PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad and Tobago, Guardian - While the University of the West Indies, St Augustine, has recorded significant increases in enrolment, the graduation rate for research degrees continues to be disappointing. Making the comment yesterday was Errol Simms, dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, at the opening of yesterday’s conference on Understanding the Caribbean through the Lens of Research and Practice held at UWI.


The conference featured several research projects by postgraduate students which were still in the initial stages. “We can’t be proud of the graduation rate. In fact in the case of purely research degrees, we can be honest and we can only say that the graduation rate has been very disappointing,” Simms said. Giving his reasons, he said these included supervisory shortcomings but also complacency and a lack of commitment on the part of the students, which he described as a “significant contributor.”

Saying the conference was timely, Simms said postgraduate studies were an essential pillar of the university as it propelled the institution to a higher level. Simms, who also made an appeal to researchers to be more passionate about their work, added, “But more critically, this conference would provide an opportunity for students to hone their professional development.”