‘Learning supervision’: trial by fire

Abstract

This paper explores the experiences of new graduate supervisors, individuals who have just moved as it were from one side of ‘the table’ to the other. We describe how their learning to ‘do supervision’ relates to their understanding of academic work and how they make sense of the transition from doctoral student, someone supervised, to someone supervising, how they connect the past to the present (and future). The particular contribution is the examination of new academics’ experience of supervision within the broader context of undertaking to establish oneself as an academic. This study is part of a broad research programme in Canada that investigates the experiences of doctoral students and the academic staff who support them and then works collaboratively with those in the units in which we are collecting data to ensure the findings can inform and support doctoral policies and pedagogies.

Keywords:

• doctoral supervision
• new academics
• higher education

Acknowledgement

The authors wish to recognise funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Council of Canada (SSHRC).