Course 10: The Good Supervisor: Developing effective supervision practices (face-to-face and remotely)
Presenter
| Prof René Pellissier (Head of the Southern African Regional Universities Associations Climate Change and Sustainable Development programme)
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Duration
| 2 day course
Course takes place from 7 to 8 July 2025 online and in-person at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS). Delegates will be expected to be available for the programme from 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks).
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Cost
| Online course fee: R2700
In-person course fee: R3450
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Requirements
| Participants should have a laptop installed with Microsoft Teams.
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Target audience
| The course is designed for researchers (including postgraduate students and postdocs) and anyone interested in sharpening their research management skills.
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What to bring?
| Laptop installed with Microsoft Teams and an open mind
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Mode
| Hybrid
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Course Description
This course is designed to reframe academic research as a structured, project-based endeavour. This practical and engaging course equips researchers with the tools and methodologies needed to manage their research from inception to completion. Participants will strengthen their skills in planning, managing, and executing research projects while developing a critical understanding of how to align research objectives with timelines, resources, and intended outputs. The workshop is suitable for both early-career and experienced researchers looking to enhance their research management competencies in an increasingly complex academic environment.
Course Outcomes
By the end of the workshop, participants will:
- Understand the conceptual framework of “research as a project”
- Be able to design and articulate a research project plan, including objectives, tasks, timelines, milestones, and deliverables
- Gain proficiency in project management tools relevant to academic research (e.g., work breakdown structures, Gantt charts)
- Recognise key project risks and develop mitigation strategies
- Align personal research goals with institutional and supervisory expectations
- Leave with a partially or fully developed project plan for their own research study
Course Material
Course material will be made available digitally.
Course Format
The course will be presented as a two-day workshop. The course will feature a blend of teaching and learning styles. It will also feature a combination of presentations, group excercises and discussions.
Presenters
| Ms Riana Coetsee (Research Management and Skills Training Consultant, SA)
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Duration
| 3 day course
Course takes place from 9 to 11 July 2025 online and in-person at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS). Delegates will be expected to be available for the programme from 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks).
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Cost
| Online course fee: R3800
In-person course fee: R5050
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Requirements
| Participants should have a laptop installed with Microsoft Teams.
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Target audience
| The course is designed for researchers (including postgraduate students and postdocs) who need to generate research funds.
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What to bring?
| Laptop installed with Microsoft Teams. Pen and one piece of blank A4 paper.
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Mode
| Hybrid |
Course Description
It is increasingly expected of researchers to generate research funds. To do so, researchers need to acquire grant writing skills or hone the skills they already have. Although funding organisations and their application requirements differ, there are important elements expected by all funding agencies, whether it relates to small or to large grants.
The following elements will be discussed and practised:
- The basic structure of a grant proposal (i.e., how to get out of the starting block)
- Market your research and strengthen your researcher profile
- Why grant proposals fail
- Explaining peer review panels
- Common core components of grant proposals
- The budget
- Is all research fundable (and where to look for funding)?
Course Outcomes
Participants will understand the following:
- How to overcome “writer’s block” when you start writing a grant proposal
- What basic and core components a grant application should have to make it competitive
- What “peer review” means
- Why it is important to indicate impact and what funders mean by it
- What pitfalls to avoid when writing a grant proposal
- How to approach the budget and what elements to include
- How to identify possible funding opportunities
Course Material
Course material will be made available digitally.
Course Format
The course will be presented as a three-day hybrid workshop. It will feature a combination of presentations, group excercises and discussions.
Presenters
| Prof Catherine Comiskey (Trinity College Dublin, Ireland)
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Duration
| 5 day course
The course takes place from 7 to 11 July 2025 in person. Delegates will be expected to be available for the programme from 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks).
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Cost
| In-person course fee: R7500 |
Requirements
| Participants should have a basic understanding of the process of research. It is critical to come with an idea for a research project and topic. We will refine and work on it throughout the course.
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Target audience | Postgraduate students, supervisors, and researchers interested in acquiring quantitative research skills and techniques.
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What to bring?
| Laptop installed with Microsoft Teams, your research study proposal, and your data if available.
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Mode
| In-person at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS)
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Course Description
Suitable for delegates undertaking quantitative research, this course will cover all of the basics from research designs to planning and conducting your data analysis to interpretation of findings and report writing.
Course Outcomes
At the end of the course participants will be able to:
- Describe the philosophical underpinnings of quantitative research
- Defend their choice of study design and sample size
- Conduct a power analysis and decide how many samples/cases/participants are required within a study
- Write an appropriate data analysis plan including a statistical plan for their study design
- Write a report on their study in line with international guidelines on best practice
- Summarise and critically analyse related studies
- Appreciate additional novel approaches and know where to access additional resources for their studies
Course material will be made available digitally.
Course Format
The course will be presented as a 5-day workshop. The workshop will be interactive, and participants will be actively involved in the learning process; engage in discussions and activities that will contribute to an understanding of the subject. The course will also feature a blend of teaching and learning styles.
Presenters
| Ms Selene Delport (Stellenbosch University, Writing Lab)
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Duration
| 5 day course
Course takes place from 7 to 11 July 2025 online and in-person at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS). Delegates will be expected to be available for the programmefrom 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks).
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Cost
| Online course fee: R5500
In-person course fee: R7500
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Requirements
| Ideally, participants should already have started writing their thesis/dissertation, or article.
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Target audience
| The course is designed for postgraduate students, particularly master’s and doctoral students busy writing a thesis/dissertation.
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What to bring?
| Participants are encouraged to share drafts of their own writing during the workshop, if they feel comfortable doing so. All writers and their writing will be treated with respect.
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Mode
| Hybrid |
Course DescriptionThe course is aimed at master's and doctoral students writing their literature reviews whether as part of a research proposal, a thesis, or as an independent article. The course provides an introduction to the writing skills required to construct academic arguments in different types of research. Various issues surrounding writing a literature review will be addressed, such as the different types of literature reviews and ways of organising information in literature reviews. We will also discuss how to effectively integrate information in a literature review while touching on issues regarding plagiarism and referencing.
Course Outcomes
At the end of the course, the delegates will be able to:
- Develop their own writing practice
- Critically read their own texts
- Develop their skills as editors of their own texts
- Refine their own academic voices
Course Material
Course materials will be made available on digitally. Limited hardcopy materials will be provided. Worksheets, exercises/tasks and class notes will be provided online and/or printed and distributed during the classes.
Course Format
The course will be presented as a five-day workshop. The course will feature a blend of teaching and learning styles. The course will start in the morning with face-to-face interactive class sessions, followed by exercises to be completed in class during the afternoon. The facilitator will be available to offer support during the afternoons. The exercises are designed to help participants work on their own writing as well as collaborate and share ideas with each other.
Presenters
| Ms Selene Delport (Stellenbosch University, Writing Lab)
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Duration
| 5 day course
Course takes place from 14 to 18 July 2025 online and in-person at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS). Delegates will be expected to be available for the programmefrom 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks).
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Cost
| Online course fee: R5500
In-person course fee: R7500
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Requirements
| Ideally, participants should already have started writing their thesis/dissertation, proposal, or article.
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Target audience
| The course is designed for postgraduate students, particularly master’s and doctoral students, as well as early career academics.
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What to bring?
| Participants are encouraged to share drafts of their own writing during the workshop, if they feel comfortable doing so. All writers and their writing will be treated with respect.
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Mode
| Hybrid
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Course Description
It is often difficult to find a sufficient block of time in which to write and writers easily lose momentum with their writing. The writing retreat will help you regain your writing momentum in a supportive environment. Each day will start with a discussion around practical strategies participants can use to develop their writing. The rest of the day, participants will work on their own writing and participants will have the opportunity to have a one-to-one consultation with one of the facilitators.
Course Outcomes
At the end of the course, participants will have at least one polished section of their text. Participants will be able to:
- Develop their own writing practice
- Critically read their own texts
- Revise and polish their own writing
- Refi ne their academic voices
Course Material
Course materials will be made available digitally. Limited hardcopy materials will be provided. Worksheets,exercises/tasks and class notes will be provided online and/or printed and distributed during the classes.
Course Format
The course will be presented as a five-day workshop. A blend of asynchronous and synchronous teaching will be used. The workshop is characterised by a positive, intimate, and encouraging atmosphere in which exchanging successful practices and failures (also known as “learning opportunities”) is central to the learning success of all participants
Course 6. Mixed Methods in Research Design
Presenters
| Prof Timothy C. Guetterman (University of Michigan, USA)
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Duration
| 5 day course Course takes place from 14 to 18 July 2025 online and in-person at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS). Delegates will be expected to be available for the programme from 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks). |
Cost
| Online course fee: R5500
In-person course fee: R7500
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Requirements
| Participants should have a basic understanding of quantitative and qualitative research. It is critical to come with an idea for a research project and topic. We will refine and work on it throughout the course.
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Target audience
| This course will benefit delegates who want to learn more about mixed methods research,which integrates qualitative and quantitative approaches. It is ideal for students who are at the early phases of their PhD. In addition, postdocs will find this course helpful in their own research and supervision.
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What to bring?
| Laptop. Please come with an idea for a mixed methods research project that we will design and refine through the course. Please be prepared to work on your project either through paper or electronically on your computer.
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Mode
| Hybrid
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Course Description
This course will teach you how to design and conduct a rigorous mixed methods study that integrates qualitative and quantitative research using state-of-the-art techniques. This course will also teach participants when, how, and why to integrate a qualitative and a quantitative research components into a research project.
Course Outcomes
At the completion of the course, students will have skills to:
- Understand the principles of mixed methods research
- Be able to apply components of rigorous mixed methods studies
- Identify the possibilities and limitations of mixed methods research
- Outline the basics of a mixed methods design with a design diagram appropriate for any specific purpose
- Have a plan for integration of qualitative and quantitative research
- Draft a potential joint display to represent integration
Course Material
Course materials will be made available digitally.
Course Format
The course will be presented as a five-day workshop. The course will feature a blend of teaching and learning styles.
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Course 7. Qualitative Data Analysis with ATLAS.ti.
Presenters
| Dr Lauren Wildschut (Stellenbosch University, SA)
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Duration
| 3 day course Course takes place from 14 to 16 July 2025 online on Microsoft Teams. Delegates will be expected to be available for the programme from 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks).
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Cost
| R3800
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Requirements
| Participants should have a rudimentary understanding of the process of research (master's/doctoral level)..
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Target audience
| The course is designed for postgraduate students, particularly master’s and doctoral students, as well as early career academics.
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What to bring?
| Laptop installed with Microsoft Teams and Atlas.ti software.
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Mode
| Online on Microsoft Teams.
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Course Description
This course introduces some of the key functions of ATLAS.ti for carrying out a literature review or analysing qualitative data. Delegates will
learn how to develop a coding scheme, manage their data and develop useful outputs for visualising their data. Delegates will learn how to manage and analyse articles for their literature review or do a systematic analysis of the qualitative data they have collected for their thesis or research project.
Course Outcomes
After completion of the course, participants will be able to:
- Illustrate the various approaches to coding data
- Use ATLAS.ti for a range of analysis tasks
- Compose an analysis of qualitative data in innovative ways
Course Material
Course materials will be made available digitally on MS Teams.
Course Format
The course will be presented as a three-day workshop. The course will feature a blend of teaching and learning styles.
Course 8. From Stories to Science: Mastering qualitative research design
Presenters
| Dr Nompilo Tshuma (Stellenbosch University, SA) and Prof Sarah Tracy (Arizona State University, USA)
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Duration
| 5 day course
Course takes place from 21 to 25 July 2025 online and in-person at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS). Delegates will be expected to be available for the programme from 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks).
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Cost
| Online course fee: R5500
In-person course fee: R7500
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Requirements
| Participants should bring an initial research idea that they will work on during the course. The idea should have the potential to be explored using qualitative approaches.
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Target audience
| The course is designed for pre-doc and early-stage doctoral students who are working on their qualitative research proposals. Those who are interested in exploring the potential of qualitative research for their studies are also welcome.
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What to bring?
| Laptop installed with Microsoft Teams and a curious mind.
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Mode
| Hybrid |
Course Description
This interactive course introduces participants to the fundamentals of qualitative research that will ensure the scientific quality of the study. This will include formulating a researchable problem, exploring paradigms and methodologies, the role of theory, considering data collection and analysis, and reflecting on ethical considerations and the role of generative AI in qualitative research. Tips for writing qualitative research studies will be peppered throughout the course.
Course Outcomes
By the end of this course, participants will be expected to be able to:
- Formulate a feasible and defendable qualitative research problem
- Select a suitable paradigm, methodology and theory that aligns with their values and/or purpose for the study
- Select suitable data collection methods and ensure these are aligned with the selected analysis approach(es)
- Conduct the study with integrity. This means being sensitive to the context and participants of your study, as well as the ethical use of generative AI in your research
Course Material
Course materials will be made available on MS Teams,
Course Format
The course will be presented as a five-day workshop. The course will have input sessions from the facilitator, and multiple interactive activities. These have been designed to assist the participants refine their research ideas (with feedback from both the facilitator and peers) and consider the scientific—not just the narrative—elements of qualitative research.
Course 9. Academic Writing: Towards getting published
Presenters
| Prof Susan van Schalkwyk (Stellenbosch University, SA)
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Duration
| 4 day course
Course takes place from 22 to 25 July 2025 in-person at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS). Delegates will be expected to be available for the programme from 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks).
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Cost
| R6400
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Requirements
| Participants should have an ethically approved research proposal (where relevant). They should have completed the data collection component of their study and ideally completed data analysis.
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| Target audience | This course is designed for early career researchers and recently graduated postgraduate students seeking to publish their research.
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What to bring?
| Laptop installed with Microsoft Teams.
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Mode
| In-person at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS).
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Course Description
The workshop will be highly interactive in nature. During the course of the programme, participants will have the opportunity to work on their evolving manuscripts. All participants should, therefore, come prepared to engage fully in all activities and may be required to complete tasks overnight.
Outcomes
During this workshop, participants will:
- Explore the conventions, principles and practices associated with academic writing
- Acquire knowledge of the field of academic publishing
- Develop an understanding of how to join the academic conversation
- Be able to plan and structure a coherent and logical article
- Develop a personal roadmap towards getting published
Course Material
Course materials will be made available digitally.
Course Format
The course will be presented as a four-day workshop. The course will feature a blend of teaching and learning styles.
Presenters
| Prof Gina Wisker (University of Bath, UK)
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Duration
| 5 day course
The course takes place from 21 to 25 July 2025 online via Microsoft Teams. Delegates will be expected to be available for the programme from 09:00 - 16:30 daily (excluding tea and lunch breaks).
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Cost
| R5500
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Requirements
| Participants should have a foundational understanding of research and research supervision, either from their own experience as supervisees or from supervising at the undergraduate level. The workshop is interactive, so participants are encouraged to actively engage in discussions, participate in course presentations, and take part in workshop activities.
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Target audience
| This course is designed for individuals who have conducted research and are interested in supervising research students, whether at the doctoral or master’s level. It is also suitable for those who may have already started supervising at any level.
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What to bring?
| Laptop installed with Microsoft Teams
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Mode
| Online |
Course Description
In this hands-on, experience-led, interactive workshop, participants will explore, discuss, and engage with effective supervision practices. These practices address the intellectual, personal, and institutional dimensions of supervision throughout the doctoral journey.
Course Outcomes
At the completion of the course, participants will gain:
- Research and experience underpinned information and effective examples of good practice in supervision along the whole doctoral learning journey.
- Research and experience-based insights into working with doctoral students to prompt and support their research development in the project and writing processes of the thesis.
- A rich set of understandings about varied good supervision practices, both face-to-face and remotely, which they can put into effect in their own supervision practice.
- Insights and practical problem-solving strategies from engagement with workshop activities and discussions with the full community of supervisor colleagues.
- A research and experience-based understanding of what examiners look for in good theses, along with plans for working with diverse students to help them reach the quality of a thesis that passes and makes a meaningful contribution to knowledge.
Course Material
Course materials will be made available on MS Teams.
Course Format
The course will be presented as a five-day hybrid workshop. The course will be highly interactive, encouraging active participation in both the learning process and collaborative activities. Participants will be expected to share ideas and engage in workshop exercises with others. Pre-reading and reflection on their own practices as researchers and supervisors are essential, as is engaging in reading, questioning, and discussion throughout the course.
