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PhD crisis discourse: a critical approach to the framing of the problem and some Australian ‘solutions’

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Abstract

A feature of HE reform discourse is the tendency to construct the rationale for reform in terms of averting calamity and risk. We refer to this risk talk as ‘crisis discourse’. This study examines the formulation of PhD crisis discourse internationally and in Australia. We find that a key feature of PhD crisis discourse is that universities are producing too many graduates for too few academic jobs; and graduates lack skills that enable them to be productive in jobs outside academia. In Australia, the discourse has shifted from one dominated by efficiency concerns from the late 1990s to the present focus on graduate skills and employability. The policy solution to the efficiency crisis in the Australian PhD resulted in system-wide changes in research training funding focused on increased efficiency. The current unemployability discourse has as yet prompted isolated institutional responses, the introduction of new PhD programs or re-badging existing offerings as pro-skills development offerings. Following an examination of three Australian institutional responses, we conclude that the crisis discourse signals tensions surrounding the PhD: should achievement in doctoral education be measured by outcomes in intellectual excellence or the responsiveness of qualification to the current needs and priorities of society?

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Notes

  1. Although the origin of doctoral education dates back to twelfth century Europe, the PhD as we know it today came into existence in the early nineteenth century with the establishment of the research university in Prussia, in present day Germany. In other parts of the world, the PhD was conferred much later: in the USA, in 1861 (Yale University); in Britain, in 1917 (the University of Oxford); and in Australia in 1948 (the University of Melbourne). The doctoral qualification had its critics at least a century ago as well. In 1903, in his commentary, The Ph.D. Octopus, William James argued that the doctorate ‘fostered academic snobbery’.

  2. See http://www.newroutephd.ac.uk/.

  3. The Group of Eight (Go8) represents a coalition of Australia’s eight elite research-intensive universities, namely, The University of Adelaide, The Australian National University, The University of Melbourne, Monash University, The University of New South Wales, The University of Queensland, The University of Sydney, and The University of Western Australia.

  4. It is noteworthy that the federal department related to tertiary education has undergone a series of name changes. The name changes imply the shifting policy framework towards industry and innovation. Some of recent name changes include Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research (DIISR); Department of Innovation, Industry, Science, Research and Tertiary Education (DIISRTE); and Department of Innovation, Industry, Climate Change, Science, Research, and Tertiary Education (DIICCSRTE). Under the new Liberal Coalition government of Tony Abbott (elected on 7 September 2013), the composite education-industry department was abolished (September 18, 2013), and part of its major functions has been transferred to newly formed Departments of Industry and of Education.

  5. ATN is a national alliance of five technology universities, namely, Curtin University of Technology, University of South Australia, RMIT University, University of Technology Sydney and Queensland University of Technology. See www.atn.au/IDTC/index.htm.

  6. Monash introduced the new program in January 2013, see http://monash.edu/migr/why-monash/phd/; At UQ, candidates who are confirmed after 1 January 2013 are eligible to choose one of the career-path modules, see http://www.uq.edu.au/grad-school/career-advantage-phd/index.html.

  7. See http://www.monash.edu.au/migr/why-monash/phd/.

  8. For instance, in the current arrangement, in the School of Social and Political Sciences at Monash University, to satisfy the requirements of his or her PhD, a candidate should take one mandatory coursework unit and complete 96 h RST activities. From this, prior to confirmation the candidate should complete the coursework unit (Advanced Research Methods in the Social and Political Sciences or Researching the EU from a Global Perspective) with a total of 12 credit points through on-campus delivery mode; and two core RST units: Research Integrity (online, 10 h) and HDR Induction (on-campus, 2 h).

  9. See http://www.uq.edu.au/grad-school/career-advantage-phd/about.

  10. See http://www.uq.edu.au/grad-school/career-advantage-phd/why-is-uq-introducing-this-program-164611.

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  1. School of Graduate Research, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, 3001, Australia

    Denise Cuthbert

  2. Centre for Research in Educational Futures and Innovation, Deakin University, Melbourne, VIC, 3125, Australia

    Tebeje Molla

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Cuthbert, D., Molla, T. PhD crisis discourse: a critical approach to the framing of the problem and some Australian ‘solutions’. High Educ 69, 33–53 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-014-9760-y

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