Africa’s PhDs: study shows how to develop strong graduates who want to make a difference

What is it about?

The challenge for universities is to produce graduates who can work with others to produce knowledge and research that can change institutions and societies for the better. That is the basis on which the Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa (CARTA) began developing an approach to teaching PhDs 12 years ago. In the most recent survey PhD fellows were asked what significant change in themselves they attributed to their experience under the programme. They reported changes in their sense of self; worldviews; beliefs about knowledge; their experience of life; behaviour; and capacities. Their responses showed that the training had a positive impact on their lives in three critical ways. It improved their research capacities and their teaching; and it affected how they saw themselves and how they saw and experienced the world. The findings suggest that it is possible to create a curriculum that can produce excellent graduates committed to making an impact in their worlds.

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Why is it important?

The theory of change that the curriculum was developed around includes the assumption that a natural network will arise from developing a critical mass of graduates in each member institution who meet regularly over a number of years and train as cohorts which include people from various disciplines, institutions and countries. That network will support them in fostering change in their home institutions and societies. We believe that our approach has relevance internationally for those who want to produce multi-potential, multidisciplinary change agents who want to make a positive impact in their worlds. All curricula are available to adapt and use. We believe this work can be adapted to multiple disciplines and have evidence that this approach – a taught component to all PhD training – is beneficial.