The Tanzania Commission for Universities (TCU) has unveiled new standards and guidelines for university education, emphasizing that all postgraduate students pursuing either masters or doctoral degrees in Tanzanian universities are now required to publish papers in reputable peer-reviewed journals before graduating.
According to the commission, the postgraduate training, research and innovation guidelines will help to improve the quality of training at postgraduate level, which can help drive the aspirations and development goals of the country while adhering to regional and international quality standards.
TCU’s Executive Secretary, Professor Charles Kihampa said that the country had for a long time failed to put emphasis on the quality of publications by postgraduate scholars. These new guidelines, he said, will look at many aspects of teaching and learning, especially the quality of research output from postgraduate students.
Additionally, all universities have been directed by the TUC to encourage postgraduate research findings and innovative ideas to be disseminated and used to influence socio-economic advancement and-or decision-making at the institutional, national, regional and international levels. As a result, all universities will participate in incubating research and innovation outputs and outcomes for better results that have an impact to society.
Chakupewa Mpambije, a lecturer and PhD candidate at the University of Dar es Salaam, welcomed the new guidelines, saying they will help improve the quality of postgraduate training, as ongoing research and publication by PhD candidates were critical for new knowledge and innovation to drive the country’s economy.
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Article by Jedidah Mwangi,
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