Your Supervisor

Supervisors play a fundamental role in supporting postgraduate researchers throughout their programme. Your supervisor or supervisory team is responsible for helping you to manage your research, as well as being your primary link to your department and the University. Your main supervisor is your first point of contact for any issues that arise throughout your programme.

Your Supervisor is responsible for overseeing both your academic progress and your general welfare. If you have other concerns of a general nature, do let your supervisor know. They may be able to resolve your concerns; if not, they can direct you to appropriate support within the University.

Formal Supervision meetings with your supervisor or supervisory team should take place at least eight times per year, with an expectation of one meeting at least every 6-7 weeks throughout the calendar year for all full-time and part-time postgraduate researchers (including visiting PG researchers) during the normal period of enrolment. For those PG researchers sponsored on a Student Visa, these meetings are also expected to continue at the same frequency during the continuation and examination periods, and beyond where a student receives an outcome of 'revise and resubmit' at examination.

At these meetings your supervisor(s) should give detailed feedback on the work you present and help you make plans for your next steps. A detailed record of your formal supervisory meetings and actions agreed will be kept through SkillsForge (see below), and must be signed by both you and your supervisor(s).

Within three months of the start of your registration you and your supervisory team are expected to sign that you have read the 'Principles of Supervision' document, which you will find in your SkillsForge account. This summarises aspects of the Policy on Research Degrees, extracting the points which are most essential to a successful supervisory relationship. You can therefore expect your supervisor to discuss these with you in your early supervision meetings.

Responsibility for your work ultimately lies with you, but your supervisor will be a major influence on its progress.

Should your supervisor be unable to perform these functions, the department will make every effort to provide you with alternative supervision. A replacement supervisor should be appointed within two months of your supervisor becoming unavailable. In the meantime, a member of your Thesis Advisory Panel (TAP) should assume a general supervisory role. You will be informed if your supervisor resigns from the University.

A record of your formal supervisory meetings should be drawn up by you and approved by your supervisor(s) in SkillsForge. The record should include the date of the meeting and a summary of the content of the meeting and of future actions to be performed, including agreed training. There is a quick guide to using SkillsForge and information about what constitutes a formal supervisory meeting on the Supervision and progression webpage.

SkillsForge also lets you record informal supervision meetings. While formal meetings must be recorded and signed by both you and your supervisor, informal meetings may be recorded as you choose. Some students find them a useful way to keep notes of what was discussed in a quick conversation, perhaps after a seminar or at a conference. Whether you choose to use this feature is up to you.

SkillsForge is also where you can use the Researcher Development Framework to assess your skills, browse and book to attend training courses, and create a Personal Development Plan.