African Doctoral Academy
Welcome to Stellenbosch University

Summer School Programme

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

​ADA Summer School 2025

22 January - ​​7 February ​ 

Summer School W​eek 1 | Sum​mer School W​eek 2 | Summer School Week 3 ​

​​C​osts​ | Form​at | Apply ​|Accommodation

​​


The Doctoral School aims to offer high impact research design and methodology training, as well as options in academic preparedness and career development. The Schools are open to doctoral candidates (current and prospective), their supervisors and researchers.   ​​

Format: It is important to note that these courses are presented and planned as full day synchronous​ sessions at Stellenbosch University. We recommend that you take leave from your daily work and other responsibilities to attend the classes and complete the assignments as required by your presenters. ​​​Your attendance will be monitored to ensure that you meet/reach the requirements for subsequent certification. The school will be offered in hybrid mode with some courses in-person and others offered online. 
 ​
Your role: You will be responsible for pacing yourself through the workshops wh​en busy with the prescribed exercises, synchronous sessions, and/or group work, and will have to be able to keep up. The estimated contact time required per session is presented below. These exclude morning and afternoon tea and lunch breaks. Group work is mandatory. Please remember it is possible to apply for only one course per week/session as the classes take place at the same time. However, it is possible to apply for more than one course in one week provided the dates do not overlap

Venue: In-person courses will take place at STIAS: Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (Address: Marais Rd, Mostertsdrift, Stellenbosch, 7600). Online courses will take place on Microsoft Teams​. 

Summer School​ Week 1: 22 - 24 January 2025

​​22 - 24 January 2025
3 days

09:00 - 13:00 GMT+2


​4 contact hours
per day

Navigating Research Grant Pr​​​​​oposals and Careers: A comprehensive workshop for early career researchers ​​(3 days, Online)
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. These elements will be addressed in the workshop. 
Mode: ​Online | Course fee: Early Bird - R4400, Standard - R4550

- Ms Riana Coetsee (Research Management & Skills Training Consultant)​ ​

​​​​22 - 24 January 2025
3 days

08:30 - 16:​30 GMT+2


7 contact hours
per day

Working with Research Data: Software​ and digital tools for applied research (3 days, Online)
​​This course will introduce a variety of software and digital tools for use throughout the research process. We will review tools to assist with conceptualising the study and searching literature, collecting data, managing data, preparing and cleaning data, conducting analysis, writing proposals or manuscripts, and disseminating results. The tools are applicable to research broadly, including quantitative and qualitative studies, and not specific to any approach. We will see demonstrations of tools from actual studies.  ​
22 - 24​ January 2025
​3 days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2

7 contact hours
per day
​​
Practical Approaches to Developing Academic Writing (3 days, Online)
During this 3-day course delegates will engage in various techniques and strategies aimed at developing their academic writing while on their research journeys. This workshop will address writing challenges that researchers commonly face. It will provide guidelines on writing strategies to effectively build arguments and convey your research data and information.

- ​ ​Dr Nereshnee Govender (Durban University of Technology, SA)



27 - 31 January 2025
5 days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2


7 contact hours​
per day

Writing Retreat: Effective academic writing for master's and doctoral students  (5 days, In-person)​​
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.​
Mode: ​​In-person |​ 
Course fee: Early Bird - R9950​, Standard - R102​50
 

-​ Ms Selene Delport (Writing​​​​ Lab, Stellenbosch University, SA)

​​​27 - 31 January 2025
5 days

08:30 - 16:30 GMT+2




7 contact hours​ 
per day
Evolving as a Digital Scholar: Active blended teaching, learning and researching in a digital world​ (5 days, Online)
The course will focus on positioning yourself as a digital scholar across three key domains of digital agility: engaging in research, education, and community service, while effectively mobilising digital skills at various levels and assuming multiple interconnected roles. Participants will learn to assess, select, and utilise appropriate digital tools to enhance their scholarly activities. Emphasising a fully digital approach, the course will explore the dynamic interactions between teachers, learners, and researchers in the digital landscape. Additionally, participants will engage in reflective practice through action research, allowing them to critically evaluate and enhance their effectiveness as scholars in the evolving digital world.

-​ Prof Wim van Petegem (KU Leuven, Belgium), Dr Jan Petrus Bosman, Ms Margriet de Villiers, Dr Sonja Strydom (Stellenbosch University, SA)​​​​

​​​​27 - 31 January 2025
5 days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2



7 contact hours​
per day

The Good Supervisor: Developing effective supervision practices (face-to-face and remotely)​ (5 days, Hybrid)
​​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. 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.​
Mode: ​​Hybrid |​ 
 Course fee (In-person): Early Bird - R995​​0, Standard - R10250                                                                                              Course fee (Online)Early Bird - R7​​95​​0, Standard - R8150

- Prof Gina Wisker (University of Bath, UK)​​​​

27 - 31 January 2025
5 days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2


7 contact hours​
per day

​​The Quantitative PhD with SPSS: From philosophy to study design, data analysis and reporting using SPSS (Advanced) (5 days, Online)


​​3 - 7 February​ 2025
5 days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2


7 contact hours​
per day

​​​AI and Scientific Research: How to use AI effectively in your research​ (5 days, Online)
​​​3 - 7 February 2025
5 days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2

7 contact hours​ per day
Effective Scientific Communication: Presenting a poster, planning an article, and giving an oral presentation 
(5 days
, In-person)
In this course, guidelines for effective communication will be presented and discussed, before practicing it using your own research data. During the course, we will practice writing an IMRaD (Introduction, Materials & methods, Results, and Discussion)​ structured scientific manuscript, making a scientific poster, giving an elevator pitch, and giving an oral presentation with slideshow.
Mode: ​In-person​ | ​
Course fee: Early Bird - R9950​, Standard - R102​50

-​ ​​Prof John Creemers (KU Leuven, Belgium)

3 - 7 February 2025
days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2

7 contact hours​ per day

From Stories to Science: The fundamentals of qualitative research (5 days, In-person)
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.

-​ Dr Nompilo Tshuma (Stellenbosch University, SA)

3 - 7 February 2025
5 days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2



7 contact hours​
per day

How to Argue and Write an Effective Proposal for your Master's or Doctorate (5 days, ​In-person)
In this interactive workshop, we’ll start with the purpose of writing a proposal and using micro-writing to plan your proposal. Delegates will also be exposed to a variety of argumentation strategies to use in their proposal as well as practical advice about how to develop their own academic voices. 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.
Mode: ​In-person | Course fee:​ Early Bird - R995​​0, Standard - R10250

-​ Ms Selene Delport (Writing Lab, Stellenbosch University, SA)

​​3 - 7 February​ 2025
5 days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2


7 contact hours​
per day

Academic Writing for Publications: Crafting an article out of your thesis (5 days, In-person) (Limited space)
In this hands-on one-week workshop, students learn how to recraft the material from the thesis to write an article for publication in an academic article. The goal of the workshop is to provide guidelines for writing the various sequential sections of the article with opportunities to apply this learning to their own work with feedback and consultation with the facilitator. Participants can complete an article during this week if they come with completed rough draft and they apply the principles during the scaffolded learning process during the week. Focus is on experiential learning with maximal writing time, accountability, and feedback.
Mode: ​In-person |​ 
Course fee: Early Bird - R112​​5​​​0​, Standard - R11550​​​​​

​​​​- Prof Ruth Albertyn (Stellenbosch University, SA)

​​3 - 4 ​February 2025
2 days

08:30 - 16:3​0 GMT+2
​7 contact hours​
per day

Advanced R Programming​ (2 days, In-person)
This is an advanced R course designed for those with a foundational understanding of R programming. This course delves deeper into complex data manipulation, statistical modeling, and advanced visualisation techniques. Furthermore, the course covers some new, advanced R packages and these skills will be used to address participant defined goals/problems. The course will feature a blend​ of teaching and learning styles. You will be required to provide proof of your experience in using R in one of the following forms: a certificate of R training, a sample of R code you have written with a brief paragraph explaining its function, or a first-author article that includes evidence of your use of R code. Additionally, you will be required to bring a specific question or problem that you would like to have addressed by the end of the course.
Mode: ​In-person |​ 
Course fee: Early Bird - R47​50​, Standard - R4950

​​​​- ​Dr Caitlin Uren (Stellenbosch University, SA)

​​

|Apply Now|​​


Costs:


​​​Rates
​​Application deadlines for courses: Early Bird - 4 November 2024; Standard - 1 December 2024
Payment deadlinesEarly Bird - 11 November 2024; Standard - 6 December 2024​
​​
Two-day course
(Course 13)

Early Bird: R4750
Standard: R4950

(In-person) 
Three-day courses
(Course 1 - mornings)

Early Bird: R4400
Standard: R4550

(Courses 2, 3)

Early Bird: R6250 
Standard: R6450

​(Online)
Five-day courses
(Courses 4, 6, 9, 10, 11)

Early Bird: R9950 
Standard: R10250 

(Course 12)
Early Bird - R112​​​5​​​0​, Standard - R11550 (limited space)


​(In-person)
Five-day courses
(Courses 5, 6, 7, 8) 
Early Bird: R7950 
Standard: R81​50 ​​

​(Online
)

​​​​
​​Additional information:

  • Last day for applicationsEarly Bird - 4 November 2024; Standard - 1 December 2024.
      • Payment deadlines for courses: Early Bird - 11 November 2024; Standard - 6 December 2024.
  • Course specific information is available on the Workshop Information page​.
Included in the cost:
  • The fee per week includes the workshop fee for online courses, digital class materials and digital certification. For in-person courses the fee includes course fees, lunch, digital class materials, digital certification and refreshments at social functions hosted by the ADA.​

For​m​at:

  • All workshops are taught in English​.
  • The school will be hosted in hybrid format with fully online courses and fully in-person sessions except for Course 6 which will be offered both online and in-person (hyflex). You will not be able to join virtually in any of the in-person courses unless it is explicitly stated that the course is offered in hyflex format. ​​

The ADA reserves the right to cancel a course if the minimum attendance figures are not reached. If a delegate has already paid, we will refund them fully, or offer them the opportunity to attend another course of their choice, where possible.

Cancellations:​

  • The ADA reserves the right to cancel a course. ​
  • The last day to cancel your registration and receive a 50% refund is 1 December 2024. Cancellations made after 1 December 2024 will not be refunded unless a replacement participant is found. By registering on the SU Short Course Registration System for the ADA's 2025 Summer School, participants are legally obligated to pay the course fees, regardless of whether payment has been made at the time of cancellation. ​​

    Please review our terms & conditions page​ on a regular basis for any updates.​