The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on PhD candidates’ study progress and study wellbeing

Pyhältö, Kirsi; Tikkanen, Lotta; Anttila, Henrika

doi:10.1080/07294360.2022.2063816

Cited by 30 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…Limited face-to-face seminars and conferences where postgraduates exchange ideas on research were reported as one of the challenges that postgraduates students faced during the pandemic (Rafat & Khan ( 2021 :S77). The limited interaction left some postgraduates students demotivated (Pyhältö et al 2022 ). In a study conducted in India, postgraduate students had difficulty maintaining communication with their thesis supervisors who were meant to support and guide them through their research projects (Rafat & Khan 2021 :S77).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to studies conducted in India (Rafat & Khan 2021 :S77), Finland (Pyhältö et al 2022 ), the US (Persky et al 2020 :1), Belgium (Van Tienoven et al 2022 :1), South Africa (Hofmeyr et al 2021 :1) and the UK (King et al 2022 :671), postgraduate research was hampered by the inability to collect data from participants because of COVID-19 regulations of physical distancing. Postgraduate students had to halt their studies, as their study participants were from vulnerable populations (e.g.…”

Section: Challenges and Opportunities In Conducting Postgraduate Rese...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Navigating postgraduate research during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review

Mudzi

Mudzi²

2022

Curationis

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Background:The worldwide coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic compelled higher education institutions and postgraduate students (master's and PhD) to rethink their research designs, as alert level restrictions affected data collection.Objectives: To identify and map out the breadth of evidence available on the challenges and opportunities for conducting postgraduate research during the COVID-19 pandemic.Method: A scoping review was conducted in CINAHL, MEDLINE (EBSCO), SCOPUS and PubMed databases. The authors independently began by screening the titles, the abstracts and full texts. Duplications were removed during the title and abstract screening by exporting them into EndNote. Results:The search identified 463 documents, and 12 were included in the final review. The documents were studies commentaries, letters (n = 1) from India and guidelines from countries across the globe. The common themes that were reported on the challenges of conducting postgraduate research were the inability to collect data, the digital divide and changes in study designs. Conclusion:The review reports on the opportunities and challenges in conducting postgraduate research during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the limited evidence on the opportunities of conducting postgraduate research, most postgraduate research stalled because of COVID-19 restrictions. There is a need for more literature to explore further postgraduate research opportunities during COVID-19 and beyond. Contribution:The focus on the challenges and opportunities in conducting postgraduate research during the COVID-19 pandemic may assist in the development of strategies needed to mitigate the effects of this and future pandemics.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Challenges and Opportunities In Conducting Postgraduate Rese...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Navigating postgraduate research during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review

Mudzi

Mudzi²

2022

Curationis

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…The practical arrangements of the courses also received positive feedback (8). These students mentioned the ease with which teachers and fellow students used remote learning tools for effective teaching and group work.…”

Section: What Has Worked Well In Emergency Remote Teachingmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…These studies show that students in Finland faced challenges with time management [6] but not particularly with technical issues [6,7]. A recent study about PhD students in Finland found that the pandemic had decreased well-being and hindered the completion of the students' dissertations [8]. However, the experiences of student teachers during the pandemic are an uncharted area in Finnish research.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Perceptions of Student Teachers of Online Pedagogical Courses and Assessment Practices in Finnish Subject Teacher Education

2022

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The purpose of this case study was to explore how student teachers at the University of Helsinki perceived pedagogical courses in emergency remote teaching. The dataset consists of the responses of 79 students to an online questionnaire and interviews with five students. Descriptive statistics, multiple linear regression analysis, and content analysis were used to analyze the data. The students pointed out that, on average, teachers have mastered the pedagogy of remote teaching well, although older teachers had more challenges than younger teachers. The quality of teaching was reported as being high. Teachers’ pedagogical knowledge was the strongest predictor of successful remote teaching. In terms of assessment, teachers mostly used essays and other written assignments to assess students’ achievement. According to most students, the assessment practices were implemented successfully. The results provide insights for developing remote teaching in teacher education.

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“…Based on the restricted empirical evidence, it seems that the COVID-19 pandemic has predominantly had a negative impact on PhD candidates (Atkinson et al, 2021;Aubry et al, 2021;Camerlink et al, 2021;Donohue et al, 2021;Myers et al, 2020). For instance, we recently showed that PhD candidates typically estimated the COVID-19 pandemic as having a negative impact on their study progress and study well-being (Pyhältö et al, 2022). The negative influences reported by the candidates were related to impaired access to the data, erosion of scholarly support networks, reduced access to institutional resources, poor work-life balance and reduced well-being (Pyhältö et al, 2022).…”

Section: Doctoral Supervisors' and Supervisees' Experiences Of The Im...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Is there a fit between PhD candidates’ and their supervisors’ perceptions on the impact of COVID-19 on doctoral education?

Pyhältö

Tikkanen²,

Anttila³

2022

SGPE

Self Cite

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Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic has had its impact on research and researchers, potentially influencing the future of academia. Yet, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, there are no empirical studies on the alignment between supervisors’ and supervisees’ estimates of the impact of COVID-19. This study aims to contribute to bridging this gap by exploring PhD candidates’ and supervisors’ perceptions of the impact of COVID-19 on candidates’ study progress and study well-being, and whether the estimates were related to supervisors’ and supervisees’ well-being. Design/methodology/approach A total of 768 PhD candidates and 561 doctoral supervisors from a large multifield research-intensive university in Finland participated in this quantitative study. Data were collected with the doctoral experience survey and the supervisory experience survey. Findings In general, the results show that both supervisors and supervisees recognised the negative impact of the pandemic on candidates’ well-being and progress, and their perceptions were quite well aligned. However, supervisors estimated that the impact had been more detrimental than the supervisees did. The results also show that the supervisors’ perceptions of the negative impact of COVID-19 on candidates’ progress and well-being were related to reduced levels of their own well-being. Originality/value Results can be used in developing effective support means for both the supervisors and supervisees to overcome the hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and to avoid long-term negative consequences for the candidates in degree completion, career trajectories and the future of the academy.

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The influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on PhD candidates’ study progress and study wellbeing

Cited by 30 publications

References 43 publications

Navigating postgraduate research during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review

Navigating postgraduate research during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review

The Perceptions of Student Teachers of Online Pedagogical Courses and Assessment Practices in Finnish Subject Teacher Education

Is there a fit between PhD candidates’ and their supervisors’ perceptions on the impact of COVID-19 on doctoral education?

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