A Study Into The Academic Doctoral Training Objectives In Engineering Fields In Chinese Research-Oriented Universities

Along with the era of knowledge economy coming in full swing,the university which is considered as the basic unit for knowledge production has been moved forward to the center of the national economic and social stage.Inside every university,the divisions between traditional disciplines have been increasingly indistinct because of growing inter-disciplinary researches,and the mode of major knowledge production has been transferred from subject logic to question logic.As a result,versatile skills,inter-disciplinary cooperation,organizational flexibility and the practical value of knowledge are gaining more and more attention.Unprecedented breadth and depth are to be seen in the “places of inquiry” in the doctoral education system.Besides this,a growing number of students are being employed by the government and business enterprises after they finish their doctoral education,and this causes a serious deviation from the traditional objective of doctoral training,which is to cultivate future university professors.Based on these facts,we have to take a second consideration on these questions: What kinds of talents are being fostered by our present doctoral education? What are our goals? And have the goals been realized by our present doctoral education? The key answer to all these questions should be about an important concept: the objective of doctoral training.The objective of doctoral training is often placed at the meso-level of the overall doctoral education system.It is the realization of the doctoral educational goals and symbolizes the expectation for the final result of doctoral education.It represents the eventual requirements the doctoral candidates are expected to meet in different universities and academic disciplines.Thus,the training objectives of doctoral education necessarily vary across different academic disciplines and universities.This study focuses on the training objectives of academic doctoral education in engineering fields in Chinese research-oriented universities.Engineering fields is the closest subject connecting academic and reality.In recent years,the employment direction of engineering doctors also shows the deviation between the training objectives of academic doctoral education and the direction of graduates.As a matter of fact,the research of this topic is not only within the academic community,but should also take into account the views of other relevant parties in this matter.The author initiates an All-the-factors List for the Training Objectives of Academic Doctoral Education in Engineering Fields in Chinese Research-oriented Universities(hereinafter referred to as All-the-factors List)based on a qualitative interview including 14 interviewees from academia and 13 interviewees from industry,referring to the basic principles and research ideas of the Grounded Theory.Hopefully it will provide a reference for the building of the training objectives of academic doctoral education in engineering fields in Chinese research-oriented universities.Secondly,this study examines the status quo of the training objectives of academic doctoral education in 18 Chinese universities covering 292 first-level engineering disciplines.On the one hand,the author investigates the basic orientation,characteristics and requirements of the cultivation of academic doctoral candidates in engineering fields of research-oriented universities in China;on the other hand,it amends the original All-the-factors List according to the investigation results to form a final one,and suggests that,the status quo of the training objectives follows the right direction of doctoral education,reflects the value of the training objectives of doctoral education at the national level and the characteristics of these disciplines partially.However,inadequacy is also mentioned regarding the awareness of the importance of objective design,practical application of the principles and fulfillment of actual needs.Finally,according to the related principles for objective design like Theory of Goal Setting and Goal Management,the author takes Biomedical Engineering Discipline of Shanghai Jiao Tong University as an example and attempts to analyze the history and current situation of its disciplinary development,the characteristics at university and discipline level,as well as the employment and career development of doctoral graduates,by referring to the All-the-factors List,and eventually manages to build the training objectives of Biomedical Engineering Discipline of SJTU.To conclude,when we design the training objectives for doctoral education in engineering fields of Chinese research-oriented universities,it is important for us to take into full consideration of the inherent logic of the academic doctoral education development and to pay attention to the actual needs of doctoral graduates when they start their career in enterprises other than universities.Lessons could also be learned from foreign universities,and the grasping of the entire process of objective design,a full preparation before the objective design,an extensive discussion during the objective design and feedback and reexamine test after it,could all contribute to the improvement of doctoral training objective settlement.