The same starting line? The effect of a master’s degree on PhD students’ career trajectories

Datos Bibliográficos

ID21458708
AutoresHuan Li (0000-0003-0910-1433, Social Contexts and Policies of Education, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China), Jisun Jung (0000-0001-6186-5583, Social Contexts and Policies of Education, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China), Helena Horta (0000-0001-6814-1393, Social Contexts and Policies of Education, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China, autor de correspondencia)
Año2024
Volumen46
Número1
Páginas20-37
Fecha de publicación2024-01-02
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessNo
TipoARTICLE
RevistaStudies in Continuing Education (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0158-037X • E-ISSN: 1470-126X
EditorialInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/0158037x.2022.2117148
OpenAlexW4293397204
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas12
Referencias citadas30

Research on the career trajectories of doctoral recipients often assumes that all PhD students begin in roughly the same starting position. Consequently, the impact of pre-programme experiences remains understudied. This qualitative study draws on 59 interviews with PhD students studying in mainland China and Hong Kong to explore the influence of learning experiences during the master’s degree programme on planned PhD career trajectories. Using identity-trajectory theory, we find that students with a master’s degree had greater research expertise, a more prominent research profile, more established academic networks, and greater familiarity with the requirements of the academic profession and academic job market. This enabled them to adapt to institutional expectations and have a better-informed motivation for pursuing a PhD to become an academic. Based on these findings, we argue that having a master’s degree gives PhD students a competitive advantage over peers without master’s degrees. Our findings have implications for the importance of research training in master’s education and the relevance of master’s programmes for PhD admission policies

China · Degree program · Mainland China · Mathematics education · Medical education · Pedagogy · Political science · Sociology · Doctoral Education Challenges and Solutions · Evaluation of Teaching Practices · Higher Education Research Studies · Medicine · Psychology