I'd appreciate any feedback on my current dilemma.

I've only recently started my PhD. I selected my university based on availability of source material, and seeming enthusiasm of my prospective supervisor for my proposed project.

In the last few months a few things have changed regarding my relationship to my supervisor and my project.

Alarm bells started to ring around the time of funding applications. I was instructed to ignore all other aspects of my program and focus just on this. While in the end it produced a solid proposal, it turned out to be a needlessly drawn out endeavour that involved two months of continuous nit-picking revisions that left me scrambling to complete my papers towards the end of the semester.

Towards the end of this funding exercise, another professor stepped in, on her recommendation, and overhauled most of her changes - returning the proposal to a format that I had previously employed. In the end, the two months of revisions were an almost complete waste of time.

Therein lies the crux of the problem. My supervisor is very attentive - perhaps too attentive. She insists on weekly meetings, and attempts to have a hand in all my obligations. The positive side to this of course is that I have a supervisor who is accessible and has my interests at heart.

I recognize that she has done a lot for me already - she's secured funding and research contracts, has recommended important sources to me that have kept me on top of the literature, and has kept in constant contact with me. That said, there are sticking points.

First, I've learned that she's something of a pariah in the department. She's very antagonistic with a number of professors, including the graduate coordinator. To heighten this problem, she's cc'd me on some rather pointed emails to other professors, and has made me privy to discussions that have gone on behind closed doors. (That are supposed to be private to avoid drawing students into office politics)

Second, she's taken a heavy hand in the evolution of my project. My thesis is supposed to be supervised by a committee, and in this matter she's dismissed the possibility of certain professors from sitting on it, despite their considerable expertise in subjects that are closely related to my interests. Instead, she's stacked my committee with her allies - one of them, while a very insightful expert, studies a field that is at best peripheral to my project.

Related to this, she wants to have a deciding voice in all my commitments, despite my clear requests to her to let me handle situations. For example, I was invited to sit in on an MA level class that I thought would help me in my writing of my next major paper. She was opposed to this. I told her that I was fine with the idea, and that I could handle the extra obligation. She has since informed me that she will be writing to the professor in question (her enemy the grad coordinator) and informing him that I have too many obligations to

continued:

too many obligations to participate in this class. This is frustrating because it sends the message that any conversation with me needs to go through her. That I am incapable of managing my own time.

Finally, I recently found out that she has a personal stake in my academic success given her track record of supervision, and the fact that she's only the second woman to supervise someone in the history of this department. I therefore think that my success may be more about her than me. Hence the heavy hand she's taking.

So my dilemma is this:

Do I change supervisors, thereby alienating myself from her and her allies and setting back my project by a semester? Do I do this despite the work she's done to secure me funding, and the fact that I could end up with a supervisor who is entirely uninterested in my project?

Any serious suggestions would be appreciated.

Cheers

======= Date Modified 05 Jan 2010 11:37:43 =======
SORRY FOR CUTTING SHAMISHANC'S POST ---MY BAD!!!

Shamishanc,
Without going into too much detail, I would advise you against switching so soon. Find out from other students what is her modus operandi and adapt to that. There is never going to be a time when you have everything going a-ok so just have to accept the bad with the good. She has got you funding in a lean time, which is good. Yes, your head is gonna be wrecked from the fineky nature and the office politics, but from the forums, that is the norm. Academia has more backstabbings than a boxset of "Rome" dvds and more egos than the Real Madrid dressing room, so just accept it.
I would suggest holding your powder dry for another six months, keep everything above board and do as your supervisor suggests for now. Get what is needed to be done over the next 6-9 months set and maybe ask her for advice as how to improve your writing (you will be effectively mimicing her writing style in time). Also, and most importantly, maintain some semblance of life outside the dept. so you can switch off from the nonsense. It is difficult, but it still sounds that she is a good supervisor behind it all. You just have to adapt. Keep in there!!

P.S. Who gets on with their boss anyways? It could be worse - ya could be married :p

Shamishanc, I totally agree with Bonzo. Stick it out if you can. From what you have said about your supervisor, she's probably anxious to make sure that you're a good student and that you'll be a success in order to make her look good. I understand how you must feel with someone constantly breathing down your neck because I wouldn't like it much either but the alternative is worse. I had non-existent supervision - only one of my supervisors looked at any of my thesis and this was a cursory glance 6 weeks before I submitted. It was no surprise when at my viva I was told that I had to resubmit, to be honest I thought I was going to fail.

Stick with your supervisor. Don't forget that your thesis isn't the only piece of research you'll ever do - it's only the start and when you have it you'll be able to move onto the research you really want to do.

:-)

Thanks to both of you for the response. It's valuable to to have that objective perspective.

Although in all honesty Bonzo, you mentioned Rome, and it made me realize that there was an outlet for procrastination that I had overlooked. Thanks a lot... :p

Hi there

I agree with the others, stick with your supervisor. That said, I would have a serious and tactful conversation with her - while her making you rewrite and redo work is pretty normal (altho she does sound really heavy handed), I would discuss with her your outside obligations. You said you've done this - maybe you need to do it again. Telling you not to talk a class which you think would be beneficial seems to be stepping over the line to me. I'd very politely thank her for all her help and her interest, but also point out that you would like to plan your workload and other activities. Be tactful tho - but then, it sounds like you might need to be really assertive to get your message across. Good luck!

Hi Shamishank-

I'll preface this with the 'I'm currently doing Master's thesis not Phd yet' tag that I keep using- but mainly to let you know that there are some differences between the two, I'm aware after reading countless posts. However, that being said, there are some similarities as well- ethical committees, funding, re-writing and supervisor issues being some of them.

My experience with my own supervisor may be of help with regard to perspective. My supervisor was pretty much appointed by the University in question ( I am in Australia btw), as the most suitable person so I really did not get much say in it and was actually hoping for someone else-whose personality and approach mirrored my own a little more. For almost the first 8 months (doing it part-time) I agonised over whether I should 'sack' her because she just took so long to get back to me and her personality and research style was SOOOO different to mine. I'm a pretty flexible person who can adjust to many things (work/career means I have to be) but I found her indefinite style and methods just incredibly difficult to adjust to. Indefinite until it came to my drafts-then she was pretty definite and quite precise and micromanaging- strangely enough. And I was sooo disappointed-after all I had planned this for years- applied for the leave at the end of the year, waited until kids were really grown, yada, yada, yada.

Anyway, we have journeyed together through countless frustrations and colleagues, friends and kids have heard me vent-only to forgive her after some contact or some real breakthrough. Right now, although, the way she approaches time still gives me grief, I have to say, I have learned enormously from her. Somehow, between us, we have constructed some space where I 'get' research and have made a real life switch as to how I view all of this-including my study. Which from being some Masters project that would get me through possibly to the Phd, or at least let me graduate with a Masters and refocus back on work-has evolved into something I can actually see generating a substantial and interesting study which is personally, vocationally and academically of interest. Go figure...how we achieved this chemestry or alchemy I'll never know but today after making a real connection in a subsection, I realised that I was beginning to wonder how I would actually thank her...as opposed to sacking her- or wringing her neck or ...whatever you will.

So...you know, I think also, hang in there...I did not think that I would write this about my sup-but it is genuine-I have learned a lot and she has been a great mentor-if unexpected.

Cheers