Doctoral education has become of paramount importance in a world where knowledge is critical if countries are to participate competitively in the Knowledge Economy.

This seems to have compelled countries especially those located in the Global South to motivate their higher education institutions to consider offering more doctoral programmes leading to a massive surge in demand for doctoral education.

Doctoral students around the world seem to have in common the experience of a professional socialisation in research and academia, a critical relationship with a supervisory team, and difficulties in handling the challenges of long and often costly studies, and the weight of wider expectations regarding their future.

Beyond these similarities, their experiences needs and expectations vary considerably depending on the status of the doctorate in their country, their economic circumstances, and the institutional environment of their studies.


As part of a partnership initiated in 2023, the Faculties /Schools of Education at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST, Ghana), the University of East Anglia (UEA, UK), and Universidade Estadual do Ceará (UECE, Brazil), are holding a forum on Friday, 18th January 2024, to which doctoral students from the three institutions will be given the opportunity to share their experiences and expectations, and also discuss opportunities for further exchange and mobility between the three universities.

The forum which is a hybrid event will be hosted by KNUST’s Faculty of Educational Studies headed by Prof. Winston Kwame Abroampa and is convened by Dr. Patrick Swanzy, the Coordinator of the Partnership with Prof. Yann Lebeau of UEA as the Guest Speaker, and Prof. Spyros Themelis (UEA) and Prof. Sandra Maria Gadelha De Carvalho (UECE) as panel members.

It is expected that the knowledge gained from this international dialogue will help immerse the participants into internationally accepted scholarly conventions, heighten their awareness on the similarities and differences of professional socialisation, deepen the network amongst students and staff of the three universities and strengthen the collaboration that exists among them.