Report highlights challenges facing doctoral education in Europe
Europe must do more to attract and retain the best young researchers, according to a new report on doctoral education in Europe from the European University Association (EUA). The report, 'Doctoral Programmes in Europe's Universities: Achievements and Challenges', identifies trends in doctoral education in Europe and highlights challenges the sector must address if it is to attract and retain the best talent. 'Europe needs to increase the number of researchers and doctoral training can be seen as a cornerstone in reaching this goal,' commented John Smith, Deputy Secretary General of the EUA. 'Our work has shown that universities are taking a more structured approach towards the organisation of doctoral education.' On this note, the report welcomes the fact that more and more institutions are creating dedicated graduate or research schools, which are defined as 'an independent organisational unit with effective administration, strong leadership and specific funding supporting this structure.' These schools offer a number of advantages to doctoral students. On a practical level, they provide a clear administrative structure for doctoral programmes, support the task of supervising candidates, organise admissions in an open and transparent way and provide teaching and transferable skills training as well as advice on funding opportunities. They also help to provide a stimulating environment and promote cooperation across disciplines, ensure critical mass and help to overcome the isolation of young researchers, bring junior and senior scientists together and enhance opportunities for mobility. The report also notes the growing number of innovative doctorates such as 'professional doctorates', which focus on embedding research into another professional practice. The report stresses the fact that these alternative programmes must have the same basic requirements as 'traditional' doctorates in order to ensure the same high level of quality. 'Original research has to remain the main component of all doctorates,' the EUA writes. One of the major challenges facing doctoral training in Europe is funding. All too often, funding does not cover the length of the programme and does not provide doctoral candidates with sufficient means to work and live in decent conditions. 'The attractiveness of a research career in Europe, whether in the academic or non-academic sectors, starts and is largely determined at the doctoral level,' said Dr Smith. 'It is essential, therefore, to improve the status and financial support conditions of doctoral candidates which varies substantially across Europe.' Other areas with room for improvement include the development of doctoral candidates' career prospects. According to the EUA, more needs to be done to ensure candidates have the opportunity to develop transferable skills which will enhance their employability at the end of their doctoral programme. Developing these skills involves more than simply taking courses. 'An important element of transferable skills development is bringing together doctoral candidates from different disciplines and different levels (1-3 year) to encourage interdisciplinary dialogue and foster creative thinking and innovation,' the report states. The supervision and assessment of doctoral candidates could also be improved in many cases. 'The importance of ensuring good supervision needs to be properly recognised as a task of staff supervising doctoral candidates, should be included in their workload and task descriptions, and thus also taken into consideration in academic career structures and decisions on promotion,' the report recommends. Mobility is another issue addressed by the report, which recommends that departments facilitate the mobility of their doctoral candidates. 'International mobility, including transsectoral and transdisciplinary mobility should be recognised as having an added value for the career development of early stage researchers,' the report reads.