Newly graduated PhD students of the University of Ghana are calling for greater transparency in the University’s doctoral examination system, questioning why candidates are not informed about the external examiners who assess their theses.
The concerns were raised during the first congregation ceremony for the 2024/2025 academic year held on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, at the Great Hall, where Doctorate and Master’s degrees were conferred.
Speaking to Univers News, one graduate described the thesis examination stage as the most critical yet least transparent part of the PhD journey.
“The most critical part is information flow. An important portion of the process is when you submit your thesis; it’s supposed to go to external examiners. However, the student does not know who these external examiners are and cannot follow up with them,” he said.
He questioned the confidentiality surrounding examiners’ identities, suggesting that at doctoral level the process should be more collegiate.
“You are the student; you want to graduate. I really don’t see why that should be a secret. In fact, in other schools around the world, your examiners are not secrets. You know them. Sometimes you even participate in deciding who your examiners are because, at this level, it’s more collegiate than a student-teacher relationship,” he added.
Delays and Limited Communication
Several graduates indicated that once a thesis is submitted, communication about its progress becomes limited, as follow-ups are handled largely by administrative staff and supervisors.
Some noted that doctoral candidates can spend seven, nine, or even more than a decade in the system, partly due to procedural delays during the examination and review stages.
“If you don’t hear from an examiner for at least a month, the school should be able to follow up or change the examiner if they are too busy, especially since they don’t allow the student to follow up themselves,” another graduate suggested.
Others pointed to the need for better communication of the University’s PhD handbook, which outlines the examination process and timelines.
“We do have a PhD handbook which regulates the processes, and I believe we need a lot more communication and sensitization of students on its content—what is to happen at which point in time. This is crucial so that people can graduate on time,” one graduate said.
Supervisors Respond
Responding to concerns about supervision, Professor Mahmoud Abdulai, Head of the Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship at the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS), described supervision as a partnership between student and mentor.
“Supervision is a partnership between the supervisor and the student. Once the student is up to the task, the supervisor’s work becomes less tiring. But when you have a student who is dragging his or her feet, it makes the work difficult. It depends on the type of student you have,” he said.
He added that supervisors are expected to remain accessible throughout the doctoral journey.
“The supervisor is supposed to make themselves available all the time when the student needs them. Once you are available to address their challenges and give them the direction they need, I think the journey is smooth,” he noted.
Achievement Amid Debate
Despite the frustrations, graduates acknowledged the intellectual and personal growth gained through the doctoral process.
“The most challenging part for me was the entire research process—collecting the data and making sense of the analysis… That is the whole focus of a PhD: doing it yourself and learning from it,” one graduate reflected.
While the congregation marked a milestone for hundreds of postgraduate students, the debate over transparency in doctoral examination signals a broader conversation about efficiency, communication, and accountability within postgraduate education at the University of Ghana.
No Comment! Be the first one.