Course “How to improve PhD supervision”
General information
Date: April 29-30, 2024
Time: day 1: 9:00-17:00, day 2: 9:00-14:00
Target group: Academic staff who supervise doctoral researchers (official as well as day-to-day supervisors)
Training mode: Live-online
Number of participants: max. 20
Language: English
Trainer: Tress Academic
Course content
This course supports supervisors in reflecting on and providing excellent supervision for their doctoral researchers. Participants learn how to optimise the relationship between them and their doctoral researchers, including expectation management, leadership styles, and handling of challenging situations. They exchange experiences with colleagues and learn how to organise productive meetings, how to foster independence, and having candid conversations.
Participants get advice on the decisive early steps of the relationship between supervisor and doctoral researcher, the supervisory process, timely completion, and tools for evaluating and further developing their supervisory skills.
During the course supervisors test the application of these tools in practical exercises. They can reflect on what they would like to implement in their personal situations, as well as on an institutional level. At the end of the course, they have a variety of instruments at hand that they can apply directly for improving supervision of their doctoral researchers.
The course covers the following topics:
1. International developments in doctoral education
2. Biggest problems of doctoral researchers
3. Time to completion
4. Challenges of supervisors
5. Good practice in supervision
6. Developing supervisory styles
7. Enhancing the supervisor-student-relationship
8. Clarifying expectations
9. Setting up supervisory agreements
10. Organising productive supervisory meetings
11. Handling difficult conversations
12. Keeping-up student motivation
13. Monitoring student progress
14. Self-and peer-assessment
Course concept
The course includes a combination of lectures, exercises, and questions and discussion rounds. We survey the participants’ specific training needs prior to the course to provide relevant course input. Contents, exercises and examples will then as far as possible be adjusted to the subject-specific requirements of the participants. The course offers ample room for addressing individual questions on the various aspects of the course topic.
Course benefits
Peer exchange: During the course, participants have the chance to address individual aspects they personally want to change in their supervision with colleagues from the same field/institute. They can exchange on issues of PhD supervision in a stimulating and motivating environment.
Course documentation: All learning steps and aims are documented in a detailed handbook in English in order to increase learning progress and study of the course subject beyond the training. Every participant receives one handbook.
Online resources: Course participants will be informed about the possibility to further benefit from additional online resources that are provided.
