Having a positive working relationship with your supervisor will be crucial to your studies and your experiences as a PGR student – this can be aided by developing a constructive rapport. Good rapport relies on attention and commitment to effective communication. The easiest way of knowing what someone expects of us is to ask them and vice versa.
Your supervisor/s will be able to offer guidance and advice through your postgraduate research study – offering critical expertise in your subject area. They will also have a professional interest in your welfare – however, the expectation of any PGR student is to be reasonably self-sufficient. These expectations in both roles (yours and the supervisor) can seem ambiguous until they’ve been brought to life through practice – setting expectations within the relationship at the earliest opportunity can help the professional relationship run smoothly.
Agreeing and negotiating the expectations through effective communication will help to develop a shared understanding and to develop rapport between you. Relationship expectations that are realistic; consistent; clear; and reliable are likely to lead to trust between you and your supervisor. Your supervisor/s may have specific insights based on previous research experience and knowledge – these insights combined can be used to negotiate what you might need from your supervisor/s.
Despite best intentions and plans, you are likely to encounter events that may change the nature of the way in which you work. It is important to stay in contact with your supervisor, so that you feel comfortable in sharing any changes, concerns, or developments. Changes can often be an opportunity to revisit any agreements or expectations made between you and amend these according to any new needs identified. Remember revisions and re-negotiations aren’t a sign of failure, but an opportunity to develop and progress.
Differences and conflicts are a natural part of learning with others. The most effective way of handling any differences is to pre-empt and plan for them. During conflict, we tend to make assumptions about the interests of the other party, and they must be in direct opposition to ours. In reality, we can never truly know unless we confront the issue – how we go about doing this varies according to the other party; the issues that need attention; and the approach used.
Rather than hoping, or assuming, a pro-active and reliable way to handling conflict would benefit from effective mutual communication skills – both from your supervisor/s and yourself:
Often the outcome is likely to be a creative solution. Any agreement between yourself and your supervisor/s would benefit from review and reflection – it’s worth considering when and how these agreements will be reviewed to ensure that they continue to work, or to make further revisions.