Richly illustrated with case studies and interviews, this book identifies key themes pervading academic life: the nature of research and research supervision; key social processes and problems; distinct and contrasting sub-cultures of departments and disciplines in universities; mentorship and sponsorship; and apprenticeship and rites of passage for postgraduate students. Anyone developing policy and practice in Higher Education, or wishing to understand their own position within the wider picture will benefit from reading this book.
Author(s): Paul Atkinson
Year: 1999
Language: English
Pages: 224
Book Cover......Page 1
Half-Title......Page 2
Title......Page 3
Copyright......Page 4
Contents......Page 5
Acknowledgements......Page 6
Introduction......Page 8
The Contest of the Faculties......Page 12
Classification and Identity......Page 14
Professions and Socialization......Page 16
The Social Organization of Scientific Knowledge......Page 18
Disciplines......Page 21
2 Researching our Peers......Page 25
Student Informants......Page 37
3 The Nature of the Quest......Page 41
Examiners’ Views of the PhD......Page 42
Supervisors’ Views of the Quest......Page 49
Students’ Dreams......Page 54
The Personal Quest......Page 58
4 The Appliance of Science......Page 60
Recognition of Incongruity......Page 63
The Construction of the Doctorate......Page 66
Coming to Terms with Problems......Page 68
Pre-established Knowledge......Page 70
Becoming Scientists......Page 77
Introduction......Page 79
Fieldwork and Identity......Page 80
Fieldwork and Indeterminacy......Page 89
Writing Up......Page 101
Acquiring the Habitus......Page 103
Conclusion......Page 105
6 Modelling Realities......Page 107
Mapping Physical Reality......Page 108
Ideas, Programs and Knowledge......Page 113
Conclusion......Page 119
Time and Generation......Page 123
Biographies, Genealogies and Pedigrees......Page 125
Research Groups and Succession......Page 136
Collecting Academics’ Accounts......Page 141
The Balancing Acts......Page 145
Past and Present......Page 150
Conclusion......Page 157
9 Pedagogic Continuities......Page 159
The Science Research Group......Page 164
Individualized Doctoral Research......Page 168
Beyond the Department......Page 174
Multidisciplinary Work......Page 176
Conclusion......Page 178
10 Disciplines and the Doctorate......Page 180
Appendix 1 Two Research Projects......Page 190
Appendix 2 The Policy Context......Page 194
References......Page 199
Name Index......Page 205
Subject Index......Page 209
