Students’ failure to submit research projects on time: a case study from Masvingo Regional Centre at Zimbabwe Open University

The study sought to determine lecturers’ and students’ perceptions of factors contributing to students’ failure to submit research projects on time in three departments of the Zimbabwe Open University. The study employed a descriptive survey design and was both quantitative and qualitative. The questionnaire used as a data‐gathering instrument had both closed and open‐ended sections. In this study, a sample of 76 research students and 17 research supervisors was extracted using the purposive sampling method. The study found out that both lecturers and students contributed to inconsistency in meeting for consultations and this also led to late feedback on submitted work, which, in turn, affected the research progress. It also became apparent that there was no follow‐up from the institution to find out how the research in departments was progressing. Among other matters, the study recommended regular research workshops and seminars for supervisors and supervisees and research presentations by students.