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The increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in higher education has reshaped how students engage with academic research, particularly at Honours level, where students transition from structured undergraduate learning to independent postgraduate research. Guided by Self‑Regulated Learning (SRL) theory, this study examines how reliance on AI by Honours research students influences the supervisor-supervisee relationship, the quality of research produced, and the extent of knowledge gained through the research process. SRL theory emphasises learners’ ability to plan, monitor, and reflect on their own learning, which is central to successful postgraduate research development. This study adopts a conceptual and literature‑based review methodology, drawing on peer‑reviewed studies on AI use in higher education, literature on postgraduate supervision, and academic integrity and research skills development frameworks, with specific attention to Honours‑level contexts. The documents were analysed using thematic content analysis, focusing on self‑regulatory behaviours, supervisory interaction, research skill development, and learning depth. The findings suggest that limited and transparent use of AI can support honours students by reducing surface‑level cognitive load and assisting with language clarity. However, excessive reliance on AI may undermine key self‑regulation processes, weaken critical thinking, and reduce meaningful engagement with supervisors. Supervisors may struggle to accurately assess students’ understanding, potentially straining trust and feedback processes. The review further indicates that over‑reliance on AI risks producing research that is technically adequate but conceptually shallow, with reduced long‑term knowledge acquisition. The study concludes that clear supervision practices and explicit guidance on responsible AI use are necessary to ensure that AI supports, rather than replaces, the self‑regulated learning essential for high‑quality Honours‑level research.

Black postgraduate (PG) students in South African universities and universities of technology experience significant supervisory conflicts, including contradictory guidance, neglect, and favoritism, which delay graduation and intensify inequities rooted in post-apartheid higher education (HE) dynamics. Prevailing research overlooks these students’ lived experiences, creating a gap in understanding systemic barriers to equitable supervision. This qualitative study employed narrative inquiry with six purposively sampled black PG students (four females, two males) from PhD, MTech, and MSc programs across South African universities. Semi-structured interviews explored supervisory conflicts, institutional responses, and academic impacts. Thematic analysis framework, yielding six themes validated through member checking. Key findings revealed conflicting supervisory directions causing years-long stagnation; prolonged neglect and feedback delays demotivating students; irrelevant objectives imposed by additional supervisors leading to academic penalties; inexperienced supervisors contributing to dropouts; power imbalances and ethical breaches such as gift-giving favoring certain students; and inadequate institutional resolutions forcing adversarial advocacy. Supervisory conflicts undermine black students' progress and well-being, demanding decolonial reforms for inclusive practices. Recommendations include mandatory supervisory contracts, accreditation, ombud services, and bias training to enhance throughput and equity. Future research should pursue longitudinal, comparative designs and intervention trials.

Over recent decades, the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) has traditionally served as the pinnacle of scholarly achievement, primarily preparing individuals for academic and research careers. However, shifting academic landscapes, increased competition, and changing industry demands are transforming the PhD's role from a terminal research degree into a foundational step toward academia. The objective of the article is to explore the emerging trends, underlying factors, and implications of the PhD becoming a prerequisite and stepping stone for entering academic professions. Through analysis of global patterns, institutional policies, and career trajectories, the article argue that the PhD is increasingly viewed as an essential credential for those aiming to establish a foothold in academia, shaping the future of doctoral training and academia’s workforce. This article found that PhD qualification does not always confirm the expertise of PhD holders but mostly display the research capabilities. The study also found that there are contradicting views from different scholars on the value of the PhD.

The article seeks to explore the factors which restrict doctoral graduate throughput rates at a selected University of Technology faculty located in the Western Cape, South Africa. In a developing economy like South Africa higher education qualifications are important as it is universally accepted that doctoral studies, in particular advance knowledge and innovation is important in any society. Furthermore, doctoral graduates play a significant role in the knowledge economy, promote innovation organisations, boost credibility of organisations and connect ideas between academia and industry. A positive nexus exists between a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the number of doctoral candidates produced. To achieve the aim of this article a qualitative interpretive design was adopted to identify the factors which restrict throughput rates and the extent or significance thereof. The locus for this study was a selected faculty in a University of Technology (UoT) located in the Western Cape, South Africa with the target research population delineated as employees who hold a master’s degree within the same faculty. Using qualitative interpretive design and thematic analysis of survey responses from 40 master’s-qualified employees, the study identifies key barriers and proposes targeted interventions. The forty participants were purposively selected to participate in the questionnaire survey. The paper will propose interventions to facilitate the improvement of the doctoral throughput rate premised on the analysis of the results arising from the questionnaire survey. The paper proposes targeted and contextualized interventions to address the systemic challenges restricting doctoral enrolment and completion by the faculty employees.

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.

Identifying research gaps is a key aspect of scholarly excellence, yet it remains a challenge for many novice researchers. Despite the emphasis on innovation in academia, early-career scholars often struggle to differentiate genuine gaps from mere absences in the literature. This study examines these difficulties within social science research, exploring structural and institutional factors that shape the research journey. Using a qualitative, non-empirical approach, the study employs a systematic literature review and critical discourse analysis to synthesize scholarly arguments. Data were sourced from reputable databases, ensuring credibility through strict inclusion criteria. Thematic analysis identified key challenges, including difficulties in recognizing gaps, theoretical conceptualization, methodological rigor, and institutional constraints such as rigid paradigms, limited mentorship, and lack of interdisciplinary collaboration. Triangulation enhanced validity by evaluating sources across disciplines. Findings reveal that inadequate exposure to academic discourse, weak theoretical grounding, and insufficient methodological training hinder gap identification. The study underscores the need for structured mentorship, enhanced training, and critical engagement with theory to support emerging scholars. Addressing these barriers contributes to research capacity building in social sciences, highlighting the importance of fostering innovative and impactful academic contributions.

This article explores the nature of supervisor-supervisee relations at a rurally located institution of Higher Learning. Although the university is an organization of writing retreats, literature provides little insight into the crucial role these academic activities play in enhancing supervisor-supervisee skills and language competence among authors. The process of supervisor-supervisee takes place with the assumption that it yields the intended output of increasing postgraduate research output. Despite the call by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) for increased postgraduate throughput, some Historically Disadvantaged Institutions (HDI) have not shown the required throughput rate. The main aim of this study was to explore the nature of the supervisor-supervisee relationship in a rurally located university. Twelve participants, six (6) research supervisors, and six (6) postgraduate students were purposively sampled as relevant for this study. For data gathering purposes, the authors interviewed the participants through the administration of the semi-structured interviews.  Contained in the interview schedule were open-ended questions, which allowed for robust discussions between the interviewers and the interviewees. Atlas Ti software was used to analyse data according to themes and categories. The main findings of the study demonstrate that postgraduate students are confronted with a range of difficulties, including (i) communication impediments and (ii) resource limitations, which are exacerbated by the heavy workload of supervisors. The study recommends the need to strengthen postgraduate research supervision capacity to enhance research quality. The study advocates for enhanced postgraduate research mentoring and personalized research support that might assist in nurturing a well-informed generation of scholars who can positively contribute to the academic fraternity.

The growth in the use of article-based theses, when compared to the traditional monograph-style thesis raises the question why students, supervisors and academic institutions are pursuing this particular route. This study explores the views of experienced supervisors involved in doctoral studies. The study aims to explore the advantages, disadvantages, caveats and various routes that doctoral students can take in completing their thesis. The study was exploratory in nature, employing a qualitative research design and made use of semi-structured interviews with nine doctoral supervisors from Canada. Data was collected from experienced doctoral supervisors from Canada, selected by means of a snowball sampling approach. Data was analysed by means of thematic content analysis. Findings show that supervisors preferred the sandwich-based thesis approach, as it allowed for more rapid time to completion. In addition, the main benefits for both institution and student included having a larger volume of published research output at the end of the doctoral supervision process, as well as more rapid career advancement owing to development of both research and soft skills. The finds hold value for universities who are considering an article-based thesis as an alternative to the traditional monograph style, as well as universities who have not used this option extensively. Findings also provide an impetus for supervisors and faculties in management education to adopt the article-based thesis approach more widely and rapidly owing to the multitude of benefits it holds. 

The paper developed a multilevel model (MLM) of postgraduate (PG) supervision to improve the academic publication and PG completion rate. Crowdsourcing essentials were used in the development of the model. The crowds consisted of the MLM made of students from Honours to doctoral levels. Teamwork was also implored, where the teams were level mates and supervisory teams. The simplest form of the model has the potential to generate over 65 academic manuscripts for journals. Monitoring of the supervision process can provide maximized completion of the PG research studies. Research capacity building would be effected for the doctoral and master’s students making them able to supervise and co-supervise from Honours to doctoral levels upon completion of their studies. The study condemned the use of a single supervisor for several doctoral students. It recommended the implementation of the model (the MLM PG Supervision Framework). It further recommended that doctoral students should be assigned co-supervisors, preferably varied for different students, to enable diversity in the supervision experience.

The Council on Higher Education (CHE)’s report on the doctoral programme review states   that offering postgraduate programmes seems to be a challenge to some South African universities. Amongst others, the report expresses that postgraduate supervision at universities suffers from many challenges, some of which result in students being delayed or not completing their studies. Underpinned by Archer’s (1998) theory of the interplay between structure, culture, and agency (support programmes), the study seeks to examine factors that hinder postgraduate students’ completion of their dissertations and theses. The study adopted narrative research where the qualitative design was used. Postgraduate students (Master and Doctoral) who have registered for these programmes repeatedly in the university served as participants in the study. The purposive sample was used to sample eight postgraduate students who have frequently registered for more than the required residency period. Semi-structured questions were formulated to guide data collection. Data was collected through a focus group of eight Master and Doctoral students. Collected data were analysed using the content analysis method. The study found that the university does not have adequate (or weak) supporting structures for students to complete their degrees in record time.

The complex application process at the postgraduate level became a major blamer for poor doctorate enrolments. The complexity in the communication messages made it difficult for prospective postgraduate students to absorb information effectively. The proposal by the government to increase masters' and doctorate enrolments at universities requires universities to cater to the needs of customers whose preferences and expectations change continuously. The research upon which this paper was based was aimed at identifying the information needs of prospective postgraduates at public universities. The study design is quantitative, employing a descriptive technique and cross-sectional method. For the empirical study, a non-probability sampling method was utilized to obtain data from a sample of 116 masters’ and doctorate students. Descriptive statistics described the main features of the collected data through frequencies, tables, and bar charts. Inferential statistics were used to determine relationships between variables and test the significance, and reliability of the findings. Emphasis on university processes and specific aspects of the expected and augmented product were found. Interestingly, the importance attached to getting information about economic incentives significantly outweighs the importance attached to receiving information about the actual product. The results of this study affirm the assertion that the postgraduate market is unique and has unique information needs. The results provide universities with a guideline to identify the information needs of prospective postgraduate students applying for master's and doctorate studies at public universities.  The study limitation is that it encompasses only a small number of registered master’s and doctoral students in KwaZulu-Natal, limiting the possibility of generalizing the results to all prospective postgraduate students in South Africa.