Getting Started · Lesson 1

Your Role as a Supervisor

Reflect on why you want to supervise and how mentoring graduate students can enrich their experience and advance your growth as an academic.

A faculty mentor shares a laugh with a small group of students at a research poster session.

Why Supervise?

Everyone has a different reason to supervise. Supervision is not only crucial to a graduate student’s experience, but it can also enhance your experience as an academic and mentor. Take a moment and reflect on why you want to supervise and how it will benefit both you and your student.

Here are a few questions to help you reflect on why supervision is important to you:

How can you help your student develop into a scholar and/or industry leader?
How can supporting your student help develop your skills as a mentor and a leader?
Could this experience help support your future grant applications?
Could this experience help develop your training environment statement for grants?
Can you enhance your research and scholarship with new ideas and perspectives?
Can you enhance your students’ research and scholarship with new ideas and perspectives?
Could this experience help enhance your teaching statement (promotion, awards)?

Principles of Supervision

Principles of Graduate Supervision

This space is reserved for TRU’s Foundations of Graduate Supervision / Principles of Supervision. They will be added here once approved by the Graduate Senate Committee.

Your Role as a Supervisor

Supervisors help graduate students:

Progress through their academic studies in a timely manner
Develop their academic research
Navigate hurdles and challenges
Encourage engagement in skill development workshops, opportunities, and events

Supervisors act as:

Mentor
Guide
Evaluator
Advocate

Supervisors should be aware of any potential conflicts of interest and treat their supervisor/student relationship respectfully. A supervisor should not be a friend, buddy, parent, or romantic partner.

Responsibilities of a Supervisor

There are many reasons why supervision plays an important role in your graduate student’s journey. As a supervisor, your responsibilities include:

Sharing knowledge about your field of study, and its academic standards and norms
Modelling the university’s culture of academic integrity and scholarly conduct
Providing constructive feedback and guidance
Being available for regular meetings
Supporting scholarship applications and professional development opportunities
Maintaining a professional working relationship

Supervisor & Student Shared Interests

Venn diagram of supervisor and student interests. Supervisor: grow research, build mentorship skills, create opportunities. Student: build research capacity, develop skills, network, explore career goals. Shared: publications, research awards, conferences.

Supervisor Best Practices

Maintain effective communication throughout your supervision
Develop a professional relationship – conducive to research, academic, and professional growth
Provide the resources necessary for a successful and timely completion
Resolve conflicts in the supervisor-student relationship
Be a wellness advocate for your students and share resources
Help guide graduate students toward future opportunities and careers
Continue to improve and develop skills through your own professional development

Resources to Get Started

Characteristics of an Effective Supervisor

A great way to reflect on your effectiveness as a supervisor is to assess the characteristics and practices associated with effective supervision. This resource can be used as a starting point for you to explore areas to develop, along with areas to leverage. It is intended to be used as a self-assessment tool, but with slight modification, could also be completed by graduate students as a means of collecting feedback on supervision style.

Interview Questions for Prospective Students

Not all graduate students are alike, and compatibility is key to a successful

student/supervisor relationship. Use this resource to help assess a potential

graduate student’s ability as well as compatibility.

Expectations of Research Supervision

It is important to ensure that expectations are clear from the start of the supervisor/student relationship. This resource should be completed independently by both the supervisor and student before setting up your first meeting to compare and discuss. Circle the number closer to where you feel the responsibility lies. If there is a discrepancy, listen to both sides, have a conversation, and form an agreement.