Why Don't More ICT Students Do PhDs?

Guerin, C., Jayatilaka, A., Calder, P., McCulloch, A. and Ranasinghe, D.

Compared to many other disciplines, ICT has relatively few students choosing to continue into doctoral studies. We have explored some of the perceived barriers to undertaking doctoral studies in ICT in three Australian universities. Current students were surveyed to establish their post-course intentions regarding employment and further study. Their reasons for not choosing to go onto research degrees were linked largely to concerns about the financial implications of such study and a limited understanding of what research in ICT involves. We recommend that ICT students be given accurate information about the costs involved, that students have authentic undergraduate experiences of research, and that smooth pathways be developed to allow students to return to doctoral studies after working in industry.

Cite as: Guerin, C., Jayatilaka, A., Calder, P., McCulloch, A. and Ranasinghe, D. (2015). Why Don't More ICT Students Do PhDs?. In Proc. 17th Australasian Computing Education Conference (ACE 2015) Sydney, Australia. CRPIT, 160. D'Souza, D and Falkner, K. Eds., ACS. 73-80

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