Doctor of Philosophy in Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies

Purpose

The purpose of the qualification is to offer specialised training in theories, concepts and research methods appropriate to the emerging field of enquiry of poverty, land and agrarian studies. This will contribute to the further development and strengthening of engaged scholarship on issues of great relevance to societies in Africa in particular, experiencing the rapid transformation of their rural economies. Scholarship of this kind can contribute a great deal to policy making, and many of the doctoral learners who are trained will work in applied professions such as development planning. Thus another purpose that the qualification will serve is to build capacity for effective societal responses to social change.

At the end of this qualification, the learner should be able to

• Critically engage with the key scholarly debates, key theories in the relevant field.
• Have an understanding of research methodologies in qualitative and quantitative research design, and the ability to select those appropriate for their own work.
• The ability to identify, analyse, synthesise and undertake independent evaluation of topics relevant to the field.
• The ability to present a well-structured and developed piece of research which is of publishable standards.
• Critically demonstrate the ability to conduct independent research.
• Demonstrate the ability to coherently and logically structure and organise his/her study.
• Critically demonstrate the ability to analytically and conceptually apply research tools to the topic under investigation.
• Demonstrate the ability for critical review and analysis of literature in the field under investigation.

Rationale

Over the past two decades there has been a revival of scholarly interest in the dynamics of agrarian change and related issues of land reform, rural development, poverty reduction and sustainable natural resource management. This is evident in a dramatic rise in research and publications on these and related topics. Over the past six years the question of the drivers and impacts of large-scale land acquisition and investment in developing countries, together with crises in energy, water and food supply, as well as rapid social change in the countryside of the developing world, have further spurred engaged scholarship on these topics. The leading specialist journals in the field (e.g. Journal of Peasant Studies, Journal of Agrarian Change) are now ranked within the top four journals in the world in wider fields such as development planning and anthropology. This explosion of research and publication is also characterised by a strong emphasis on the development of appropriate theories and concepts as well as the collection of detailed empirical data, and this has driven the emergence of what is widely termed 'critical agrarian studies' as a distinct field of enquiry.

Leading centres of research in critical agrarian studies are located at universities in the 'North' such as the Institute of Social Studies at the Hague, the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London, and the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex, but also at universities located in the 'Global South', in China, India, Brazil and South Africa (mainly at PLAAS). Another result of the emergence of poverty, land and agrarian studies as an exciting field of enquiry has been increasing demand for doctoral training, and the number of doctoral learners working in the field has risen rapidly. PLAAS itself receives several requests a month from prospective PhD learners from across Africa or further afield, and the numbers of doctoral learners registered at PLAAS has increased in recent years, despite constraints such as the limited number of permanent academic staff. The university also obtained a SArchi chair in this area.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

Access to the qualification can also be provided in terms of the university's RPL policy and its admission criteria stipulated by Senate. In addition in the RPL process learners have to undergo a Portfolio Development Course (PDC) to support the learner's admission. The PDC will focus on written submission explaining the reasons for the learners' interest in Agrarian Studies as an adjunct to their existing professional competencies and indicating the nature of a possible research project.

Entry Requirements

Admission requirements for this qualification are

• Master's Degree in Social Sciences, Arts, Law, Humanities, Environmental Sciences and Development Studies or any other relevant discipline.

This qualification comprises compulsory modules of 180 Credits each, totalling 360 Credits.

Modules

• LAS901 Thesis.
• LAS9012 Thesis.

1. Develop appropriate theories and concepts as well as the collection of detailed empirical data.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcomes 1

• An independent research of a relatively new era is conducted in the existing field of Agrarian Studies.
• Unique and original contribution is made to his/her field of Agrarian Studies.
• Theoretical debates and discourses are conceptualised.
• The researcher's specialist knowledge in the field of Agrarian Studies is demonstrated.
• Existing literature is reviewed, analysed and conceptualised in the field under investigation.
• A research proposal is coherently and logically structured and organised.
• Research findings are analytically and conceptually applied to the issue under investigation.
• A full dissertation (thesis) which meets international standards of scholarly and professional writing is structured, organised and produced.
• Communication skills to present cogently a complex investigation of originality or original research for external examination against international standards are demonstrated to peers and the community.

Integrated Assessment

Learners will complete a full dissertation reporting on research that they have completed. The dissertation will be examined by internal and external examiners appointed by the relevant University Committees.

Internal and external moderation/examination

Moderation will be done through the internal and external examiners recommended by the supervisor, and then appointed by the University's Senate Higher Degrees Committee on recommendation of the Faculty to ensure the quality of the study. The University requirement is that the examiners should be experienced assessors with knowledge of the learning field, in whom other assessors have confidence and who are experienced assessors.

The learners' knowledge in Agrarian Studies will be assessed by the supervisor and faculty members via a formal proposal for PhD research by the end of their first year. This will be assessed by a committee of at least three professors, one of which must be external.