Advisement

PHD CENTRAL

ADVISOR PANEL TEAM AGREEMENT

The success of doctoral research depends on the relationship between students and their advisors. This relationship requires mutual respect and adaptability on both sides to the changing balance between academic needs and independence, the expectations of the advisory team, and the Institute's requirements.

The Team Agreement facilitates the discussion and definition of the critical elements of the relationship between team members. It encourages all parties to develop a thorough and consistent understanding of their individual and shared roles and responsibilities in their research partnership.

The negotiations of the Team Agreement should create an atmosphere that allows open discussion of the Team's relationship and roles, as well as the research at hand. A Team Agreement will act as a reference and review tool.

The Team Agreement can be seen as a 'live document' by the Team. It supports the relationship between members and, therefore, the progression of the students with their studies. Some provisions of the Team Agreement are expected to change over the period of the research. The agreement can be revised at any time, particularly if there is a change in team members, but should be reviewed annually.

All incoming researchers, in collaboration with their advisory Team, complete a Team Agreement. The agreement will contain the meeting schedule a year in advance (ideally the same day and time each relevant month), the permissible length of time for responses, the agreed-upon production and submission schedule in year one, and the agreed-upon proposal. Post Confirmation of Route, the Team Agreement will focus on the timeline towards completing the dissertation on schedule.

The Team Agreement form, which will guide the members through this process, can be found here. It will be submitted as part of the registration process and in conjunction with a teaching agreements.

---