POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION OF THEIR COMPETENCIES IN DESIGNING EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH: CASE OF THE UNIVERISTY OF NIGERIA, NSUKKA

Proficiency in research is a prerequisite for academic achievement for postgraduate students. Even though research writing abilities are crucial, the majority of students find it difficult to complete tasks involving research. As a result, this study looked at how postgraduate students perceived their level of expertise when it came to creating instructional research. The survey design used in the study was descriptive. The study was guided by two null hypotheses and three research questions. A sample of 300 post-graduate students, 157 of whom were male and 143 of whom were female, was employed in the study. There were 198 Masters and 102 Ph.D. students. The researchers created the Students' Perceptions on their Competences in Research Designing Questionnaire (SPCRDQ), which was the tool used to collect data. Using Cronbach's Alpha, the instrument's dependability was assessed; the result was a reliability index of 0.85. The three research questions were addressed using the mean and standard deviation, and the two null hypotheses were tested at the 0.05 level of significance using the t-test statistical method. The results show that students were competent in some areas but there were areas in designing educational research they need improvement. It also showed that there was no discernible difference between the perceptions of male and female students' design competencies. Nonetheless, a notable distinction was found in the design of educational research competencies between Ph.D. and masters students.