An Empirical Study of Problems Faced by Researchers of Delhi NCR during their Ph.D.

Abstract

India's higher education system is extensive and diverse; we have over 850 universities under differentcategory and among themonly 1.7% institutes run Ph.D. programme. All India Survey on Higher Education 2015-16 (AISHE) reported that the numbers of enrolled male and female students in Indian institutes for Ph.D are 74,547 and 51,904respectively.  According to the data of 2015-16 total 1,26,451 students are enrolled at various institutes. (https://mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/statistics-new/AISHE2015-16.pdf). The research period for Ph.D. is about 3 to 5 years depending upon the researchers work (could be extended).According to Dr Sekhar A.(2019), life of a PhD student in India, is tough and mostly affectedby intense stress, burn out, depression, and insomnia. During their research period, students face several issues and challenges. It is a universal concern. The goal of this research is to explore the problems faced by researchers. A questionnaire survey was followed by selecting 100research scholars from Delhi NCR(n=100) randomly to explore and analyse their issues and problems. The results showed that the Ph.D. scholars generally experienced problems in stress and anger management, work pressure, academic issues, course work subjects, classes, exams, and with research guides. Other personal problems were also there with some participants. Research provides suggestions aimed at addressing the problems for hassle free conduction of doctoral studies.