PATH DIFFERENTIATION AND EFFECT EVALUATION OF CULTIVATION MODE REFORM FOR GRADUATE STUDENTS' RESEARCH INTEREST: A LONGITUDINAL CASE STUDY BASED ON GUANGDONG UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN STUDIES

Abstract

The stimulation and cultivation of graduate students' research interest is a core issue in the cultivation of top-notch innovative talents. Addressing the methodological limitation of existing literature that lacks longitudinal comparative research on evolutionary trajectories, this study takes economics and management graduate students at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies as case subjects, adopts a longitudinal qualitative research method, and conducts three rounds of follow-up interviews over 18 months with six graduate students from two types of cultivation programs (academic degree and professional degree), systematically examining the dynamic evolutionary trajectories of research interest and their key mechanisms of transformation under different cultivation modes. The findings reveal that: (1) Under the two cultivation modes, graduate students' research interest presents differentiated longitudinal evolutionary trajectories — the academic degree mode exhibits an "initial rise then fall" inverted U-shape, while the professional degree mode exhibits a "gradual rise then stabilization" asymptote shape; (2) Cultivation modes shape the evolutionary trajectories of research interest by influencing the frequency, type distribution, and transformation efficacy of key events; (3) The two modes each have their own advantages and limitations across three dimensions—interest stimulation efficiency, maintenance resilience, and transformation efficacy—and there is no single optimal mode. This study provides empirical evidence and practical pathways for universities to design differentiated graduate cultivation modes.