Engaged Individuals, Lagging Institutions: Exploring Interdisciplinary Work in Chilean Doctoral Education

• In Event: Graduate Student Success: Mentoring, Identity, & Institutional Change

Abstract

This qualitative study examines the perceptions of 26 PhD students in science and engineering at Chilean universities regarding interdisciplinary engagement within their doctoral programs. Findings show that students value interdisciplinarity both for enhancing research and for strengthening career prospects. However, interdisciplinary efforts often depend on individual initiative from students and faculty rather than on consistent institutional support. Participants identified both formal structures and informal mechanisms that foster interdisciplinary work. Overall, doctoral programs are seen as evolving toward greater complexity and capacity for interdisciplinarity, though uneven access and structural limitations remain.

Authors

• Ivet M. Parra-Gaete, University of Arizona

• Sergio Celis, Universidad de Chile