To what extent the supervisor-student relationship will be a fruitful collaboration that positively influences the student’s performance as a PhD student depends on many factors. All people are unique and bring with them different views of the world as well as different tools to survive in the world, based on heritage, culture, gender, social background etc. Awareness of these differences is a first step towards a successful relationship between supervisor and student. In this study we will discuss the differences that supervisor and student might bring with them into a collaboration when it comes to 1) standards (and values), 2) view on communication and 3) view on responsibilities of student and supervisor and how these differences affect the chances for a successful supervisor – student relationship. This study will make an attempt to look closer at the three areas mentioned above, identify some of the pitfalls that supervisors and students risk of stepping into, and draw some conclusions about what preventative actions that can be taken to avoid these pitfalls when supervising a student with a different cultural background than oneself.
