Doctoral Programs Research Articles

“I Am My Family’s Caregiver and Social Worker”: Experiences of Doctoral Student Moms During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Doctoral student mothers faced unique challenges navigating school, work, and parenting responsibilities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The pressure to keep up with academic benchmarks and productivity standards, alongside social isolation and disruptions to caregiving supports, can impact parenting students’ well-being and progression through a doctoral program. This exploratory study examined doctoral student moms’ (N = 87) perceptions of their roles, challenges, and sources of relational support during the pandemic. An electronic survey was distributed to doctoral students enrolled in U.S. member institutions of the Group for the Advancement of Doctoral Education in Social Work (GADE) during November and December 2020. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to analyze open-ended responses about parenting experiences, changes to doctoral work and degree progress, sources of instrumental and emotional support, and peer and mentor relationships. Shame resilience theory was used as a guiding framework through which findings were interpreted. Findings revealed challenges related to role-juggling, feeling emotionally and physically overwhelmed, struggles with professional advancement, social isolation, and disrupted supports. Relational supports were offered primarily by partners and/or household family, friends and extended family, doctoral student peers, and doctoral advisors/mentors. Implications for doctoral programs are discussed. A series of programmatic, structural, and policy recommendations are offered, which are designed to increase maternal visibility in doctoral programs and build a more robust and systematic approach to academic parenting support.

Professional values gained in postgraduate nursing education from the perspectives of master's and doctorate graduates: A mixed-methods study.

To determine the professional values of graduates of master's and doctoral programs in nursing and their views on the contribution of postgraduate education to their professional values. In postgraduate education, which is an important catalyst of professional identity development, a professional is expected to specialize in a field, get into more depth professionally, internalize professional values, and reflect and strengthen these values. To shed light on this expectation, more information is needed to assess the impact of postgraduate education on professional values. A convergent parallel mixed-methods design was used. Data were collected for the quantitative part of the study for 385 graduates of postgraduate nursing education programs in Turkey who were selected using the snowball sampling method, while the maximum variation sampling method was used to collect data from 12 individuals for the qualitative part of the study. The Nurses Professional Values Scale (NPVS) and a Semi-Structured Interview Form were used to collect data in October-December 2022. The quantitative data obtained in the study were analyzed using the SPSS software, and the qualitative data were analyzed using the MAXQDA software. The mean total NPVS score of the participants was 130.32±21.34 (possible range: 31-155). Among all dimensions, the highest mean score of the participants was in the caring dimension, followed by professionalism and activism. There were significant differences in the NPVS total and subscale scores of the participants based on their views on the contributions of age, institution where they worked, marital status, position at work, and postgraduate education to the acquisition of professional values. In the qualitative dimension of the study, two main themes were identified. One of these themes was the theme of professional values in postgraduate nursing education that covered the categories of professional values gained through postgraduate education, professional values that a nurse who has completed postgraduate education should have, and professional values in postgraduate nursing education. The second theme was the theme named recommendations for providing nurses with professional values through postgraduate education. The integration of data from both components indicated that the qualitative interviews enriched the quantitative findings. It was concluded that postgraduate nursing education programs contribute greatly to the professional values of graduates and strengthen their professional values. Forthe future of nursing, increasing professional strengths and visibility is significantly associated with professional values. This situation requires nurses with strong professional values. Graduate education programs in nursing should be developed in this direction and focus on development of professional values.

Geographic mobility of college students and the gender gap in academic aspirations

We study the decision to pursue an advanced degree from an internationally renowned academic institution, which greatly facilitates access to top jobs. Relying on unique data on applications to a highly selective program that provides graduate fellowships to Spanish students, we show that women in non-STEM fields apply to the fellowships at lower rates than males with the same GPA and in the same field of study. On the contrary, our estimates imply that females in STEM apply at equal, or higher, rates than comparable males in the same fields. We also find that female students are relatively less interested in doctoral programs and less willing to study abroad than males. To shed light on the mechanisms, we surveyed college students about their post-graduation plans. The lower geographic mobility of female students (in non-STEM fields) appears linked to females’ lower earnings expectations and a gender-asymmetric detrimental effect of involvement in romantic relationships.

Mental Health in Doctoral Students: Individual, Academic, and Organizational Predictors.

The mental health of doctoral students is a matter of concern, and several variables appear to be associated with the state of their mental health. However, there have been no studies on the population of doctoral students in Spain to date using validated instruments. A cross-sectional observational study was conducted to assess mental health in 1,018 doctoral students. The impact of personal, academic, psychological, and social/organisational variables on their mental health was assessed. Between 50% and 60% of the sample might be experiencing a common psychological disorder, while 18.8% of the sample might be experiencing passive suicidal ideation. In addition, using binary logistic regression, significant predictors of negative mental health were identified, including: sociodemographic variables (being female); academic variables (longer time spent in a doctoral programme); psychological variables (lower life satisfaction; greater interference and less clarity about negative emotions); and social and organisational variables (greater fear of losing tuition rights, lower social support, and greater interference of academic work with personal life). Doctoral students need measures to remedy and prevent mental health issues based on improving self-care and emotion regulation, promoting social support at university, and reducing the pressure of losing tuition rights among final-year students.

Review of Dissertations from an Online Asynchronous Learning Design and Technologies Educational Doctoral Program

Practitioner-focused educational doctoral programs have grown substantially in recent years. Dissertations in Practice (DiPs), which are the culminating research report and evaluation method in these programs, differ from traditional PhD dissertations in their focus on addressing a problem of practice and on connecting theories with practice. As part of our ongoing program evaluation, we reviewed DiPs from doctoral students who graduated from an online asynchronous Educational Doctoral program in Learning Design and Technologies at the University of South Carolina. Findings revealed that most students chose a pragmatic philosophical paradigm, adopted a mixed methods research design, reported an action research intervention implemented with populations in K-12 schools, used surveys and interviews as data sources, and analyzed data with descriptive/inferential statistics and thematic analysis. Implications for the program curriculum are discussed.

Toward an Identity for the Field of Doctoral Education in Health Sciences

The Association of Doctoral Programs in Health Sciences (ADPHS) was informally established in November 2019, officially incorporated in August 2021, and is currently a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization comprised of the directors of member doctoral programs of health sciences. The ADPHS grew from informal discussions among program directors who agreed that a major problem in the field of doctoral education in health sciences was the lack of a clearly defined and easily articulable identity. The discussions led to the drafting of an informal and nonscientific survey used to help clarify the current health sciences education environment, relevant emerging trends, and the educational philosophies adopted by the directors of health sciences doctoral programs nationally. The results of the survey and follow-up discussions revealed a strong consensus among program directors that the field of doctorate education in health sciences is uniformly characterized by its interdisciplinary nature. In this position paper, we provide the rationale for the formal position of the ADPHS that the identity of the field of doctoral education in health sciences is based on its interdisciplinary approach to education.

Time to scale-up point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) in obstetrics and gynaecology in Nigeria

The availability, affordability and portability of high-resolution-ultrasound machine in recent years have made ultrasound an indispensable point-of-care diagnostic and procedural tool in current practice of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. POCUS is a goal-directed (focused/emergency) ultrasound examination performed by the healthcare provider in the consulting office or patient’s bedside to make a specific diagnosis that will direct timely and definitive treatment of the patient. It improves clinical outcomes, prevents hospital delays, promotes swift definitive treatment, reduces cost and enhances patient satisfaction without exposure to ionizing radiation. It is a readily available care in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Skills acquisition in POCUS should be incorporated in teaching programs for midwives, medical students, resident doctors and consultants. This review aims to summarize the literature on the advances in ultrasound technology, indications and practice guidelines for clinicians’ POCUS examinations in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Recommendations to fill the gaps in the current training and skills acquisition in Nigeria are proposed.

Impact of the Proposed Closure of the NHS Practitioner Mental Health Programme for Doctors and Managers in Secondary Care

To reduce its financial deficit, NHS England decided to cull the funding of the Practitioner Health Programme (PHP), which has been providing confidential mental health services to 110,000 NHS doctors/ senior managers since 2011. This decision was announced when NHS doctors were in a dispute over pay and conditions, AND coincided with increasing prevalence of mental illness, stress and burnout. This decision raised concerns among doctors' unions, medical royal colleges, and doctors through social media. An open letter asked the Health Secretary to reconsider this decision. Access to primary care doctors was maintained. What appears not to have been considered is that around 50,000 junior doctors, including locally employed doctors and international medical graduates who are in short-term contracts or rotational attachments, are unlikely to meet the waiting time for such ‘secondary care OH services’. In addition, the elephant in the room of a massive challenge of the professional stigma that prevents doctors from accessing mental health support early seems to have been missed. This editorial briefly explores the causes of a high prevalence of stress and work-related mental illness amongst HCPs, the consequences on their overall health, employing organisations and their patients.

No doctoral studies without hurdles: A review on pathways to prevent dropouts

Traditionally, doctoral studies take at least three to six years of full-time study, depending on the country and institution. However, the number of doctoral students who complete their studies in the prescribed time does not meet the expectations of the scientific community. Many students who enrol in a doctoral programme either drop out or do not complete it within the expected time frame. The literature is replete with evidence of the challenges faced by early career researchers, but there is still little reported on how to bridge the existing and perceived barriers that continue to undermine doctoral study retention. These and other obstacles must be addressed and combated by questioning the root causes of students dropping out of their studies. Thus, this study sought to suggest pathways to overcome these and other obstacles by providing a coherent overview of what we need to do and how. The methodology used included a thorough review of international accredited peer reviewed articles extracted from the SCOPUS multidisciplinary database. A total of 24 articles relevant to the topic were thus selected. The key finding of this initiative is that doctoral students face wide-ranging financial, academic, and social challenges that need to be addressed innovatively to improve the timely realisation of the successful completion of their studies. Keywords: Completion, challenges, doctoral studies, dropout, retention, success

Career Paths of Doctoral Recipients in Engineering and Computer Science: Trends by Sex, Race, Citizenship, and Discipline with an Emphasis on Biomedical Engineering

AbstractWe summarize national-scale data for Ph.D. earners in engineering or computer science from 2015 to 2019 whose post-graduate school employment is known, highlighting outcomes for biological/biomedical/biosystems engineering students. We use NSF’s Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED), which has collected information from Ph.D. recipients in the USA since 1957. The data are collected at the time of degree completion and constitute a greater than 90% response rate. Compared to all engineering and computer science disciplines, biological/biomedical/biosystems engineering has a higher proportion going to 4yr/med/research institutions (52% vs. 33%) and non-profit (3.6% vs. 2.9%) and lower proportion going to industry (33% vs. 48%), government (4.3% vs. 8.4%), and is similar for non-US positions (6.1% vs. 5.7%). Compared to 2010–2014 biological/biomedical/biosystems engineering Ph.D. recipients, more 2015–2019 recipients are going to industry (25% to 33%) and fewer to 4yr/med/research institutions (59% to 52%) and governmet (5.3% to 4.3%). Across all engineering and computer science disciplines, a smaller proportion of females entered industry (43%) compared to males (49%), while a larger proportion of females entered 4yr/med/research institutions (37%) compared to males (32%). Over half of Asian doctoral recipients entered industry, as compared to 38% of Hispanic doctoral recipients. In contrast, a higher proportion of Hispanic individuals (37%) entered 4yr/med/research institutions after their doctoral programs, as compared to 31% of Asian doctoral recipients. Black doctoral recipients had the highest proportion enter positions in government (14%) and non-profit (4%) sectors. Our results are situated in the broader literature focused on postdoctoral career, training, and employment sectors and trends in STEM. We discuss implications for graduate programs, policymakers, and researchers.

[Development the agricultural synthesis biology course for postgraduates].

To attain the aims of high-quality agricultural development, the Ministry of Education is in the process of establishing master's and doctoral programs in biological breeding engineering at universities with a strong agricultural focus. These programs will incorporate a dedicated course on agricultural synthetic biology, aiming to equip graduate students with the ability to tackle critical scientific and technological challenges in biological breeding while fostering innovations in agriculture. The course places emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration, innovation, and the practical application of new advancement, ensuring compatibility with both domestic and international agricultural standards in the future.

A survey of medical schoolaspirant perceptions of an unexpected lottery-facilitated admissions adaptation.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Undergraduate Medical Doctor (MD) Programme at McMaster University (Hamilton, Canada) was unable to run in-person medical school interviews in March 2020, prompting an alternate solution that maximised admission opportunities for Indigenous applicants, prioritised admission for those rated most highly in the interview determination process, and allocated subsequent offers via lottery. A short survey was administered to applicants who had been offered an admissions interview and were subsequently impacted by the admissions adaptations. The survey elicited perceptions of the adaptation through Likert scale ratings and free-text responses. Survey data were analysed via a sequential (quantitative to qualitative) mixed-methods design. 196 of 552 potential participants completed the survey. Across quantitative and qualitative analyses, respondents reported that the adaptation had a negative impact on their professional development and personal life. Ratings of negative perception were greater for those who did not receive an offer than for those who accepted or declined an offer. Free text responses emphasised considerable criticism for the lottery portion of the adaptation and displeasure that efforts made in constructing applications were less relevant than anticipated. The negative responses to this unexpected change highlight the profound upstream impact admission policies have on the preapplication behaviours of aspiring medical students. The outcomes support a refined understanding of the value candidates place on the interview in appraising their own suitability for a career as a physician.

(Supporting) Writing Qualitatively: Errantry of Embodied Relational Writing

We write collectively and collaboratively to make more visible writing qualitatively and supporting writing qualitatively, both of which we approach as the process of embodied relational writing, to ourselves and to Others. We even consider that writing qualitatively always has an invisible prefix of supporting before it since the practice is not possible without multiple supports. From our different positionalities as a Black doctoral candidate, a white writing center director, and an Asian faculty, we write a collective autoethnography as an inquiry to examine what we do, how we do it, and what it produces when we are supporting (and) writing qualitatively in our private, teaching-oriented, regional, predominantly white institutional context where doctoral programs offer only one qualitative research course. What our writing reveals is that supporting writing qualitatively is possible only when we live/work together—stay long enough—in that in-between space of you know that I will not understand and you pray for me to understand. In this space, we get entangled with each other’s multiple relationships with our selves, Others, and errantries, which, in turn, changes each of us, our relation, and this writing.

To live and die in an age of extinction: a conversation with Juno Salazar Parreñas

ABSTRACT This article is a conversation between Marie-Thérèse Talensby, a doctoral student with the Extinction Studies doctoral training programme at the University of Leeds, and Dr Juno Salazar Parreñas, Associate Professor of Science and Technology Studies and Feminist, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Cornell University. Talking over Skype in July 2023, Dr Parreñas reflects on her current research, exploring the death of a tropical polar bear in Singapore Zoo, her work on Orangutan conservation, and the violence inherent in many methods of animal conservation. In doing so, she highlights the entanglements of human and more-than-human lives in what is being described by scientists and conservation organisations as the sixth mass extinction event. Weaving throughout the conversation are more personal reflections on loss and grief, vicarious trauma, and the transformative potential in moments of decolonisation. This article offers a rich reflection on the experience and impact of researching death and loss, encompassing themes of positionality, boundaries, and the broader socio-cultural context of fieldwork encounters, topics highly relevant to Mortality readers.

Barriers to and enablers for the success of postgraduate students in social work

ABSTRACT All over the world, higher education institutions (HEIs) are concerned about low enrollment, delayed completion rates, non-completion, and the subsequent smaller number of graduates of Master’s and doctoral programmes. This is also true for the postgraduate students in Social Work at a South African public university, with statistics showing a high dropout rate and extended completion times. The poor throughput rate of the postgraduate programme in Social Work motivated the exploration of barriers to and enablers for student success in this programme. This was done through a qualitative descriptive design, using an online questionnaire with open-ended reflective questions. The collected data was uploaded to Atlas.ti 9 and analyzed by means of inductive thematic analysis. The findings of this study indicated barriers pertaining to supervision, personal challenges, and the distance-learning delivery mode of academic programmes. External factors and enablers that impacted the success of postgraduate students were also identified.

Maturity model for assessing the medical humanities: a Delphi study

BackgroundBecoming a first-level discipline in China means access to more educational resources. The development of medical humanities in China has been going on for more than 40 years, and some medical schools have set up master’s and doctoral programs in medical humanities. The demand for medical humanities-related knowledge in China is also growing after COVID-19. However, medical humanities is only a second-level discipline and receives limited resources to meet the needs of society. This study aims to establish a system of indicators that can assess whether the medical humanities has a first-level discipline and provide a basis for its upgrading to a first-level.MethodsA Delphi technique was used, with the panel of expert expressing their views in a series of two questionnaires. A coefficient of variation of less than 0.2 indicates expert agreement.ResultA total of 25 experts participated in this Delphi study. Consensus was reached on 11 first-grade indices and 48 s-grade indices. The authoritative coefficient(Cr) of the experts was 0.804, which indicates that the experts have a high level of reliability.ConclusionThis study provides a reliable foundation for the evaluation of medical humanities maturity.

ANALISIS KESALAHAN BERBAHASA PERCAKAPAN GRUP WHATSAPP MAHASISWA KELAS B LINGUISTIK TERAPAN UNJ ANGKATAN 2023

This study aims to analyze language errors that occur in student WhatsApp group conversations in order to improve understanding and use of language more effectively in the academic environment. This study uses descriptive qualitative method and data collection technique, which is sourced from language errors in WhatsApp grub of Applied Linguistics Doctoral Program UNJ Batch 2023 class B students. The results of this study show that there are a number of language errors that appear in the WhatsApp group conversations of Applied Linguistics Doctoral Program UNJ class 2023 students. The errors include aspects of spelling, capitalization, and improper writing. In various contexts and domains, these language errors occur because the Applied Linguistics Doctoral Program students of Batch 2023 class B use informal language when communicating in the WhatsApp group, which is a non-formal situation among their peers. These language errors can be attributed to the relaxed situation in which the doctoral students express their opinions by using more relaxed and informal language in their daily interactions in the group.

The leadership of quality strategic for improvement lecture performance toward excellence’s university

This research found the strategic leadership of quality for improving lecture performance at the university as a public service. Leadership strategic aspects have affected the lecture performance. This research uses mix methods design. This research has been developed by strategic leadership for a quality model at the University of Mataram with qualitative case study. This research found strategy leadership of quality has an effective contribution to improving the lecture, dean, and head of study’s program performance at the University of Mataram, The strategy leadership for quality has more contributions to improve the lectures and education staff of study program. The faculty leadership element, namely the dean and head of a study program, has a considerable contribution to improving the performance of the institution he leads. The dean of the faculty must be able to plan educational and research programs well, this is seen from the planning, coordination, monitoring, and evaluation of each organizational unit within the University of Mataram. Furthermore, the head of the study program must also be able to transform superior study programs, such as doctoral study programs, and doctoral study programs at the University of Mataram.

CBT accreditation for clinical psychologists: A limitation or an opportunity to apply and maintain our organisational and systemic influence and leadership?

This paper explains the context for secondary accreditations for clinical psychologists, with a focus on the recognised multi-professional marker for competence in CBT, BABCP accreditation. It describes what CBT accreditation is and how clinical psychologists can achieve it at any stage of their career. The meaning of secondary accreditation within our profession is explored and the debate is outlined in the hope that readers will gain greater clarity about the value and benefits of dual accreditation in CBT for clinical psychologists. The views of clinical psychologists at all stages of their career from trainees to service leads are presented. Recent learning and developments from dual accredited clinical psychology doctorates in England are shared including the voices of a recent graduate of a Level 2 accredited doctorate, to provide insights and guidance for other doctorate programmes currently developing Level 2 BABCP accreditation, their supervisors and their trainees.

Assessing Confidence and Competence of Student Pharmacists in a Virtual Medication Adherence Training Program

ObjectiveTo assess the impact of a virtual medication adherence training (VMAT) program on students' perceived confidence and perceived competency in delivering medication adherence services via telehealth. MethodsThis pilot pre-/post-observational study consisted of two subsequent sections: 1) four asynchronous self-study modules via Canvas (Instructure, Inc.) learning management system, and 2) two live application-based sessions involving virtual and telephonic standardized patients. A pre-/post-survey was given to first-, second-, and third-year Doctor of Pharmacy students to assess perceived confidence and perceived competence. Participants completed a five-question multiple-choice quiz before and after each module to assess knowledge. ResultsStudents' overall perceived confidence and perceived competency significantly increased upon completing VMAT. Knowledge in each module assessment also significantly improved. During assessment of performance throughout the live sessions, most participants lost points when resolving issues within the interaction, addressing the need for patient follow-up, and assessing patient knowledge of medication adherence. ConclusionThis novel VMAT suggests that this or similar programs would be beneficial to improve pharmacy students’ perceived confidence, perceived competence, and knowledge in delivering virtual medication adherence services in the telehealth setting. The incorporation of such training within the didactic curriculum of doctoral pharmacy programs should be considered to improve patient care skills for future medication experts.