Held on 29th and 30th June 2026, the workshop is themed “Enhancing Quality Postgraduate Research, Supervision and Timely Completion.” It has brought together postgraduate students, supervisors, and leading scholars to discuss best practices in research, proposal development, supervision, and academic excellence.
The first day of the programme focused on Postgraduate Thesis and Proposal Writing and Supervision, with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic, Research and Student Affairs), Prof. Gilbert Nduru, officially opening the workshop on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor.
In his opening address, Prof. Nduru emphasized the University’s commitment to producing high-quality postgraduate research that responds to societal needs and contributes to national development.
Welcoming participants to the workshop, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Prof. Kyalo Wa Ngula, underscored the critical role of postgraduate research in addressing contemporary societal challenges through evidence-based solutions. He encouraged scholars to align their research with national, regional and global development priorities, including Kenya Vision 2030, the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), the African Union Agenda 2063, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Prof. Wa Ngula noted that impactful postgraduate research should extend beyond fulfilling academic requirements by generating knowledge that informs policy, drives innovation, and improves community well-being. He further challenged students to uphold research integrity, ensure methodological rigour, and maintain coherence throughout their research process from problem identification to conclusions.
The Dean also highlighted common challenges affecting postgraduate research, including poorly formulated research problems, weak alignment between research components, inadequate understanding of research design and data analysis, delayed completion, and breaches of research ethics. He observed that the mentorship programme had been organized to equip postgraduate scholars with the knowledge, practical skills, and scholarly discipline required to undertake rigorous, ethical, and impactful research.
Day One featured a series of expert-led sessions facilitated by renowned scholars covering key aspects of postgraduate research, including:
1. Understanding Postgraduate Research, Thesis and Dissertation Writing, and Chuka University Postgraduate Guidelines – Prof. Moses Muraya
2. Identifying and Defining a Research Problem; Formulation of Objectives, Research Questions and Hypotheses – Prof. Kombo Kisilu
3. Ethical Considerations in Research Writing – Prof. Gilbert Nduru
4. Developing Conceptual and Theoretical Frameworks and Achieving Alignment in Research – Prof. Kombo Kisilu
5. Research Design, Methodological Rigour, Sampling and Data Collection – Prof. Kombo Kisilu
6. Quantitative Research Design – Prof. Nelson Jagero
7. Qualitative Research Design –Dr. Claudius Kihara
The workshop continues on Day Two, where attention will shift to Capacity Building for Postgraduate Supervisors, with sessions designed to strengthen supervision practices, enhance mentorship skills, and improve postgraduate completion rates.
Through this initiative, FHSS continues to reaffirm its commitment to nurturing a vibrant research culture and producing graduates whose research contributes meaningfully to academia, policy formulation, innovation, and sustainable national development.
