Finding a Supervisor for Graduate Studies in Education

Your supervisor is a crucial part of your research and your graduate experience at Lakehead; often, your supervisor will be your best resource during your studies. Your supervisor, both at the MEd and PhD level, will help to guide you through your program and will provide you with important feedback during your studies. Supervisors also support your academic growth by acting as a mentor; supervisors will often assist you in scholarly activities beyond your thesis or dissertation such as providing you with advice on publishing your work and presenting at conferences.

Finding a Supervisor

If you are working towards your PhD in Educational Studies or you choose to complete a thesis or portfolio as part of your MEd, you must find a faculty member who is willing to serve as your supervisor. Potential supervisors must be actively engaged in research and have relevant expertise in your area of interest, as well as be willing to supervise your research. When looking for a potential supervisor, you may want to use the following strategies:

  • Look online: Use our Faculty and Staff page to learn about each faculty member's area of interest as well as the completed theses, portfolios, or dissertations that they have supervised
  • Speak with the Department Chair: The Departmental Chair of Graduate Studies and Research in Education (as listed on the Faculty and Staff page) can help to point you in the right direction. If you have a research idea, the Chair can direct you to a faculty member who may be interested in working with you and supervising your research
  • Speak with other students: Your classmates often have a good understanding of a faculty member's research interests and might able to suggest a suitable supervisor for your research

Once you find a Supervisor

Once you have found a supervisor for your thesis, portfolio, or dissertation, both you and your supervisor will need to complete the following before you begin to perform research or develop your work:

  1. Develop a plan on how and when to communicate; having a clear idea of how to communicate will benefit both you and your supervisor

  2. Your supervisor will help guide you with what is required to complete your thesis, portfolio, or dissertation and will also advise you on how to prepare the preparatory work such as your comprehensive portfolio (PhD students) and proposal (MEd and PhD students)

  3. Your supervisor will then contact potential committee members to determine if they are available and willing to be part of your thesis, portfolio, or dissertation committee

Note: For an overview of graduate student and supervisory responsibilities, please see Lakehead University's Principles for Graduate Supervision.