Lately, more and more academics have obtained Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees from universities either in the country or abroad. Some academics get their PhDs from top recognized universities, but some also get them from less famous or unknown universities. However, some of these academics do not highlight their authority in terms of the knowledge and expertise they have acquired so that their ability can be disputed, thus raising the question of which university this person got his PhD or professor title from. In today's modern world, when many bigots are chasing ranks and titles, there will be various offers that need to be filtered more carefully so that what is 'pursued' is legitimate and PhD degree holders are not deceived or become victims of 'scammers'. Most importantly, when receiving the highest title in academia, the owner should not embarrass himself among academics who also have the same rank and title. If a scientist wants to get a PhD and uses the abbreviation 'Dr' in his name, then the honorable way to get it is to register as a candidate at a recognized university instead of studying with a university labeled 'degree mill' or 'one-night institution' ( fly by night institutions). PhD level studies can be done through full-time thesis research methods such as in the United Kingdom (UK) in or before the 1990s or through coursework and then completing a dissertation to partially meet the requirements as practiced in most universities in the United States (US) and Canada. Both of these methods have their own advantages. The UK model gives candidates the opportunity to conduct in-depth research on a specific topic. This model assumes that the candidate enters the study as an expert and the research provides a deep specialization in the aspect of the expertise to be followed further. The continental model of the US and Canada prepares candidates as teachers by providing extensive training through pedagogical studies in a chosen field such as psychology, politics, anthropology, sociology or economics. The preparation of the thesis at the end of the course work is a short exercise to implement the pedagogy already followed. Candidates following the PhD program through the usual fully thesis mode through the following steps, first, need to pass a comprehensive proposal or examination before being allowed to continue the research to the stage of data collection and writing the final report. Second, it is necessary to pass the written thesis examination before being called an oral examination or 'viva voce' and thirdly, the oral examination is part of the special mandatory examination for each approved thesis. Viva voce is an opportunity for the candidate to demonstrate his expertise to the assessor and this examination is the examiner's field to test the originality of the candidate's thesis, the candidate's ability to defend his work, and the candidate's ability to put the research and findings beyond the knowledge in the lecture room or laboratory.

Candidates return without additional knowledge

In today's context, many PhD holders have doubts about their validity when candidates pursue their studies remotely in lesser-known universities, not recognized by professional recognition bodies and the majority of universities in question have virtual campuses and no physical campuses. Even if there is a physical campus, PhD candidates are not required to be physically present on campus, while this physical presence in most authentic universities is a requirement called 'residency requirement' which must be met in order to graduate and be awarded a degree. Based on an online survey, many universities offer questionable graduate studies using 1) an assessment of work experience, requiring the writing of a short essay not equivalent to a thesis or dissertation and an interview element. Thus, the difference between a candidate obtaining a PhD from a recognized university is that the candidate will return with additional knowledge but at an unrecognized university, the candidate will return without additional knowledge. This is because candidates at unrecognized universities are evaluated from the point of view of what they already have and degrees are awarded to them because of their existing experience. While candidates at the university are recognized, they are evaluated on new or additional knowledge that is used as criteria to recognize them as worthy of being awarded a PhD, the ultimate certificate or the highest in the academic world. Would like to emphasize here that there is no offense of violating any national or international law because there is no one method that requires one body to control all studies and the issuance of certificates, up to the PhD level. Quality control rests in the hands of university management, both domestically and internationally. This means that when the certificate is recognised, the PhD is of the same standard as certificates from all universities in the network of universities that equally recognize each other's PhD. Thus, the qualification can be accepted alternately between them for the purpose of furthering their studies, applying to be academic staff and the like. In the competition where education becomes an economic commodity, distance learning is also offered and then a virtual approach is followed, especially when the country's Movement Control Order (MCO) is implemented during a health emergency. All forms of study are required to only be done physically or face-to-face. When the MCO is implemented between March 2020 and August 2021, all teaching is done virtually. Therefore, the question arises as to whether there is a difference between a degree obtained by attending a university and a degree obtained remotely. The fact is, a PhD or getting another title such as professor becomes meaningless if the owner of the body fails to demonstrate his character as a knowledgeable person according to his qualifications or expertise. This is what scientists should think about today and in the future, whether the PhD level or title received is worthy of the field of knowledge explored and studied all this time.   Author: Prof. Datuk Dr. Jayum Jawan  Fellow of the Malaysian Academy of Sciences Source from

Date of Input: 25/01/2024 | Updated: 25/01/2024 | aidawati