The Idea of the PhD The Doctorate in the Twenty-First-Century Imagination

About this book

The Idea of the PhD: The Doctorate in the Twenty-First-Century Imagination analyses the PhD as it is articulated in diverse areas of contemporary discourse at a time in which the degree is undergoing growth, change and scrutiny worldwide. It considers not just institutional ideas of the PhD, but those of the broader cultural and social domain as well as asking whether, and to what extent, the idea of the Doctor of Philosophy, the highest achievable university award, is being reimagined in the twenty-first century.

In a world where the PhD is undergoing significant radical change, and where inside universities, doctoral enrolments are continually climbing, as the demand for more graduates with high-level research skills increases, The Idea of the PhD asks the following questions:
- How do we understand how the PhD is currently imagined and conceptualised in the wider domain?
- Where will we find ideas about the PhD, from its purpose, to the nature of research work undertaken and the kinds of pedagogies engaged, to the researchers who undertake it and are shaped by it?

International in scope, this is a text that explores the culturally inflected representation of the doctorate and its graduates in the imagination, literature and media. The Idea of the PhD contributes to the research literature in the field of doctoral education and higher education. As such, this will be a fascinating text for researchers, postgraduates and academics interested in the idea of the university.

Contents

Introduction

1. The nature of doctoral research
2. The idea of the PhD researcher
3. The idea of PhD pedagogy
4. The spaces of doctoral research

Concluding remarks

Customer Reviews

Biography

Frances Kelly is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Critical Studies in Education, Faculty of Education and Social Work, University of Auckland, New Zealand.