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If You Don’t Have a Perfect PhD Supervisor, Where Do You Find Help?

What is an ideal supervisor like? An ideal supervisor is someone who is a bundle of infinite time and knowledge that is unparalleled. In addition he is patient and offers constant support and understanding. However, am I talking of a utopian figure does that really picture perfect supervisor does exist? I think they do not, as after all supervisors are also human beings who are fallible and subject to similar competing demands from time and competition. Consequently, the scholar feels the missing support that he needs for completion of his or her work. What is the alternative source of support that a research scholar can seek from outside? One option can be the many online communities that offer a forum to discuss problems and find solutions to those problems with sometimes more than one options.

Sometimes to bridge the gap that is created by a non-supportive or uninvolved supervisor can be filled by the various consultancy services that are available. These are like those private mentoring services that can take care of your typical doctoral work concerns for which you may not be able to find solution elsewhere.

Other than seeking help from external sources, develop ways and tactics to handle the difficult traits in your supervisor by empowering yourself in ways that are necessary.

If your PhD supervisor has the trait of being indecisive, you need to be assertive and take charge of your project. Become a leader but also try to seek the reasons for which you feel your supervisor isn’t able to support you in making decisions.

Peer and other professors in the department can be a blessing when the supervisor isn’t. A hands off supervisor can be replaced by seeking help from others in the department, informally and training yourself to become an independent researcher. This strategy is a way to look at the solution rather than draining yourself by brooding over the problem all the time. Stay away from people who all the time make you feel like with a bad supervisor, “You can’t do it!” Take your thesis in your own hands and switch groups as remember end of the day it is your independent research and you got to take the charge and credit of it. However, always give the deserving chance to your supervisor to respond and stay involved. Remember to not shirk your duty as a scholar, in any case.

The PhD Hazards That Come Without a Warning

Almost all the PhD students, during their first year feel a lot of ambiguity about their work and do not know in which direction to go this continuous as a vicious circle then as in the subsequent years they regret that they could have put the first year to much better use. The sad part … Continue reading “The PhD Hazards That Come Without a Warning”

Almost all the PhD students, during their first year feel a lot of ambiguity about their work and do not know in which direction to go this continuous as a vicious circle then as in the subsequent years they regret that they could have put the first year to much better use. The sad part is that all the hardships of PhD, which I call as “hazards” go completely unwarned. In some cases, the supervisors think it is their duty to make their scholars suffer as much as they did. Find here few survival tips:

Time Management: In your PhD ordeal, you would not find too many motivators. Self motivation is the most important task in the PhD. People who aren’t motivated themselves would not be able to establish a good work routine and would find themselves entangled in a complicated cobweb of depression, caffeine addiction, poor day routine and much more. Treat your PhD as a day time job with strict working hours and a schedule to follow. Work like an employee who imperatively has to work overtime for a task that did not finish in the stipulated hours.

Communicating with supervisor: Whatever be the characteristics and traits of your supervisor, it is necessary to build communication with him or her on regular basis. In the worst cases if you feel that a communication cannot be established, I would suggest that you change your supervisor and find someone you can relate to.

Learning to sustain in the Library: Majority of your hours in a day go in the library and it may not have the kind of environment you would want all the time. Prepare to adjust with the discomfort that the library gives you in terms of seating space, noise, light, rules or whatever it may be, it is the place to be for few years till the time your struggle isn’t over.

Comparing yourself with other PhD students: It’s a bizarre idea to compare yourself with other students and the progress in their PhD. It is always better to stay in the company of those people who have an optimistic approach and a helpful attitude. Stay away from the negative lot and socialise in a positive environment, even if that means attending social events outside the university.

Some Technology Aids to Make a PhD Scholar’s Life Easier

Technology has simplified the life of PhD scholars in a great great way. I can virtually not imagine how much a struggle it must have been for the researchers of yesteryears to manage without technology in their lives. Some of the tools that can of real help, can be: IPad: With the help of my … Continue reading “Some Technology Aids to Make a PhD Scholar’s Life Easier”

IPad: With the help of my supervisor, I got funds from the university to buy a Laptop/IPad. Since I already had a manageable laptop, I further invested in an IPad and since then, it has made my life easier manifold. It is handy, light weight, quick and helps me to do my research anywhere and anytime.

Google Drive/ Dropbox: As a research scholar who is on the move forever, there wouldn’t be another person thanking for the invention of Google Drive/ Dropbox and their likes. These are one place to store all your files and they are on the cloud and accessible anywhere you go without actually having to carry the data in a storage Dropbox. Dropbox is boon for researchers as it also supports a lot of software that I use for research. I am also able to share my data with my supervisor or peer group, anytime needed. This is super easy and super useful.

Google Scholar: Like I did, you would find most of the papers you need for you research on Google Scholars. It just so appears that Google scholar was created keeping in mind the need and the struggle of PhD researcher so we can’t thank them enough. I found more than 90 percent of the papers that I was looking for on Google Scholar rather than the physical brick and mortar library in my university.

Mendeley: Mendeley is the link that helps you to have an academic profile made virtual. It helps me to connect with likeminded researchers from all over the world, thus helping me to get constructive inputs from various places. To add to it, it connects itself with Dropbox and runs an automatic check with Google Scholar for verification. Awesome n surely a need for all research scholars. Just remember that it in an academic version of LinkedIn There you go with these five technological tools to make your PhD life much simpler. You could surely have a list specific to the android system. If you do so, we wait for your inputs here. Come n make researchers’ life simpler.

Does It Help to Give Festive Goodies to Your PhD Supervisor?

During the course of my PhD, while I was on teaching assignments, it was quite normal for students to drop in with chocolates and eateries and it was not strange. One thing that stayed with me and is still a good memory is a brass plate souvenir of best teacher that is etched on my table and came as a gift from one of the students. A “permanent” kind of a present is unlike from students but it does stay with you and keeps reminding them of their importance in your lives. Whenever my other colleagues visit, the plate resting on my study is a matter of my pride and a topic of discussion. Mostly it comes down to the most important person in our PhD journey. The supervisor. Firstly, we have brainstorming over whether or not the supervisor should be given festival souvenirs and then further on the options.

Often I have seen that people have very diverse opinions when it comes to this; mostly because it is very opaque in terms of structured etiquette or guidelines in this area.

I think the best way to understand whether or not to give a gift to your supervisor is to speak to fellow researchers to know the normal trend in your university. People who have been there longer would be able to tell you better and it is always good to follow the trend in the university so you don’t take your supervisor by surprise. If you do decide to give a gift, one of these options could be a safe bet:

Wine/Chocolates: One of the most neutral choice is to go ahead with Wine and chocolates. It is safe and socially acceptable. However, be very sure about the drinking habits of your supervisor. If he is a teetotaller then of course chocolates is the most commonly acceptable and safest choice.
Baked eateries: These may seem like common and easy passable gifts but my suggestions are while keeping in mind the cost involved in the gift. An expensive gift might become a burden sometimes on the supervisor or make you appear distinct from other research scholars. The entire purpose behind giving gifts to supervisors is to let them know in a warm way about how much you value them and a small token as a gesture of gratitude can take care of it pretty well. Small edible gift assortments work well with most of them.
Table Souvenirs: As I discussed earlier in the blog, a small souvenir like a table keep serves as a memoir for a long time to come. A nice quote on a plate or a blessing souvenir always works well with most supervisors
Pen: A pen is mightier than a sword, it works well here, as much as it works at other relevant places. Some professors are very protective of their stationary and pens and nothing makes them happier that having a new addition to their previous collection.

It is important that you know the taste and liking of your supervisor to know what they would like and be pick up your gift accordingly. The entire purpose should be to make them feel special and important through ac small token. It would go a long way in building positive vibes with your supervisor in a long and tough journey.

Should PhD Scholars Work on Industry Funded Projects?

At the onset, working on an industry funded project is a phenomenal idea. It appears to have multiple benefits. Firstly, it is an opportunitt to take up a kind of research that has a lot of practical use. Secondly, industry is relatively more generous in providing funding as compared to the academic fraternity. The research oriemted industries are generous enoughto fund not just the research inititatives but also the overheads borne by the researcher for boarding, travelling and so on. All these and many more benefits are luring enough to get associated with an industry oriented project but there are certain considerations that need not be ignored.

1. Publication Hindrance: An industry is a profit making initiative and would almost always fund onlly those activities from whichit can extract some commercial benefits. To add to it , you may be made aware of some confidential information of the company which you would be expected not to disclose and for that sometimes an agreement between you and the company would also be signed. Because of this sometimes you may not be able to publish the conplete output of your research and you lose onto some very important contribution in your research.

2. No Long Breaks on Personal Concerns: Howmuch strict be your supervisor, he would give you breaks and empathize with your personal concerns and commitments. You could still get a break once in a while but when the industry funds your assignments, there isnt any relaxation on regular committed updates that you have to give to the company. Supervisors some time pressurize or even to say harass their scholars f or updates as they get the pressure from the industry people.

3. The Trend of Job Switching: you may begin to work on a project with some people in the company and build up a rapport with them and get them required supportand encouragement that puts you in a comfort level in the midst of strangers. But the industry is such a place where people do not remain in the same job for a long time, reasons of choice or no, they do move on. It isnt necessary that the replacement would again be at the same wavelength with you. It can sometimes become a potential hindrance in the smooth progress of your work.

In a crisp advice I would like to say that, it is always better to get as much advice as you can about if any agreement is there between the university or the company that can bound you so that there are not any clauses that are hidden from you that may surprise you at a stage where you do not know what to do next. Sometimes companies do offer room for negotiation, do check out scope if any or that.