The Supervisory Team

All students at Durham have a supervisory team, normally two members of staff. Between them, the members of your supervisory team will have both subject expertise and expertise in supervising research students. They will guide and oversee your research, and support your personal development as an independent researcher.

The roles undertaken by individual members of your supervisory team will differ depending on your department, discipline, and the nature of your particular research project. However, there are some general principles which underpin supervisory teams at Durham:

• Usually you will have one main supervisor, who will have research expertise in your area of study, and who will be your first point of contact. Other supervisors will play a supporting role, by bringing additional or different subject expertise, or by providing more general support as you progress and develop as a researcher.

• If your research is highly interdisciplinary or brings together methodologies from different areas, supervision may take the form of a joint supervisory relationship where both supervisors have equal weight. One supervisor – the supervisor based in your ‘home’ department if your supervisors are from different disciplines – will be nominated as your main point of contact.

• In some cases you may find that one of your supervisors works outside the university but is considered the most appropriate person for the role, having a particular expertise. If this is the case, you will also have at least one internal supervisor at Durham.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does having more supervisors mean more support?

No. The supervisory team between them will provide support as outlined in the Responsibilities of the Supervisory Team. A larger supervisory team means that the supervisors will share their responsibilities between more people, but it will not increase the amount of support available.

Having more than one supervisor ensures that you will have input on your project and your development from more than one perspective.  However, there is a risk that a very large supervisory team can lead to conflicting advice or fragmented support. For these reasons, most supervisory teams are composed of two or three staff members.

How much contact should I have with my second supervisor?

It depends on the make-up of your supervisory team, your discipline and the nature of your project. If you have a very interdisciplinary project, or otherwise have joint supervisors, you may have equal or almost equal contact between the two staff members. If, however, you have one main supervisor and a secondary supervisor who is less of a subject specialist, or who is there to provide more generic support, you may have relatively limited contact with your secondary supervisor.

Because it can vary so much, the University does have specific expectations of the second (or third) supervisor – all students should have some contact with their second supervisor, but what matters is that the supervisory team between them provide the support outlined in the Responsibilities of the Supervisory Team.