Research On Academic Aspirations Of Academic Postgraduate Students In Shanghai Universities

With the fast development of national economy,science and technology,China begins to emphasize humanities and social sciences,and the cultivation of innovational academic talents in these areas,which were ignored before.China aims to become a country with large and powerful economy,but more a country with increasing cultural influence.Sitting at the top of higher education system,graduate education serves to be the most important way to cultivate top and innovative academic talents.It is clearly specified in the Thirteen-Five Plan of National Education Development that China shall focus on building a number of university humanities and social sciences research bases and liberal arts laboratories,and give more support to talents engaged in philosophy and social sciences.Therefore,for research graduates engaged in humanities and social sciences,their academic inclination matters a lot in cultivating talents.Comparatively,current researches focus more on undergraduates and doctors,but less on postgraduates' academic interests,which is connecting the above two degrees.From the perspective of cultivating academic talents in humanity and social sciences,the thesis takes research postgraduates in this major as its objects of study to investigate their academic interests.This will enrich the theoretical researches of the group's academic interests,and at the same time,facilitate the cultivation of top innovative talents with potential in the area.First,based on the research purpose,the thesis defines “academic interests” as postgraduates' interest in scholarship,recognition of academic value,efforts in scholarship,and willingness to continue academic study and career in the future.Second,according to related theories,the thesis supposes three factors influencing postgraduates' academic interests the most,namely,supervisor peer groups,and professional courses.To prove the suppose,the author mainly makes questionnaire investigation,assisted by interviews.Then the author comes into the following conclusion based on investigation results:(1)Research graduates of humanities and social sciences in Shanghai have average level of academic interests,and their academic interests,recognition,efforts and ideal are declining;(2)For research postgraduates of different genders,there exist obvious differences in their academic interests;(3)For research postgraduates of different grades,there are also obvious differences in their academic interests,and fresh graduate students have the lowest interests.(4)Parents' level of education serve to be an influencing factor of postgraduates' academic interests.Other variations involved in this thesis does not result in statistic differences.(5)Such factors have positive correlation with postgraduates' academic interests,as supervisor's instruction,academic achievements and attitudes,classmates,peers following the same supervisor,nature of major,and courses.Supervisors' instruction,nature of major,and courses are predictors of postgraduates' academic interests.At last,the thesis also comes up detailed suggestions and measures to improve postgraduates' academic interests from the perspective of school,major,courses,supervisors and individuals.