Annual Research Report 2020

42 Postgraduate Committee Report In 2019, the School of Economics and Management Sciences welcomed its first cohort of postgraduate students into the Postgraduate Diploma in Public Management, with an initial intake of 34 students. In 2020, we welcomed an additional 32 students into the programme, despite the challenges faced by the entire world because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Nobody was prepared for this unprecedented challenge, however our students had to quickly adapt to the new digital learning environment. Regardless of the higher education challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, the establishment of a postgraduate committee in the school in 2020 marked a significant milestone. As a committee, we are primarily mandated to advise and recommend on all issues related to postgraduate candidature. We also serve as a quality assurance body delegated to ensure that that the integrity and quality of our postgraduate research projects are up to standard. Our postgraduate students are all part-time, with the majority currently in full-time employment holding senior positions in gov- ernment departments. South Africa’s public sector is known for its inefficiency in several aspects, and our postgraduate students attempt to address some of these challenges in their respective research projects, which we believe is what really distinguishes them. Interesting work is currently being conducted by our stu- dents, covering a wide range of issues, including investigating the reasons for the failure of government-funded projects and the examination of the factors influencing school administrators’ responses to the newly introduced Online Application System in Gauteng. In addition, other stimulating research projects include assessing the contribution of the gambling industry to local em- ployment in the Northern Cape Province, and the assessment of the level of involvement of financial and non-financial managers in the budgeting process at the Northern Cape Department of Education. While the list is not exhaustive, most of our students’ projects are inclined towards addressing a problem they have spotted in their relevant workplaces, which contributes to their unique flavour. An interesting aspect of the year 2020 also relates to the fact that our students had to reconsider their methodol- ogies and research instruments to adapt them to their studies, taking into account the lockdown levels and the public health restrictions related to Covid-19. Risks to the researcher as well as the research participants had to be critically evaluated with the course of action being carefully exercised. For 2021, we will endeavour as a committee to continue exer- cising our mandate of ensuring quality control over the internal processes regarding the administration of postgraduate studies in the School. The School is growing, and will be welcoming master’s and PHD students in the near to medium term, and the duties of the committee will be to ensure that the strategic goals of the School and the University at large are met. Dr Christelle Meniago Chairperson