Program Overview

Introduction to the Doctor of Philosophy in Education

The primary purpose of the DEd qualification is the attainment of highly advanced knowledge, professional skills, and applied competence in the field of Education Training and Development. Graduates will experience continued personal growth in terms of high-level intellectual development and research capacity, opportunities for gainful employment as highly advanced and specialized educationists, and they will be able to contribute creatively to educational research and development in society.

Qualification Details

• Qualification stream: Curriculum Studies
• Qualification code: 90019 - CUS
• Qualification type: Full Research
• NQF level: 10
• Total credits: 360
• SAQA ID: 96477

Admission Requirements

An appropriate Master of Education Degree with an average of 60%. In addition to the above requirements, applicants must submit a transcript or an academic record, as well as a document describing their intended research. Students will be accepted on the following criteria:

• Suitability and viability of the intended research
• Adequate supervisory capacity and research expertise in the discipline or department
• An approved selection procedure which is in line with Unisa's policies on equality and diversity in the discipline or department. All students with foreign qualifications, including those with qualifications from African countries, must have their qualifications evaluated. Applicants who would like to apply for admission through recognition of prior learning (RPL) must be at least 23 years old, have achieved an overall final mark of between 50-59% from their previous Master of Education degree, and have at least five years' relevant teaching experience in the study field in which they would like to apply for admission to a qualification.

Time Limits for This Degree

All master's and doctoral qualifications are structured over a defined period. A student registered for a research doctoral programme must complete the study programme within six years. A student may make application to the Registrar for one additional year of study, who will only consider the application if it is recommended by the Executive Dean of the College in which the student is registered.

Doctoral Degree

A doctoral degree will require you to undertake research at the most advanced academic levels culminating in the submission, assessment, and acceptance of a thesis. Coursework may be required as preparation or value addition to the research, but does not contribute to the credit value of the qualification. The defining characteristic of this qualification is that you will be required to demonstrate high-level research capability and make a significant and original academic contribution at the frontiers of the discipline or field. This work must be of a quality to satisfy peer review and merit publication.

Research Focus Areas

Research focus areas for the College of Education can be found by referring to the departmental research focus areas. Unisa's Catalytic Niche Areas include:

• Marine studies
• Aviation and aeronautical studies
• Automotive
• Energy
• Space study and square kilometre array
• Fourth IR and digitalisation
• Natural sciences (biotechnological studies)
• Health studies/medicine
• Feminist, womanist and bosadi theorisations
• Student support and co-curricular activities

Research Outline

Unisa's admission policy has changed, and you are now required to submit a detailed research outline for the qualification for which you apply. The basic information required includes:

• Title
• Summary of topic
• Short literature review
• Expected contribution of the study
• Methodology to be followed
• Availability of the data
• List of references
• Reasons why you are interested in the topic Your research outline must align with one of the departmental research focus areas and incorporate at least one of the Catalytic Niche Areas.

Student Fees and Funding Your Studies

Application Fee

The online application fee is R150.00. Please note that the application fee is non-refundable even if you decide not to study through Unisa or do not qualify for admission to Unisa.

Student Fees

Student fee information for the 2025 academic year is available. The fee information for the 2026 academic year will be available at the time of registration. Students registering for qualifications through the Graduate School of Business Leadership should visit the SBL website for fee information.

Apply for a Student Number and Apply for Admission

Applications for master's and doctoral qualifications are open until 19 December 2025. To apply, you must first apply for a Unisa student number (if applicable) and then apply for admission, uploading all the supporting documents during the application period.

Registration

Only students whose application for admission was approved and re-registering students (who made sufficient progress during the current academic year) will be allowed to register online within the approved registration period for the 2026 academic year.

Curriculum

Registration and curriculum information are available. Coursework master's degree students must await the official approval of their research proposal module before attempting to re-register for the next academic year.