Fit matters in the supervisory relationship: doctoral students and supervisors perceptions about the supervisory activities

Abstract

Although supervision has been identified as one of the central determinants of the doctoral experience, there is still an insufficient understanding of the ways in which supervisors and doctoral students perceive supervisory activities. The study focuses on exploring the fit between doctoral students’ and supervisors’ perceptions of who are involved in supervision, the frequency of supervision and the main task of the supervisor, and further, how the perceived fit contributes to students’ satisfaction and resilience in studies. Altogether, 1184 students and 431 supervisors from all the 11 faculties at the University of Helsinki completed the survey. The results suggest that the fit between the students’ and supervisors’ perceptions of the supervisory activities in different faculties was related to the students’ satisfaction with their studies and the supervisory relationship.

Keywords:

• doctoral education
• supervision
• doctoral student
• supervisor
• person–environment fit

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the International evaluation of research and doctoral training at the University of Helsinki 2005–2010; the grant from the Finnish Cultural Foundation.