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The doctoral programme is an educational programme put in place to earn the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D). A criterion for assessing the successful administration of doctoral degrees in universities is the timely completion of the programme.  Research indicates that several Ph.D. candidates at Nigerian universities fail to finish their programmes within the anticipated five-year timeframe. This research examined the determinants of efficient administration of PhD programmes in universities in southern Nigeria. A sample of 528 respondents (PhD students, supervisors and coordinators) was drawn from the University of Ibadan 305, Olabisi Onabanjo University 38, Ekiti State University 50 and the University of Lagos 135. Two questionnaires titled “Effective Management of Doctoral Programme Questionnaire” (EMDPQ r=0.83) and “Predictors of Effective Management of Ph.D Questionnaire” (PEMPQ r=0.82) were used to collect data. Multiple regression analysis was used to test two null hypotheses at the significance level of 0.05. The research found that the successful administration of PhD programs in institutions in southwest Nigeria was significantly influenced by student, supervisory, and institutional variables (F(3;461) =25.973, Adj. R2=0.13), accounting for 13% of its variance. It was also shown that institutional (? = 0.277, t = 2.892, p < 0.05) and student-related (? = 0.275, t = 2.425, p < 0.05) factors are more powerful predictors of effective management of doctoral programmes than supervisory variables. The findings indicated that to improve the effective management of doctoral programmes in universities in southwest Nigeria, stakeholders should prioritise collaboration on student, supervisory, and institutional factors.