Anyone who is aiming for a doctoral degree depends on him or her: The doctoral supervisor or the "doctor mother" (for the sake of simplicity, from now on we will only speak of the doctoral supervisor, of course this can also be a professor). He will support you throughout this long-term project and will also give you an oral examination at the end. But how do you properly deal with your doctoral supervisor? Of course, this always depends on the person in question; after all, everyone has a different character, including professors. So here are a few general tips on how best to deal with your doctoral supervisor.
First of all: How do I find a doctoral supervisor who is right for me?
If you are planning to do a doctorate, this question is of course extremely relevant - in addition to the topic you want to research scientifically. If you have already decided on a rough question, you should start looking for a suitable doctoral supervisor who will take you under his wing. To do this, you should take a look back: Which professor did you particularly enjoy listening to in past seminars and which one did you like? This point is extremely important because if you don't get along with your doctoral supervisor, you can't expect much help with your dissertation.
In addition, you should choose someone who is familiar with the subject area in which you want to research and who meets the necessary formal requirements. Normally you have to have a habilitation yourself in order to be someone's doctoral supervisor. The exception is, for example, junior professors. Either way, someone new to the field won't be able to supervise your work, and you won't have anyone to share their knowledge with you. Pay attention to these points and then go to the office hours of your favorite doctoral supervisor, where you can discuss your concerns with him. If he is convinced of your project, he will certainly take over the supervision and help you fine-tune the question.
How do I communicate with my doctoral supervisor?
At first glance, this question seems easy to answer: by simply going to the consultation. Of course you can do this if you work, live directly on campus or generally live nearby. But what if you've moved or have a full-time job? Or, as in my case, your professor is only at the university for block seminars, but otherwise teaches at a university 1,000 km away?
In such cases, only email contact remains. Describe your concern, question or similar. in broad terms and ask for a meeting or a phone call. Putting everything in writing not only takes a lot of time, but is often difficult to understand - especially in complex work such as a dissertation. The oral interview is always the best choice.
Very important: Don't put too much pressure if your doctoral supervisor doesn't get in touch within a few days. Sometimes it takes professors a while to read your manuscript or formulate a satisfactory answer. If it's been taking a while, you can follow up with a generally worded email and carefully ask if your supervisor would have time for you and your questions.
How much support can I ask my doctoral supervisor for?
“Dear Prof. Dr. X, here are the first 100 pages of my dissertation. I look forward to your comments.” Is it too bold to ask your doctoral supervisor to read your entire work, correct it and send it back? Well, that depends on the course of study: In some areas, for example technical disciplines, it is common practice for supervisors to read their protégés' dissertations carefully in advance. Professors of other disciplines - especially those in which doctoral theses consist of several hundred pages - only focus on sub-areas, usually concrete analysis, and do not deal with introductory, theoretical treatises. It's best to ask your doctoral supervisor in advance what and how much you can send him and don't jump straight into the door.
Even if your work is not yet finished, you should pay attention to spelling and grammatical errors, as these are not good at any stage of your dissertation. Before you finally submit it, you should consult a professional service that offers academic editing for a dissertation . A doctoral thesis is too important and time-consuming to then receive deductions in the grade due to avoidable errors.
Always remain polite
Are you already sending the hundredth email to your doctoral supervisor, see him every week and even go to the cafeteria with him? Sounds nice and will certainly encourage cooperation between you. But don't forget that it is him and your examiner and a person of respect. So don’t switch from “you” to “you” overnight, or leave the title “Prof. Dr.” in the salutation. Professors are proud of their titles and are happy to be addressed with them. If your doctoral supervisor wants a more confidential relationship, then he will offer the “you” on his own initiative.
You can find out from us how to find your doctoral supervisor, how to deal with him and how much support you can ask him for.
