Being a good course-taker is not enough: a theoretical perspective on the transition to independent research
Abstract
Students are typically admitted into doctoral programmes because they have been good course‐takers. Yet, the PhD is awarded for doing independent research and making an ‘original contribution’ to knowledge. Graduate faculty acknowledge that the transition to independent research is hard for many students, and that they cannot predict who will successfully make the transition and complete the doctorate based only on students’ undergraduate records or even their performance in their first year of graduate school. Similarly, many graduate students feel unprepared to make the transition. Drawing on recent work on creativity, this paper provides a theoretical perspective on the factors that facilitate and impede doctoral students’ transition to independent research.
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Lovitts (2005) argues that doctoral education requires a transition from being a successful coursetaker to becoming an independent researcher, a transition that depends on learning to make judgments under conditions of uncertainty.
“Lovitts (2005) argues that doctoral education requires a transition from being a successful coursetaker to becoming an independent researcher, a transition that depends on learning to make judgments under conditions of uncertainty.”
From From production to verification: generative AI, doctoral formation, and the leadership of digital education (2026) · cites this paper as Lovitts (2005)
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References 60 · Cited by 407
- Authors
- Lovitts *, B. E.
- Venue
- Studies in Higher Education
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2005-04
- Volume
- 30
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 137-154
- ISSN
- 0307-5079 (ISSN-L)
- 1470-174X
- OpenAlex
- W2119665113
- Cited by
- 407
- References
- 60
- Citations by year
- 2026: 23 · 2025: 18 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 28 · 2022: 29 · 2021: 25 · 2020: 23 · 2019: 28 · 2018: 30 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 21 · 2015: 27 · 2014: 22 · 2013: 26 · 2012: 18
- FWCI
- 8.42
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Studies in Higher Education (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Doctoral Education Challenges and Solutions
- Social Sciences › Education › Higher Education Research Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Creativity in Education and Neuroscience
- Keywords
- doctoral students, doctoral education, creativity, PhD completion, graduate faculty
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