Standards for PhD Trajectories in Public Administration are Based on Choices Are We Making the Right Ones?

Abstract

This article examines the requirements and current conditions for awarding the degree of PhD in Public Administration in South Africa. It distinguishes different models regarding the aim of such trajectories, the kind of supervision, the needed knowledge and skills of PhD candidates, the need for mandatory graduate courses and the institutionalisation thereof. The question can therefore be posed whether we are satisfied with the current quality and standard of the PhD in Public Administration in South Africa. And should the current quality be found to be lacking, could international standardisation be the solution? The article is based on a desk-top literature review comparing and synthesising PhD trajectories and existing standards, and provides a critical reflection of what has been proposed in scholarly articles and books together with the content of international standards. The trend in other parts of the world, as seen through the Bologna Treaty and the Salzburg Principles, is towards greater standardisation of doctoral education. This standardisation is linked to globalisation and the increased movement of graduates and the workforce around the world. Although standardisation has benefits, which increases the quality of PhD graduates, it also results in a generic tick box exercise that dampens creativity and the ability to use initiative in research and writing.