I have recently discovered that an abstract published by my supervisor for a talk at an international conference on my work did not have my name on it. He put his name on and an ex member of the group but not mine. The bulk of his talk was based on my report and he used results directly from it. This has really angered me and I would like any advice on how to deal with it. Thanks

Have you seen the abstract in a journal supplement or the conference literature? Were you at the conference? Are you sure that the exclusion was deliberate? It might be unlikely but could your name have been omitted accidentally (at the printing/publishing stage). I can understand your outrage and, unfortunately, this sort of thing does occasionally happen but you need to handle this very carefully. Do you feel you could ask him about it, in a casual, non-confrontational, non-accusatory manner? Do you think this could be a genuine mistake or has this happened to others in your group?

the supervisors who are not confident about there own knowledge they very frequently do these type of ******* things just ask your supervisor directly with full conffidence why he/she has done that i'm sure he'll not be able to harm u but will going to provide some nonsense logic behind his act

It's true, it does happen but I still recommend a non-confrontational approach until you are SURE that this was a deliberate exclusion. Then, I would suggest that if your supervisor cannot justify his actions, you take the matter up with another supervisor and/or postgraduate office/research degrees committee.

I saw the abstract in the conference booklet. The exclusion was not a mistake (he is very meticulous) Unfortunately I have had several problems with him since starting and as such find it difficult to talk to him. I have spoken to the uni advisory service and they have told me it is plagiarism. This feels like a horrible situation and i dont know where its going to go.

There are problems in the group as he shows blatant favourtism and some members are brown-nosed while others (me etc) are treated appallingly. Up til now everyone has said it isn't worth saying anything but i feel this is a step too far and i should stand up for myself in this matter.

I agree, it is a step too far and potentially damaging for your career and not least, your PhD - what do you say to your examiners when they ask why the work in your thesis has been previously reported without your name on the author list? You do really need to sort this, for your own good. Have you a sympathetic co-supervisor you could talk to? If not, talk to your Uni advisory service again and ask them who you should contact next (research degrees committee?). Good luck.

You need to sort this out through the support network set up by your department for PhD students. This may be a specific advisor you have been appointed, the postgraduate tutor or the head of department. If they don't provide a suitable solution then you need to decide how important this is to you before taking it further.

Raj's advice probably won't get you very far (by the way Raj, we've edited out your swearing, but it's easier if we don't have to). In the long term, this is only a conference abstract, not a peer reviewed article. It may be anoying, but I don't think much real harm has been done to your future.

Sometimes what happens,the supervisor don't have ill intentions behind it but for the purpose of taking credit he may commit such acts. But it would have been good to mention ur name. Be cool and ask him/her patiencely, if satisfactory explanation/logic is presented and make you feel cool then things will be set right. But if you reach at a conclusion that the act has been done with the mala fide intentions then be bold and don’t hesitate to discuss the matter with the Dean Students welfare/Dean Academic Affairs of your institution.

Bring it up next time you see your supervisor. And take decisions accordingly.

It's called plagiarism, and all univeristies have strict guidelines concerning it, I hope, regardless of who commits it. Unfortunately, in academia there are academics who don't actually do much other than get others to do it for them.

Make sure it wasn't just a mistake. If a substantial part of your work was presented and your name was knowingly omitted, you have every right to ask why that was and to make it known that it is not okay with you. Sometimes supervisors seem to forget just how much work you have put in and therefore how much it means to you. Supervisors who don't give their students credit for their work gain nothing and only strip away motivation from their students. If it really was intentional speak up!