Note: this document will be revised regularly. This is posted as of Feb 2019.
Credit to Sarita Yardi Schoenebeck, whose statement I borrowed from extensively.
Academic life is incredibly rewarding. One of the best parts of my job is mentoring students. This statement is primarily written for students who are interested in working with me and/or students who are currently working with me.
I welcome students from a wide range of backgrounds to work with me regardless of where you come from, what you look like, what your past experiences were etc. Diversity and equity are important to me. I seek individuals who (regardless of their current viewpoints and selves) are always willing to listen and evolve, to consider alternative viewpoints with good faith, and who above all else, endeavor to be kind in their interactions with others.
Signing up to work with a professor, especially as a PhD student or a paid Research Assistant, is a significant responsibility and commitment on both of our parts. I have high expectations for myself, and in turn, I have high expectations from the students who work with me.
In general, we should all be responsive, respectful, honest, timely, and hard-working. When those things aren’t happening, we should talk to figure out how we can get better. I will inevitably fail sometimes. I’m often busy, I get distracted, things fall through the cracks. You will fail sometimes too. But I value open communication. I will mention my expectations to you if you’re not meeting standards. You should also mention to me if you need me to support you in a different way. I try to learn and see our relationships as an ongoing learning process.
In general, I am committed to meet with students every week. I try not to take on too many students (typically between 4-10 students at any given time), to ensure that I can have some time to meet with everyone. If you’re working with me, you’re probably working on one of my projects. Expect that these projects may have separate group meetings, open work hours, or subgroup meetings.
New doctoral students are expected to meet with me weekly–some meetings will take a full hour or more, some will just be a few minutes. I value my time and yours and we should meet as often and as long as is productive, but not more than that. Senior students often transition to meeting every other week, or just on demand, after they’ve established their own research trajectory. Some graduate students work on small projects for a few hours a week and we may also meet less frequently.
Academic life is unlike many jobs because there is no 9-5 structure in place. This poses a few challenges that I expect my students to manage over time. First, it’s difficult to “shut off” and instead you can feel like you’re supposed to be working all the time. You should not work all the time, as it will take a toll on your physical and mental health. Take breaks, enjoy your life outside of work, pursue your interests, and develop your social relationships. You will see that I work hard and move fast, but I also take my weekends off (most of the time) to spend with my family, watch Netflix, cook, play my guitar, and take trips.
Second, you must work hard to complete your tasks, move our research projects forward, and reach critical deliverables and milestones. I do not micro-manage my students or tell them what to do at all times. My style is to set milestones and goals, and give you freedom and agency to reach them. That means sometimes you’ll be confused or things will be ambiguous. You have the freedom to figure things out. But you should also ALWAYS reach out to me and ask questions, all-the-time, and not leave things unsaid or undone. If you start to see me needing to micromanage you more and more, this is a sign that you’re not meeting your work responsibilities adequately.
You will need to learn how to focus, manage your time, and work more efficiently. These skills are difficult as a new scholar and student — but you should see yourself getting better and more efficient as you progress through your doctoral studies. If you do not see this progress, or are struggling with time management or being overwhelmed — don’t wait to talk to me about it and we can figure things out together. This is a critical part of our relationship.
The university (like most of society) has strong hierarchical structures. Professors are in positions of power over students and students are unfortunately not always able to speak up when something isn’t right. I welcome student input, especially if I or one of my colleagues has said or done something that makes a student feel uncomfortable. Harassment, intolerance, and other injustices are not okay. I also ask students to see me in “good faith”, that I will always try to do the right thing and help you. Though I can’t promise just outcomes, I will be available to listen to students and try to make their experiences better.
Are there things I’ve forgotten to address? Other things that would improve student experiences? Please do email me and let me know!