Abstract

CISCON-EVANGELISTA, Mariane Ranzani; SOUZA, Mariane Lima de  and  MENANDRO, Paulo Rogério Meira. Acknowledgements: difficulties, achievements and social support network of postgraduate stricto sensu students. Rev. SPAGESP [online]. 2015, vol.16, n.1, pp.12-27. ISSN 1677-2970.

A high degree of commitment is required of students who seek the PhD level. This paper aims to comprehend the main difficulties, achievements, and the nature of the social support network of doctorate students, using as information source the texts of the "Acknowledgements" section of 50 doctoral dissertations of students argued in 2010. The content analysis was used as methodology. Findings showed that the path to obtain a doctor's degree has been considered by students as challenging and at the same time joyful, as they overcome difficulties and get results. It was also observed a social support network to the students formed by people mentioned as instrumental support, aiding directly on thesis elaboration with emotional support. Plans for the future were not mentioned, confirming that a difficult stage has been accomplished. None the less, it does not point to possible strategies to handle the misfortunes that might follow the achievement of the Doctor's Degree, which require new studies.

Keywords : Postgraduate training; professional qualification; social support network; content analysis.

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