131 130 Chapter Six: Supporting Postgraduate Students Chapter Six: Supporting Postgraduate Students Supporting Students for Careers in the Academia or Beyond Students are often stressed out as they are preparing thesis defense and at the same time planning for their career and life after graduation. Some students may have higher employability with previous work experience or relevant networks, but some are new to the industry or want to seek a different employment. It may be easier and more comfortable for you to offer advice if they choose to stay in the academia. It could be challenging for some of you if students have no ideas or if they want to leave the university system. Your network and extensive experience in the field would be precious for a novice. “Students are often stressed out as they are preparing thesis defense and at the same time planning for their career and life after graduation.” When Relationships with Students Go Wrong It is important for supervisors to be aware if their relationships with students are supportive and in good terms. Relevant research studies (Bair & Haworth, 2004; Golde, 2005; Lovitts, 2008; Gardner, 2008; Cohen, 2011; Kyvik & Olsen, 2013) showed that supervisor-student relationship brings significant impacts to the quality of student experience and the chances of completing the study within normal duration. Conflicts may arise occasionally. Students may feel helpless, insecure or trapped, and try hard to impress or please supervisors. They suppress their feelings while supervisors feel equally bad and disappointed. Situations like this could be overwhelmingly stressful and could create mental burden on top of the pressure from research and study. Supervisors could reflect on themselves to see if anything could be improved, communicate openly and raise the issue professionally to seek a mutually agreeable solution. Sometimes the relationships could go so wrong that you may consider involving a third party such as the postgraduate programs coordinator or Office of Postgraduate Studies (PGSO). References Bair, C. R. & Haworth, J. G. (2004). Doctoral student attrition and persistence: A meta-synthesis of research. In Smart, J. C. (Ed.) Higher Education Handbook of Theory and Research 19. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers. Cohen, S. M. (2011). Doctoral persistence and doctoral program completion among nurses. Nursing Forum 46(2), 64-70. Gardner, S. K. (2008). What’s too much and what’s too little? The process of becoming an independent researcher in doctoral education. The Journal of Higher Education, 79(3). Golde, C. (2005). The role of the department and discipline in doctoral student attrition: Lessons from four departments. The Journal of Higher Education 76(6), 669-700. Kyvik, S. & Olsen, T. (2013). Increasing completion rates in Norwegian doctoral training: multiple causes for efficiency improvements. Studies in Higher Education. DOI: 10.1080/03075079.2013.801427 Lovitts, B. E. (2008). The transition to independent research: Who makes it, who doesn’t and why. The Journal of Higher Education 79(3), 296-325.
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