Supervision

From the time of commencing your candidature until your degree is awarded or your program discontinued, you will have a panel of supervisors comprising a principal and at least one co- or external supervisor, appointed by the Head of School.

All supervisors will belong to the University's register of eligible research supervisors in accordance with the Policy for the Establishment of a Register of Eligible Research Supervisors.

To ensure that you have continuity of access to expert academic advice, instruction and assistance throughout your candidature, changes to the supervisory panel (particularly the principal supervisor) are discouraged. However, additional supervisors may be added to the panel at any time to reflect changes in the direction of your research.

More rarely, the composition of your supervisory panel can be modified to accommodate staff departures, absences (exceeding one month) and irresolvable personality conflicts.

Any changes to the supervisory panel must first be discussed with all parties involved in the supervision process to ensure that each is satisfied with the proposed arrangement and then, approved by the Head of School.

In rare circumstances where there is disagreement about the composition of the supervisory panel, the Head of School, who has the responsibility for ensuring appropriate supervision arrangements are in place may, in the best interests of the student, overrule the wishes of any of the parties involved, provided that the new supervisory arrangement remains consistent with University policy.

Different Supervisors

The Principal Supervisor

The principal supervisor carries the primary responsibility for your supervision, including the coordination of all communication between the supervisors and you. He or she will be a member of the academic staff of the School in which you are enrolled, or an affiliate, adjunct or clinical titleholder with that School.

Your principal supervisor will normally hold a degree at the same level or higher than the degree for which you are enrolled, have a proven and current record of research in your field and be experienced in supervision.

The Second and Any Additional Members of Your Supervisory Panel

The second and any additional members of your supervisory panel are referred to as 'co-supervisors' or 'external supervisors'; these supervisory types can be distinguished by their level of affiliation with the University.

A co-supervisor is a staff member or titleholder with any of the University's Schools, whilst an external supervisor is not a University staff member and has no formal affiliation with the University.

Co and/or external supervisors act as a source of independent advice, or add specialised expertise to the supervisory panel. They need not be discipline experts, but are sufficiently familiar with your topic area to be able to follow the progress of your research.

Each co- or external supervisor on your supervisory panel will have a minimum of 20% responsibility for the supervision process, except where there are four or more supervisors on the panel, in which case each co- or external supervisor will have a minimum of 10% responsibility for the supervisory process.

Role of the Supervisory Team

In broad terms, the role of your supervisors is to help guide your research and assist you to develop the skills and knowledge that you will need to complete your research project within the time allowed for the degree.

In the early stages of your candidature, your supervisors are likely to know more about your chosen field of study than you do and can therefore offer valuable advice on preparing a realistic research proposal, together with instruction in the methodology and (any) technical skills that are necessary for your project.

Changing Relationship with Supervisors

As you progress in candidature and your expertise grows, your relationship with your supervisors will gradually change; their role will increasingly be to act as a sounding board for your ideas, to review and comment on your written work and to provide you with feedback on your progress towards completion.

In addition to the academic guidance they provide, your supervisors can also help you with any personal difficulties you may be experiencing either directly or by referring you to support services provided by the University.

Detailed information about the roles and responsibilities of your supervisors is available in Appendix 2. As each student and supervisor relationship is unique, it can be beneficial for students and supervisors to discuss their mutual expectations at an early stage of candidature to avoid future misunderstandings.

To facilitate this discussion, you and your supervisor(s) may find it helpful to independently complete the 'Expectations in supervision scale'(pdf) and then to compare your answers. This document has also been reproduced in Appendix 5.

Meeting with Your Supervisors

Regular meetings and communication with your supervisors are essential to ensure that you have frequent opportunities to raise any concerns or problems and to receive feedback on your research progress.

For this reason, the University stipulates that supervisor(s) meet with (or otherwise contact) research students at least once per fortnight. You should take brief notes at these meetings and to circulate them to all your supervisors afterwards so that everyone remains fully informed about the progress of your research and its future directions. Some Schools may request that a file copy of the notes of your supervisory meetings, signed by all participants, be kept in the School Office or by the Postgraduate Coordinator.

Where this is not the case you ought to, as a minimum, maintain your own signed file copies of the notes for future reference.

If You are Studying Remotely, Half Time or Are on Study Leave

If you are studying remotely, half time or are on study leave, meeting with your supervisor(s) in person can be more difficult. However, it is still essential that you maintain frequent contact: phone calls, video conferencing and email discussions about your research are all regarded as interactive forms of communication and these can usefully supplement your less frequent face¬to-face meeting times.

It is normal for most students to meet more frequently with their principal supervisor than with their co- or external supervisor(s). However, it is expected that all members of the supervisory team will meet together with you at least twice per year to ensure that all parties have a common understanding of and approach to the development of the research.

More regular meetings with the entire supervisory panel are recommended, particularly in the early stages of your research project when the research proposal is being shaped and, of course, in any situations where your supervisors have expressed differing opinions about your research.

Don't Be Afraid to Ask for Help

It is worth remembering that your supervisors are busy people who have many demands on their time and may not always be immediately available to advise you. Having said this, you are not expected to wait until you are approached by your supervisor(s) before you can raise a problem or have a discussion about your research.

Don't be afraid to ask for help. Your supervisor(s) will make time for you as soon as they are able; it's their job! Other members of the research group may also be able to assist you with technical or methodological problems and don't forget your Postgraduate Coordinator is there to help.

A useful tool to ensure that regular meetings with your supervisor(s) proceed is to take the lead early on in your candidature for scheduling a regular timetable of meetings with your principal supervisor and with your whole supervisory panel. Your Microsoft Outlook Calendar can be used for this purpose.

Award for Excellence for Higher Degree by Research Supervision - updated.

Each year around October/November the University calls for Faculties to propose a nominee for the University's Award for Excellence in Higher Degree by Research Supervision.

The award recognises and encourages sustained excellence in the supervision and support of Higher Degree by Research students and is accompanied by a grant of $10,000 to be used for professional development purposes.

If you would like your supervisor to be considered for an award, please suggest his or her name to your Postgraduate Coordinator.

Further information including the eligibility criteria for the award are available online.