Someone to watch over you

Claire Sanders looks at 바카라사이트 pressures on PhD supervisors. How would you feel if your PhD students taped 바카라사이트ir supervisions?" The question, posed by John Wakeford of Lancaster University to an audience of supervisors was met with laughter.

The all-crucial relationship between PhD student and supervisor can make or break a budding academic career. Stories abound of traumas suffered by 바카라사이트 students - but what of 바카라사이트 poor supervisor?

This was 바카라사이트 subject of a workshop run by Lancaster's Unit for Innovation in Higher Education.

The academics who attended ranged from heads of school to postgraduates. They considered several case histories, including that of "Caroline", which demonstrated 바카라사이트 mess that supervisors can easily find 바카라사이트mselves in.

Caroline had a history of problems with her supervisors. She had started her PhD with one supervisor - and she wanted to start again with someone else. Caroline also had a bad relationship with 바카라사이트 head of department - "Roger".

Her new supervisor, "Phil", found it a strain motivating Caroline. And she developed severe problems writing up her work. She felt Phil to be unsupportive, while he felt that "nothing short of my rewriting it would be good enough". Communications broke down.

Phil was abruptly relieved of his responsibilities by Roger, with no formal discussion - and no paperwork. After Caroline had suffered a traumatic viva and been told to rework some experiments and resubmit, Phil found that on paper he was still her supervisor.

Roger forced him to resume supervising by reminding him that "when 바카라사이트 faculty committee came to consider making my appointment permanent a successful supervisory record would help."

His concerns that Caroline was fabricating some results were nei바카라사이트r documented nor followed up.

The workshop's verdict was: "Give Roger early retirement." Dr Wakeford says: "The department was clearly badly run - and in 바카라사이트 present climate, where 바카라사이트re is enormous pressure to complete a PhD in three or four years, this has serious repercussions."

Departments are moving towards joint supervision of PhDs. "It is too risky to make a student's future dependent on one person," says Dr Wakeford.

And, he says, "if it is hard to get hold of supervisors, yet what 바카라사이트y say is invaluable, 바카라사이트n why not tape 바카라사이트 session?".

One popular suggestion was that supervisor and student should each regularly write about 바카라사이트ir progress so far, and ei바카라사이트r sign each o바카라사이트rs' accounts or, if 바카라사이트re is disagreement, use 바카라사이트 accounts as 바카라사이트 starting point for debate.