Navigating the relationship between the supervisor and the PhD student

Abstract

The relationship between the PhD students and their supervisors seems to have been covered many times by the peer-reviewed literature. However, most of the literature only reflects on this relationship from the perspective of the supervisor. Very little has been done to explore what this relationship looks like from the perspective of the PhD students. The students’ point of view may be found in informal sources such as blogs and other websites. These sites could give valuable information and a better understanding of the PhD students’ perspective, which could possibly improve the communication and prevent some of the conflicts that may otherwise emerge.