Registration is closed.
This three-day intensive course aims to prepare researchers to be supervisors either at an early supervisor stage or before entering the role. It is tailored for researchers in biotechnology and life sciences, and will consist of lectures, group work, and discussions. The course is organized by the Digital Life Norway Research School, NORBIS, and NRSN.
Program
| Wednesday, 12th of April | |
|---|---|
| 10:30 | Arrival from Værnes by bus |
| 11:00 – 12:30 | Lunch |
| 12:30 – 13:30 | Welcome and reflection on experiences from good practice. Who is your role model as PhD supervisor? And how flexible is your own supervision style? How to balance personal and professional aspects of supervision in a friendly professional relationship? |
| 13:30 – 13:45 | Break |
| 13:45 – 15:15 | The supervisor role and relationship. What are the different roles that supervisors assume during the PhD study? How can you balance support and independence? What about asymmetry and how do you navigate with regards to closeness and power? |
| 15:15 – 16:00 | Break |
| 16:00 – 17:30 | Active listening – the most important communication tool. Introduction to the principles of active listening followed by an extensive exercise in small groups to train the method while also reflecting on concrete challenges in own supervision or the supervision of others |
| 18:00 - 20:00 | Dinner |
| Thursday, 13th of April | |
| 08:00 - 09:00 | Breakfast |
| 09:00 - 10:15 | Aligning expectations. Introduction on how to align expectations. Presentation of a tool to support the discussion of expectations that are often implicit for both parts. And how to keep track of how the PhD student is doing by inviting for feedback from the PhD student continuously and meta-communicate about the supervision process. |
| 10:15 - 10:30 | Break |
| 10:30 – 12:00 | Managing the project. In how much detail can you plan a PhD project when research is somehow unpredictable? How can you help yourself and others make realistic plans? |
| 12:00 – 13:15 | Lunch |
| 13:15 – 14:45 |
Part 1: Personality and handling your own stress, Henrik Herrebrøden -Background: What are the main stressors in academia, and what is characteristic of resilient people who handle stress well? -Test: What is your personality like? -Application: How may your personality be used and/or developed to deal with challenges in academia (and in life)? |
| 14:45 – 16:00 | Break: walk & talk |
| 16:00 – 17:30 |
Part 2: Taking on others’ stress: Supervisors’ communication and conflict management -Background: What types of conflict may arise in academia? -Test: What are your tendencies and habits in communication and conflicts? -Application: How may you use and develop your interpersonal skills as a supervisor? |
| 18:00 - 20:00 | Dinner |
| Friday, 14th of April | |
| 08:00 - 09:00 | Breakfast |
| 09:00 - 10:15 | Balancing your responsibilities. There are always more tasks than you can possibly overcome, so how do you prioritize? When should you be helpful, when should you say no and how do you find time to do DEEP work yourself? |
| 10:15 - 10:30 | Break |
| 10:30 – 11:45 | How to give constructive feedback that promotes independence. Introduction to feedback followed by a feedback game that opens discussions and reflection on how to give good feedback, and how this may help support autonomy of the PhD students. |
| 11:45 – 13:15 | Lunch |
| 13:15 – 14:30 | Team supervision and ‘orchestration’ of the PhD project. Discussion of the different roles you take in a team of supervisors, formal and informal power, using the power position in a constructive manner, and discussion of being in between, both supervisee and supervisor. |
| 14:30 - 14:45 | Wrap-up of the workshop |
| 15:00 | Departure to the airport & Trondheim |
Digital Life Norway Research School supports all Research School members with travel grants to cover travel- and accommodation costs.
Speakers
- Mirjam Godskesen, PhD. Mirjam’s core interest is doctoral supervision. She is an independent consultant and has developed and facilitated workshops for doctoral supervisors since 2008 and now leads workshops in both the Nordic countries, across Europe and in developing countries. She also runs academic writing bootcamps and is a very experienced PhD coach. Her current research interest is PhD coaching and education of doctoral supervisors, and she is affiliated to Aalborg University in Denmark, where she was formerly an Associate Professor at Department of Learning and Philosophy.
- Henrik Herrebrøden is a psychologist, author, podcast host, and public speaker. He graduated from the University of Bergen in 2016 as a clinical psychologist. His special field of interest is performance psychology and what characterizes resilient and effective people. This spring, he will defend his PhD on cognitive factors in elite sports performance.
Contact