Research supervisors should be aware of a number of policy initiatives and changes with regard to research degree programmes; these are reflected in the following key documents/institutional changes:
- Responsibilities of the supervisory team and the PGR are of particular interest
- See also Communication of Changes Note to Faculties regarding revisions to the Higher Degree Regulations and related documents circulated July 2013
- A new overarching statement from all Research Councils - placing a strong emphasis on researcher development
- Research Organisations should use the Researcher Development Statement to underpin their professional development programmes for students.' (RCUK Statement of Expectations)'
- Students are expected to develop the higher-level capabilities outlined in the Researcher Development Statement' (RCUK Statement of Expectations)
- UoS institutional on-line support for PGR supervision and progress monitoring - PGRs and supervisors both have responsibilities within the 'workflow'
Taken together, these documents and requirements indicate that doctoral researchers need access to a greater range of support and experiences during their candidature than has been traditionally expected, including:
- Awareness of ethical considerations at all stages of the research process, including legal compliance but extending to wider professional integrity/PGRs as practitioners
- Equality and diversity - how do they conduct themselves in a diverse and global environment?
- Collaboration with other disciplines, industry, and other external partners/'publics'
- Mentoring - by someone other than the supervisor - and acting as a mentor to students and/or fellow cohorts such as international researchers
- Professional development (employability/career planning)