEACG 2022 have an exciting experience and enjoy the moment in this scientific forum.List of Organizing Committee, Documentation are available in this pdf.

Exploring The Challenges and Solutions in Doctoral Dissertation Writing and Defense Faced by Pakistani ESL Scholars

Doctoral dissertation writing and defending to complete the doctorate degree program is a true learning experience; an arduous mission, which entails knowledge of academic writing and confidence for dissertation defence to a satisfactory level. In the present research, the researchers have made an effort to divulge the foremost challenges faced by those ESL scholars, who had completed their degree in Doctor of Philosophy. By employing the survey technique, an online questionnaire containing four open-ended questions was sent to fifty research contributors from both genders via Email and WhatsApp for data collection. The data was analyzed by employing frequency and thematic approaches and presented in tables. The findings of the contemporary study explored that Pakistani ESL doctorate scholars faced multifarious challenges while writing and defending doctoral dissertations. The findings also explored solutions to overcome these challenges in the future, which makes it valuable research work for scholars and researchers in the future.

Variable Conceptualisation and Measurement in Environmental Research

This paper discusses the importance of variable conceptualisation and measurement in environmental research. The paper explains how wrong application of concepts can mislead the researcher when conducting research, and the resultant effects on each stage of the environmental research process. The paper is motivated by the problems behind many research students pursuing their masters or doctoral degree programmes face, especially with change in dissertations or theses titles and methods to match the contents of their reports. In this paper, the authors demystify the challenges encountered by unskilful researchers and students when trying to make their readers have a clear understanding of their research reports (dissertations or theses). Therefore, the paper may serve as a guide in planning and conducting environmental research by university degree students and early career researchers.

Identifying Critical "Soft Skills" for an Academic Career

This study examines the soft skills required for work as a faculty member, doctoral supervisor, and academic administrator. Nine faculty members working in the area of school libraries were interviewed to better identify gaps and ways to improve doctoral degree programs. Participants shared the following soft skills: advocacy skills, active listening, advising skills, understanding of equity, diversity and inclusion, leadership skills, time management skills, social justice stance, work life balance, building and maintaining relationships with colleagues, networking skills, and presentation skills. The participants noted that their doctoral programs prepared them for some of their work in the Academy with graduate research and teaching experiences, mentoring, networking support, and formal coursework. Participants developed some of these soft skills from work as teachers and school librarians/teacher-librarians.

Reflections on Lisa Zurk as an Educator

Lisa Zurk was my advisor and mentor through both my masters and doctoral degree programs. I had the pleasure of working with her beginning in 2008; first as her graduate student, then in my subsequent professional career while she was a program manager in the Strategic Technology Office at DARPA. I consider myself extremely fortunate to have been part of the Northwest Electromagnetics and Acoustics Research Laboratory (NEAR-Lab), which she founded at Portland State University in 2005. Under her guidance and leadership, the group became a diverse community of tight-knit students, faculty, and other researchers; united in our passion for research in terahertz imaging and spectroscopy, underwater acoustics, and physics-based signal processing. My experience there, and that of my fellow students, paved the way for our future careers in science and engineering in industry, academia, and everywhere in between. Today, NEAR-Lab alumni can be found at top tech companies such as Apple, Boeing, Intel, Tektronix, and Metron; nationally-renowned research organizations like The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, MIT Lincoln Laboratory, and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; and even internationally at the University of Victoria, British Columbia, and JASCO Applied Sciences. The success of her students speaks volumes about her impact on the generation of innovators that followed her. This talk will reflect on Dr. Zurk as an educator and will present some of the work she coauthored and published with her students.

Nutrition Programs of Higher Education in the Occupied Palestinian Territories: A Descriptive Snapshot

This report stresses the importance of promoting capacity building and training of nutritionists and dietitians as vital strategies in addressing nutrition-related health problems and improving health outcomes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). Higher education institutions play a vital role in this process. The report identifies degree-granting nutrition programs available in OPT in both Arabic and English by carrying out an electronic review of universities and college websites, department web links, and academic program home pages. Out of the 52 accredited institutions in the OPT, 10 offered nutrition degree programs of which four are located in the Gaza Strip and six in the West Bank. Nutrition-affiliated programs included bachelor’s degrees in nutrition sciences and public health, health nutrition, nutrition and food technology, nutrition and dietetics, therapeutic nutrition, and nutrition and food processing. Two universities offered a master’s degree in clinical nutrition in addition to a bachelor’s program. None of the selected educational institutions offered a doctoral degree program. The number of universities in OPT offering bachelor’s degree in nutrition affiliated programs is relatively high as compared to neighboring Arab countries. Additional development of graduate programs to strengthen the dietetics/nutrition profession in OPT is warranted.

교육대학원의 교원 양성체제에 대한 교원과 교육대학원생의 인식 : 순천대학교를 중심으로

Due to the recent trend of the decreasing number of students and over-growing teacher education programs, the Ministry of Education has been pushing for a change in the role of the teacher training process. As a result, the Graduate School of Education is trying to convert it to a system fostering the capabilities of existing teachers rather than training new teachers. In the school context, teachers are required to play a variety of roles, such as cultivating career and digital literacy, because of the demand for convergence curriculum guidance and non-face-to-face classes. The consequence has also resulted from consumer-tailored education, the free grade system, the development of information and communication technology, the impact of COVID-19. The Graduate School of Education at Sunchon National University must come up with a drastic development plan by reflecting the results of the previous five-cycle evaluation of teacher education institutions and providing educational services that can strengthen educational capabilities of teachers in schools in the Jeollanam-do region. In order to make it concrete, we conducted an analysis of the results of the five-cycle evaluation of teacher training institutions, an analysis of the reform plan for the teacher training course from the Ministry of Education, a survey of opinions of the professors in the Graduate School of Education, Sunchon National University, and a survey of opinions of the graduate students of education and teachers in the Jeollanam-do region. As a result of the study, the Graduate School of Education at Sunchon National University firstly divided the majors into the teacher education courses for pre-service teachers and professional development for in-service teachers based on the cutbacks in the Graduate School of Education. Second, we encouraged all departments to improve the content and methods of teaching and learning in the Graduate School of Education at Sunchon National University so that teachers and graduate students can develop their teaching skills and abilities in the future. Third, it is necessary to offer integrative majors, which are expected to be in high demand in the future. This will bring about strengthening the competency of pre-service teachers and advancing the graduate school of education.
 Fourth, newly-coming graduate students should be welcome through specialized doctoral degree (i.e., Doctor of Education or Ed.D.) programs in the Graduate School of Education at Sunchon National University. Lastly, it is imperative to develop professional development courses for in-service teachers to acquire first-grade teacher qualifications at the Graduate School of Education and to cultivate competency of teaching and learning.

A preliminary study of current situation and competences of doctoral nursing education in Taiwan: A multi-methods research design.

AimTo explore the status and overall competency of Taiwan’s doctoral nursing programs. BackgroundTaiwan has 11 universities offer doctoral degree programs in nursing from 1997 to 2020. As the demand for educators of higher nursing education increases, whether the nursing talent requirements have been satisfactorily fulfilled. DesignA two-stage data collection based on a multi-methods survey was conducted. MethodsThe first stage from December 2017 to the end of December 2019, involved collecting admission brochures for 12 doctoral nursing programs provided by 11 universities and 14 Internet databases. In the second stage, convenience sampling was performed to recruit 115 graduates of national doctoral nursing programs to collect data through a self-administered questionnaire online survey from July to the end of September 2018. ResultsA systematic review of the vision and core competencies of each university revealed a general emphasis on nursing knowledge, research, leadership, international perspective and competence, innovation, social practice and policy. More specifically, universities aim to cultivate five core competencies in students, for example, nursing knowledge, scientific and innovative research capabilities and participation in the formulation and promotion of nursing policies. Of the 115 graduates of national doctoral nursing programs surveyed, the online questionnaire revealed that more than half of the respondents were aged 41–50 years (n = 62, 53.9%), 81.8% occupied a teaching position and most had 2.4–9.8 years of study in the program (mean = 6.09 ± 1.81 years). Respondents who completed a doctoral nursing program in Taiwan could learn orderly teaching, research and leadership capabilities with scored 4.12, 4.11 and 3.65, respectively. ConclusionsThe overall orientation of the doctoral nursing programs in Taiwan aligns approximately with global trends in nursing. This study suggests that international and national resources should be incorporated into the cultivation of various competencies and curriculum quality control; moreover, industry, academia and the government should hold regular meetings to formulate suitable evaluation mechanisms.

First Doctoral Degree Programs in Audiology in the U.S.A.

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Problems in Postmortem Pathology Training.

In Turkey, autopsy performers, namely forensic medicine practitioners, are neither pathologists nor have properly received pathology training during residency in contrast to the Anglo-Saxon model of forensic medicine practices, since the current curriculum of forensic medicine residency lacks adequate training in post-mortem histopathology. Likewise, pathologists lack a specific post-mortem pathology clerkship. In this study, we intended to determine whether forensic physicians in Turkey find themselves competent in post-mortem histopathology or were adequately trained during their residencies. Turkish forensic medicine practitioners were administered an online questionnaire whereby self-evaluations of their histopathology knowledge and their views on histopathology training during forensic medicine residency were assessed. The 151 physicians who completed the questionnaire made up the study group. It was found out that the majority of Turkish forensic medicine practitioners (85.4%) did not find the histopathology training during their residency adequate. Similarly, 85.4% of the participants indicated their incompetence in histopathological examination of post-mortem tissue of any kind, and showed their willingness for further training in pathology. 66.9% strongly agreed that post-mortem histopathology requires training that is distinct from surgical pathology. In case of providing post-mortem histopathology training within the scope of forensic medicine residency, topics such as microscopic morphology of post-mortem changes, histological changes related to injuries, and estimation of wound age are expected to be beneficial to 88.7% 83.4%, and 83.4% of the participants respectively. The current curriculum should be revised in a way that the surgical pathology clerkship meets forensic physicians' needs, so that they can then refer more difficult, non-routine histopathological consultations to pathologists who are also well-trained in postmortem histopathology. Consideration should also be given to establishing a subspecialty training - a master's or doctoral degree programs in forensic pathology.

Racial/ethnic distribution of graduates from doctorate and masters epidemiology degree programs in the United States, 2008 to 2018

PurposeTo identify trends in racial and ethnic diversity of epidemiology graduate degree recipients in the United States between academic years 2008 and 2018. MethodsNational-level data from the National Center for Education Statistics was analyzed to assess the change in proportions of epidemiology degrees conferred to each racial/ethnic group – American Indian or Alaska Native; Asian, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander; Black or African American; Hispanic or Latino; White; and two or more races– over two time periods, Fall 2007- Spring 2012 (Period 1) and Fall 2012 - Spring 2018 (Period 2). ResultsDuring Period 13,837 epidemiology graduate degrees were conferred, and 6960 in Period 2. Within race/ethnicity groups, there was a statistically significant increase in graduate epidemiology degrees awarded over the two time periods to students of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, and to students reporting two or more races. The proportion of degrees awarded to non-White students in aggregate increased by 4.7 percentage points, from 33.5% to 38.2%, while awards to White students decreased by the same amount. ConclusionsOverall, the racial/ethnic diversity of epidemiology graduates in the United States increased between 2008 and 2018, however, further efforts are needed to increase awards within some racial minority subgroups.

THE CONTENT OF PROFESSIONAL TRAINING IN LINGUISTICS AT THE UK UNIVERSITIES

The current challenges of linguistic globalization have increased the attention of researchers to professional training of specialists in linguistics. A detailed analysis of relevant scientific works on comparative pedagogy has shown that the problem in question in foreign experience, in particular in the UK, has not been sufficiently justified by Ukrainian researchers. Therefore, the article aims to analyze and justify the content of professional training for specialists in linguistics at the UK universities. The following research methods have been used to achieve the above-mentioned aim: analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, structural-functional, comparative-pedagogical, exploratory, prognostic. A detailed study of content characteristics of professional training for linguists at the UK universities has proved that both the structurization and selection of training content rely on the competency-based approach, the principles of subject-specific specialization, interdisciplinarity, modularity, electiveness, fundamentalization. The structure of degree programmes consists of compulsory and optional courses, as well as dissertation preparation. Compulsory courses cover the key areas of linguistics (phonetics, phonology, semantics, morphology, syntax, pragmatics). Optional courses are focused on different linguistic fields (neurolinguistics, applied linguistics, cognitive linguistics, communicative linguistics, forensic linguistics). It must be noted that a wide range of optional courses highlights the innovativeness of the UK approach to student autonomy, given that British educators consider students as the full participants in the educational process, who can choose their own path to achieve expected learning outcomes due to the constructive and effective content of degree programmes in linguistics. This article does not disclose all the aspects of the problem in question. Consequently, further research should aim to substantiate the main characteristics of doctoral degree programmes in the field of linguistics at the UK universities.