making the most of your relationship with your supervisor 19th october 2015
TRANSCRIPT
MAKING THE MOST O
F
YOUR RELAT
IONSHIP WITH
YOUR SUPERVISOR
K E L L Y P R E E C E
R E S E A R C H E R D E V E L O P M E N T P R O G R A M M E M A N A G E R ( P G R S )
Researcher Led Initiatives2015-2016
Professional Development by & for Researchers
6 x £1,000 Awards for Early Career Research Only Staff
8 X £500 Awards for Postgraduate Research Students
Closing Date for Applications: 8th January 2016
www.exeter.ac.uk/rdp/funding/awards
RESEARCHER DEVELOPMENT
www.exeter.ac.uk/rdp/
WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM TODAY’S COURSE?
SESSION OUTLINE
Understanding the role of your supervisorsGreat expectationsMaking the most of your supervisorsCommon pitfalls Dealing with conflictOpen discussion
PART 1: UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF YOUR SUPERVISORS
WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF SUPERVISOR?
THE ROLE OF THE SUPERVISORS
Interested in your research Available to discuss your conclusions and
ideas Able to provide feedback on your progress Able to provide feedback on your written work
THE ROLE OF YOUR SUPERVISORS
Encouraging you to participate in group meetings, seminars and occasional conferences
Developing your professional research qualities by example
Supportive of your professional development …whether in research or beyond…
YOUR SUPERVISORS ARE NOT…
‘…your boss, your employer, your colleague, your best friend, your editor, your search engine, your wet nurse’
(Marshall and Green, 2010: 27)
‘Your supervisor supervises you and your approach to you work. They don’t generally tell you what to do, or what not to do, but they might warn you off some things and try to steer you towards others. As with all advice, you can take it or leave it.’
(Marshall and Green, 2010: 27-28)
WHAT ELSE WILL YOUR SUPERVISORS BE DOING?
Planning and preparing taught modulesTeaching undergraduate and Masters
studentsMarking vast quantities of coursework and
examsActing as personal tutor to undergraduate
studentsWriting research proposals
Carrying out and keeping up to date with research
Trying to secure funding Attending and presenting at conferencesPublishing new research Attending department and university
meetings
Serving on university committeesManaging their own office (word
processing, email etc.)Supervising other PhD studentsSocial life, home and family time… plus
much more…
PART 2: GREAT EXPECTATIONS
WHAT DO YOUR SUPERVISORS EXPECT OF YOU?
SUPERVISORS EXPECT YOU
To be independent (not simply to do as you’re told but use your initiative!)
To have your own ideasTo be able to communicate clearly in oral and
written form To submit written material(s) in good time
before planned supervision meetings
To seek advice and comments on your workTo attend regular supervision meetingsTo be honest in reporting progress (or lack of!)To follow any reasonable advice given when it
has been requested by the student
To be committed and enthusiastic about their research project
Join/contribute to the research culture of the school
To have a general understanding of the field
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT FROM YOUR SUPERVISORS?
POSTGRADUATE RESEARCHERS EXPECT SUPERVISORS
To supervise themTo provide support in the annual report/review
processTo provide guidance on areas of research
training need(s)To read your work in advance of the
supervision time
To be available for advice when neededTo be friendly, open and supportiveTo be constructively criticalTo have a broad understanding of the
research areaTo structure supervision meetings to allow an
open exchange of ideas and advice
These are a lot of expectations
PART 3: MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR SUPERVISORS
YOUR SUPERVISOR’S SKILLS
They know what it takes to get a PhD
They have one themselves
They will offer you different skills over the period of your research programme
YOUR SUPERVISOR’S SKILLS
At the start:
Identifying a good question (…?) Knowing what has already been done (…?)Anticipating when a problem will be too hard or too easy
In the middle:
Watching over the ‘bigger’ pictureNudging you in good directionsIdentifying common pitfallsKeeping an eye on the clock
THE BALANCE OF KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge of your thesis subject over time
Supervisor
You
WHAT IS YOUR RELATIONSHIP LIKE?Which pair (if any) fits your current
relationship with your supervisor?
Which of these roles do you think reflect your supervisor's style and approaches to supervision at this stage?
Which would you prefer it to be?
Part of making the most of your supervisor is understanding their approach, your expectations, and how to match up the two
MANAGING THE SUPERVISION PROCESS
In order to get the most out of your supervision you should take control of the process using some of the following suggestions…
From Vitae https://www.vitae.ac.uk/doing-research/doing-a-doctorate/starting-a-doctorate/supervision-and-key-relationships
Discuss and agree key issues, e.g. authorship of papers, research ethics and
intellectual property, at the start of the project
Be proactive and arrange formal supervisory meetings
Prepare an agenda and send it to your supervisor in advance
Prepare some work before each meeting to provide some focus to the meeting. Early on in your project you might just produce a list of what you have read or done, but as the
project develops you are likely to be able to give data, analysis, papers, presentations
and early drafts of chapters.
Expect to receive feedback and criticism and use this to improve your work
Deal with problems as they arise. Often these will be related to technical or resource issues
but also be prepared to discuss issues around the style and frequency of
supervision. Supervisors generally want to do a good job so if you make suggestions for improvements they will usually be willing to
try them
Summarise meetings and keep a copy for your own record and send one to your
supervisor. This will help to ensure follow-up on any actions and will highlight
any misunderstandings
FURTHER TIPS
Lots of regular posts on supervision on http://thesiswhisperer.com/category/you-and-your-supervisor/
PART 4: COMMON PITFALLS
WHAT ARE THE COMMON PITFALLS?
COMMUNICATION
COMMUNICATE!Keep the communication ‘channels’ open!
Most problems in life are caused ineffective communication
Nearly all PhD/doctoral failures (less than 1%) can be attributed to a break down in communication between student and supervisory team!
PART 5: DEALING WITH CONFLICT
DEALING WITH CONFLICT BETWEEN SUPERVISORS ‘Describe the situation that bothers you,
being as specific as you can (for instance: “When you two disagree I go back to work confused about what to do next”).’
Source: Mum and Dad are fighting – what should I do?
www.thesiswhisperer.com
DEALING WITH CONFLICT BETWEEN SUPERVISORS ‘Express your feelings about the situation
(“When I am confused I get stressed I find it difficult to write anything”).’
Source: Mum and Dad are fighting – what should I do?
www.thesiswhisperer.com
DEALING WITH CONFLICT BETWEEN SUPERVISORS‘Empathize with the position the other
person is in (“I realise you both have strong views and want to give me your best advice”).’
Source: Mum and Dad are fighting – what should I do?
www.thesiswhisperer.com
DEALING WITH CONFLICT BETWEEN SUPERVISORS‘Explain the consequences (“But if I stay
this stressed and confused I am going to get behind in my work”)’
Source: Mum and Dad are fighting – what should I do?
www.thesiswhisperer.com
DEALING WITH CONFLICT BETWEEN SUPERVISORS‘Specify what you want from your supervisors
(“It would be very helpful if you could agree in advance on the options which are possible and then explain their advantages and disadvantages in a way that helps us all make a collective decision on what to do”).’
Source: Mum and Dad are fighting – what should I do?
www.thesiswhisperer.com
DEALING WITH CONFLICT WITH YOUR SUPERVISORS
COMPROMISE!
DEALING WITH CONFLICT
Speak to your other supervisorsApproach a colleague of theirsFind your staff-student liaison officerApproach the Dean
DEALING WITH CONFLICTIf all else fails, you can “change” your
supervisor•Formally or informally•Funding may be an issue•Not just because “you don’t like them”•Has to be agreed and approved by Faculty, via your school and the postgraduate office
Consider the following resources and discussion threads available at www.thesiswhisper.com ‘How to tell your supervisor you want a divorce’.
FURTHER RESOURCES
Teaching and Quality Assurance Manual: it is your responsibility to discuss issues with your supervisory team and to check regulations
http://as.exeter.ac.uk/support/admin/staff/qualityassuranceandmonitoring/tqamanual/
PART 6: OPEN DISCUSSION
