Mark Barley - PhD Supervision Award

'Excellence in Teaching - what is it?'

A key part of the relationship between a PhD student and supervisor is establishing good positive communication and an understanding what each expects from the PhD project and their relationship. At the beginning of each student's project we talk through what the student expects from the PhD, what they expect me to do, and what I expect of them. Although, we do this during normal student-supervisor meetings, rather than using the written Student's Perceptions of Research Supervision (SPORS) questionnaire, the questions in SPORS provide a very useful guide. What each student expects from their PhD and supervisor can vary considerably. Good communication and clearly defining expectations can avoid many of the potential problems students and supervisors encounter.