_{By Moses Lutaaya}

Makerere University is taking bold steps to transform doctoral education, moving away from an over-reliance on overseas institutions and reaffirming the continent’s ability to provide world-class doctoral academic training.

Addressing a gathering of PhD students at the end of the ten days cross-cutting doctoral course in Advanced Research Methods, at the University Main Library on Friday July 31, 2025, the Director of Graduate Training Prof. Julius Kikooma recounted his own academic journey and the challenges faced by earlier generations of scholars who sought opportunities abroad.

“Many of us were deflected and disheartened when policies restricted access to overseas programs unless they were unavailable in Africa,” he said. “We were made to believe that the best knowledge only resided outside the continent. But my experience taught me otherwise—Africa has the resources and intellectual capacity to nurture scholars capable of solving its own problems.”

He further shared how he eventually pursued his PhD at the University of Cape Town, later realizing that the perceived gap between African and Western universities was largely political and rooted in global power dynamics surrounding knowledge creation.

Prof. Kikooma emphasized the importance of “learning to unlearn and relearn”, a critical foundation of doctoral studies, adding that “serious doctoral studies demand openness, debate, critique, and a willingness to challenge entrenched ideas.”

He emphasized that Makerere University is now recreating the classic “101 Lecture” experience, traditionally offered at undergraduate level, where first-year students met renowned professors at the pinnacle of their disciplines. This model is being revived at the doctoral level, ensuring PhD students / candidates regularly engage with world-class intellectuals in teaching, academic writing, and publishing.

“We are committed to creating an environment where intellectual curiosity thrives. Doctoral training is about stretching your thinking and using it creatively to solve national and global problems. We want every PhD student here to leave with no regrets about choosing Makerere University.”

The training of PhD students in Cross Cutting Courses is part of a broader vision to position the university as a leading hub for high-quality PhD production in Africa, responding to calls from regional leaders and the World Bank for the continent to massively scale up its human capital development.

He noted further that Makerere University produced 144 PhD graduates last year, far below the numbers required to meet National Development Targets. “Our goal entrenched in Makerere University Strategic plan 2025-2030 is to triple that figure within five years. We want to revive Makerere University position as the intellectual engine driving Uganda’s transformation over the next decade.” He added.

Prof. Kikooma concluded with a call for confidence building in African scholarship, urging doctoral students to believe in the value of their own institutions and research in shaping the continent’s future.

Relatedly, the lead trainer and coordinator of the training Prof. Christopher Mugimu has reaffirmed the University’s commitment to producing high-quality PhD graduates equipped to tackle Africa’s most pressing challenges, with the training initiatives aimed at strengthening doctoral research methodologies and academic confidence.

“The existence of doctoral programs without facilitating students with advanced research methodologies does not make sense,” Prof. Mugimu said. “Students need to know what methods to use in qualitative, quantitative, or mixed paradigms to avoid being thrown into the ocean without knowing what to do. This training saves them time, gives them confidence, and allows them to produce quality data, professional reports, and policy-relevant outputs.”

He added that the Advanced Research Methods training course, which brings together doctoral students from various disciplines, adopts a multidisciplinary and hands-on approach, enabling participants to design research titles, refine problems, develop instruments, and plan data analysis within the training period.  He reckoned that this approach will improve PhD completion rates and reduce prolonged delays that previously plagued doctoral programs at Makerere University.

The Vice president of Cohort one PhD students Dorothy Kirumira from the College of Agriculture and Environmental Studies said that Advanced Research Methods training is an eye opener which everyone should attend before they start doing their doctoral research.

“This course helps PhD candidates / students to understand how they should conduct doctoral research. Personally I thought I knew what I was doing, until I attended this course. I realized I lacked the knowledge and all I knew was basic.” She added.

On how this course would improve the quality of the PhD output, Dorothy said, “We have already overhauled our research proposals. Major adjustments have been done in earlier half-baked proposals. Am glad that am meeting my doctoral committee after this training. I feel very confident with now a clear direction to defend my work.”

She concluded that the quality of their research will add a big block in meeting the National Development Agenda of relevant policy formulation and implementation.

The President of Cohort 1 PhD students Mr. Moses Ebiru Wang’koko said, “Advanced Research Methods is important for doctoral students of Makerere University, especially in African contexts, as this equips researchers with the necessary tools to design studies that reflect local settings. This training that we have had extends beyond foundational academic skills and focuses on developing research competencies, ethical awareness, and the ability to address complex research questions relevant to specific field or disciplinary contexts.”

On how the training will impact their PhD output, Moses added, “Teaching Advanced Research Methods provides doctoral students with guidance throughout the research process, covering stages such as question formulation, data analysis, and ethical considerations, and includes both qualitative and quantitative methods. This PhD training has been designed to prepare us as researchers from Makerere University to develop studies that are methodologically sound, meet international standards, and consider local contexts research to contribute to academic knowledge and address societal issues.”