Supervisor Wellness

Supervisor wellbeing is important for the effectiveness of the supervision, student success, supervisor health and for job/role satisfaction. As a supervisor, you matter.

Being a graduate supervisor is a responsible, time consuming job with memorable highs grounded in pride of your students' accomplishments. While supervising graduate students can bring much enjoyment and scholarly enrichment, many supervisors report high stress associated with this role. Given the time and productivity pressures experienced by many faculty, strategies to help build resilience and foster wellbeing in supervisors are important.

Graduate students bring many strengths and capacities to their degree journey, with many additionally facing numerous challenges. While your student's well-being matters, your well-being is equally important. Taking steps to consider your own wellbeing can result in improved role satisfaction, both intellectually and personally.

Contributors to Supervisory Stress

Research into supervisory experiences demonstrates common sources of stress that may impact supervisor wellbeing. While intentional strategies may mitigate these stressors, it's important to understand that you are not alone in finding supervision both enriching and challenging. For example, Dr. Gina Wisker's research found that, for many supervisors student progress and supervisor wellbeing have a connection. Common sources of supervisory stress include, but are not limited to the following:

• Institutional time demands, and a lack of time for one's own scholarship
• Supervising outside of one's specialty area(s)
• Concerns related to student progression, writing quality, and perceived resistance to feedback
• Language differences
• Relationship struggles/conflict with student, supervisory committee members
• Expectations related to quality within one's discipline(s)
• Compassion fatigue, concerns related to student mental health and well-being
• Lack of information/support

Strategies for Supervisory Wellbeing

Now that you know the common sources of stress related to graduate supervision, we invite supervisors to take proactive steps to ameliorate the impact. Consider the following strategies adapted from Dr. Gina Wisker's work:

• Discuss communication styles and expectations early with students in an attempt to avoid difficulties.
• Consider your overall workload when considering requests for additional supervisions. Establish a healthy cap that prioritizes your wellbeing, your availability to your students, and your other responsibilities.
• Consider availing yourself of professional development opportunities related to supervision. Engaging in dialogue related to supervisory strategies can aid in your own role enactment's success. Supervisory wellbeing can be greatly enhanced when supervisors have a community themselves.
• Establish regularity in meetings, co-developing agenda items and a forward-moving plan of scaffolded sub-milestones
• Know, establish and maintain boundaries related to your role with students. Compassion fatigue is a key factor in supervisory wellbeing. Learn of and refer students to appropriate mental health, social or financial services or professionals when appropriate.
• Supervisory wellbeing is often related to student progress proactively with your students towards the achievement of small milestones sequentially. Give constructive and actionable feedback, encouraging your student to increasingly take more responsibility for their work and progress. Connect your students to regulations, other mentors and communities. Assist them to establish peer support networks.
• Take breaks aimed at positive work-life balance. Stick to the set hours you've established for responding to students. Encourage your students to do the same.
• Join a supervisory community where you can share experiences and strategies

Adapted from Wisker, G & Robinson, G 2016, 'Supervisor wellbeing and identity: Challenges and strategies', International
Journal for Researcher Development, vol. 7, no. 2.