Challenges in Conducting Research in a Tertiary Institution in Laos

Abstract

Research is one of the main tasks of academics at the University level. However, it requires times, attention, and knowledge. Therefore, it is necessary for one to explore the challenges academics faced at the university, namely, Faculty of Letters (FLE) at National University of Laos in order to improve the quality of teaching and learning at both the faculty and the university levels. This study was conducted at the FLE with 121 staff by employing questionnaire and semi-structure interview. The results show that the academics at this Faculty faced several challenges: lack of research experience; no background knowledge in doing research; lack of opportunities to participate in the research training; the belief of doing research is the most difficult task and compounded by workload and problems with obtaining information at the faculty level. The academics recognize the importance of research; their willingness to embark on research, have positive thinking and the availability of research facilities.