Why Are There So Many Unemployed Ph.D. Graduates And In What Ways Can We Reduce This?

The African higher education market suffers from high rates of unemployment at the Ph.D. graduate
level. Some of these challenges could be attributed to the choice of a Ph.D. specialization program,
for example, a Ph.D. in the History of Napoleon. Such topics might generally not propose any
solutions to the economic problems of African communities. There is a lack of room for the younger
generations, as some professors remain in office until the age of 75, not giving room to the younger
generations. If senior professors can retire to write books and carry out research and mentorship,
there will be a gap for recruitment. However, the younger generation needs to benefit from the
immense experience of older professors. But, in reality, the problem of graduate employment
remains open. It is not only a matter of directing universities towards specializations that generate
jobs, it is, above all, making that possible. The negotiations underway between the government and
teachers’ representatives are aiming to settle the cacophony about graduate pay. For several years,
direct recruitment of Ph.D. graduates into higher education in most African countries has been
removed from civil service status, with no special status assigned to them.
Many doctoral and teaching graduates have problems finding a job in public institutions because of
the non-recognition of their degrees, and, often, the private sector opportunities and wages are very
minimal. In most countries, recognition of foreign credentials is handled by inexperienced personnel
who have limited knowledge of global accreditation and international policies governing accrediting
agencies. Therefore, degrees not issued by their approved public institutions are not accepted. In
some cases, the Higher Education Commission for Foreign Credentials evaluation only has a single
sitting in a year, leaving most Ph.D. graduates stranded because they cannot verify their credentials.
It has been observed that the Ph.D. degree has considerably lost its value in the employment market
since the introduction of the LMD (license-master-doctorate) in 2004. In some African countries,
Ph.D. graduates from universities with distance learning options are not recognized. In some
countries, Ph.D. candidates spend more than 5 to 10 years because the university or supervisors are
not willing to free them since they are serving as their teaching assistants.