This PhD programme is different to most others offered in the Humanities and Social Sciences.
You will be working with a team of scholars and supervisors who are collectively invested in your completing a PhD that makes a significant contribution to the frontiers of the field.
You can watch a short video about doing a PhD in a project team here.
Over the years, studies have repeatedly critiqued the dominance of the individual 'Master-Apprentice' model in South Africa (CHE/CREST 2009; ASSAf 2010; Cloete, Mouton & Sheppard 2015; Mouton et al 2019). This model has been described as the 'lonely scholar model' (Harrison 2012) and relies extensively on the relationship between the supervisor and student. It provides little by way of structured support beyond such a relationship. For part-time students, this is even more problematic as they may not have colleagues and friends with whom to discuss issues and they are less likely to have access to online workshops and seminars to support them. The model used in our programme makes sure that you are working in a group with multiple opportunities for sharing and development and with clarity around roles and expectations.
You can find out more about the deadlines and course structure here.
For the first two years, you will have specific tasks and deadlines with extensive feedback on your assignments. The HEQSF (2012) precludes awarding credits for coursework in a PhD and so the modules are to support your development of an individual thesis, they are not for 'marks' towards the PhD.
We will be drawing on ten years of experience of project teams and running doctoral programmes. You can read more about the CHERTL PhD programme here. For this Social Justice & Quality in Higher Education programme, we will be also be drawing on the expertise and experience of colleagues at the Centre for Higher Education Research and Evaluation at Lancaster University where they have offered online PhDs in Higher Education for more than two decades.