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Supervision Communities of Practice

Communities of practice are groups of people who share a concern or passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly — Etienne and Beverly Wenger-Trayner, 2015.

A Community of Practice (COP) is formed when a group of people come together to achieve shared goals or work towards a common interest by mobilizing the expertise and shared experiences of the group. Mainly, the emphasis is on sharing best practices and developing new knowledge related to the common interest of the group to achieve both individual and group goals. Continuous and consistent interaction is key to the success of the COP. 

The York University Community of Practice on Graduate Supervision

Given FGS’ goal, through the work of the Supervision Support Hub, to support supervisor well-being and share supervisory best practices, FGS commenced the establishment of a York University CoP, in partnership with Faculty Affairs, hosting our first Meet Up on May 8th, 2025. Titled, "Thriving through Peer Discussion" reflecting scholarship equating peer discussion with supervisory wellbeing, we welcomed several faculty members who supervise across multiple disciplines and Faculties.  Learning about how to support students to progress through their milestones, to reflecting upon one’s own self-imposed cap to avoid burnout and perceived inadequacy, our first meeting demonstrated that York supervisors have experiences worthy of sharing.

Watch for updates related to subsequent York CoP meetings to be advertised via FGS and Faculty Affairs. Our York Community of Practice will feature opening presentations on key subjects indicated in our 2024 Graduate Supervisory Survey, followed by peer dialogue. 

If you, or anyone you know, is interested in more information about the York University Community of Practice on Graduate Supervision, contact Tracy Bhoola, Manager of the Graduate Supervision Support Hub or the Associate Dean, Academic in FGS.

Thinking with: Supervisory Writing Feedback as an Act of Care 

A Graduate Faculty Meet Up

The Faculty of Graduate Studies’ Graduate Supervision Support Hub, in collaboration with Faculty Affairs is pleased to host our second Graduate Faculty Meet Up.

For this meeting of our YorkU Graduate Supervision Community of Practice, learned Professors Marlene Bernholtz and Dunja Baus from the York University Writing Centre will facilitate practical conversation regarding the supervisor’s role in growing graduate student writing skills. Starting with your own reflections on your supervisory - and graduate student - experiences with dissertation/major paper writing, Marlene and Dunja will offer practical strategies and techniques for guiding the writing process by helping students establish productive writing practices, offering constructive feedback, and creating the kind of reciprocal relationship that encourages graduate student development and professionalization. Be the first to access the FGS Graduate Supervision Support Hub’s new resource for supervisors aimed at assisting your work supporting graduate student writing.

Marlene Bernholtz and Dunja Baus are professors in the Writing Department, where they teach in both the Professional Writing Program and in the York University Writing Centre. Their interests include integrating academic literacies into discipline-specific programs through a read-to-write pedagogical model, multilingual writing pedagogies, and the affective impact of institutional space on student learning.

Developing Intercultural Competencies in Graduate Supervision

Online Webinar

The Graduate Supervision Support Hub at York University is pleased to welcome Dr. Erica Amery for a webinar designed for graduate supervisors. Supervising postgraduate students today means engaging with diversity in many forms — including culture, language, gender, ability, and academic background. This online webinar will introduce key concepts and strategies for recognizing how diverse perspectives shape communication, feedback and supervisory relationships and draw on international case examples offering supervisors practical approaches to foster equity, inclusion and success across differences in postgraduate research

Canadian Graduate Student's Views on Ideal Supervision

Online Webinar

The Graduate Supervision Support Hub at York University, in collaboration with the National Community of Practice on Graduate Supervision is pleased to welcome graduate supervision scholar Dr. Michele Jacobsen to share findings from a Canadian study outlining graduate students’ views on ‘ideal supervision’. Documenting the views of students from diverse disciplines, this webinar will outline the qualities and characteristics of ‘ideal supervision’ and how supervisors can strive for these qualities while attending to self-care, balance, authenticity and wellbeing.  

In this national webinar we will discuss findings related to:

  • Personal Characteristics
  • Teaching/mentoring
  • Relational Trust
  • Professional Support
  • Academic Support
  • Supervisory wellbeing while striving for strong role enactment
  • Date: Monday, December 1st, 2025                           
  • Time: 12:00pm–1:15pm (EST)
  • Location: Online via Zoom                     
Logo for the National Community of Practice on Graduate Supervision for the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies (CAGS). The logo has three graduation caps in gray, blue and red and the font is black and there is a CAGS association logo centred at the bottom left side.

What is the Canadian Community of Practice on Graduate Supervision?

Canada's National Community of Practice on Graduate Supervision, supported by the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies, aims to bring together individuals with a shared commitment to advancing supervision practices and supervisor wellness through collaborative learning. Visit the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies (CAGS) and join the mailing list.

The Goals

  • To foster conversations and sharing of effective practices among supervisors across Canada
  • To foster strong research cultures that enable supervisors and students to flourish
  • To co-create and share a national set of principles on supervision
  • To co-create rich, open access resources & materials for supervisors
  • To support an annual online conference on supervision

Co-Chairs

Dr. Cheryl van Daalen-Smith, RN Associate Dean (Academic), Faculty of Graduate Studies, York University

Dr. Michele Jacobsen Professor, Werklund School of Education, and Associate Dean, Supervision and Mentoring, University of Calgary

Upcoming Events for 2025/26

Introducing the Online Speakers Series on Supervision

Supervisory Best Practices: Mobilizing Students to Write

Francophone colleagues Drs. Philip Jackson and Geneviève Belleville will present and they authored “Make'em Write! The No-Mess Way to Extract a Dissertation from a Grad Student's Brain”.

Investing in Supervisor Wellness and Wellbeing

This event will feature three distinguished speakers whose research and leadership have contributed greatly to reimagining support for graduate supervision in Canada: Dr. Lorelli Nowell, Dr. Elena Bennett and Dr. Stephen Cheung. Together, they will explore emerging practices, challenges, and strategies that center wellbeing as a core component of effective supervision.

  • Date: Friday, November 14, 2025
  • Time: 1:00PM-2:30PM EST
  • Read the Digital Swag Bag of resources from the webinar (pdf in English and French).

Spotlight on Supervision and the Power of Feedback & Feedforward

This webinar will welcome Dr. Anne MacLennan, Dr. Nancy Walton and Dr. Diana Brecher who will explore how supervisors can move beyond error-focused critique to offer feedback that is substantive, growth-oriented, and grounded in mentorship.

Navigating Conflict and Power in Graduate Supervision Relationships

Supervising and Supporting Neurodivergent Students

Supervision and Student Mental Health & Wellbeing

Past Events

  • The first CoP meeting was held on January 31, 2025, in which we outlined some goals of the National CoP, explored common challenges in supervision, and featured a Best Practice Spotlight and Discussion with Dr. Jeff Casello. View Dr. Casello's presentation slides (.pdf) and the bilingual digital swag bag (.pdf).
  • The second meeting was held March 28, 2025 , in which we discussed Learning to Supervise - On the Job. The online conversation invited participants to reflect on their own doctoral supervision experiences and explore how those experiences influence their current supervisory practices. Through discussion and shared insights, we examined how supervision pedagogy develops over time, the ways mentors shape our approaches, and the resources that help us continue to grow as effective supervisors. 
  • At end of June 2025, the National Community of Practice on Graduate Supervision had hosted 3 national meetings, with upwards of 400 registrants and 200 participants for each. It was clear that supervisors want to share experiences and hear about strategies that work. 
  • The final CoP meeting for the academic year was Friday, June 20, 2025.