SUPERVISION
AS REFLECTIVE
LEADERSHIP PRACTICE

Why join this workshop?

Many supervisors want their PhD candidates to become independent, confident and responsible researchers — yet fostering that independence is one of the most challenging parts of supervision, requiring enough guidance and structure for candidates to succeed while gradually handing over ownership.

This half-day follow-up workshop invites supervisors to reflect on how their own supervisory practice shapes their candidates’ development, and leave with practical approaches for strengthening ownership and clarity in their own research groups.

What you learn?

Participants learn how to

• reflect on how their own supervisory practice shapes candidate independence and responsibility
• support the transition from dependency to ownership
• provide appropriate guidance and structure while encouraging increasing ownership
• create clear expectations and supportive structures without micromanaging
• identify practical approaches to apply directly in their own research group

What participants take away

Participants leave the workshop with three concrete outputs:

• A clearer view of their own supervisory style — and where it may be holding candidates back
• Practical structures for handing over ownership — without losing helpful guidance
• Approaches they can apply immediately — in their own research group

Independence isn’t handed over all at once — it’s built through the structures you put in place.

Who benefits most?

Academic staff who supervise PhD students and want practical, reflective ways to help their candidates grow into confident, independent researchers — delivered live online as a group booking for your institution.

What topics do we cover?

• Part 1 – From Dependency to Ownership. Reflect on how to recognise and support the shift as candidates take on more responsibility for their research.
• Part 2 – Structure Without Micromanaging. Set clear expectations and supportive structures that give candidates room to grow.

How is it taught?

This half-day workshop is taught live via video-conferencing, combining targeted input from the instructor with guided reflection and peer exchange among supervisors.