Uppsala University

What we did in the project

UU conducted two study circles with four sessions each running from October 2014 until April 2014: Group 1 was held with eight participants (five women, three men) from five different departments and with different levels of supervisory experience. Group 2 was held with four participants (three women, one man), all from the department of organism biology. The participants in group 1 signed up for the study circles after an invitation to all PhD supervisors at the Faculty; the participants of group 2 attended the study circle after an invitation sent by the head of the department addressing all supervisors at the department. In Sweden, information on Swedish PhD students´ study experiences is available through a range of local as well as national student surveys; these results, as well as research on gender in academia and on PhD supervision in general, formed the knowledge base for the study circles, which created a space for collegial reflection and learning.

In addition to the study circle, the department of organism biology decided to conduct a workshop on “Effective PhD supervision” (including a gender and diversity perspective) for all supervisors and all PhD students at the department.  This two hour workshop was organized in Autumn 2015.

Finally, a workshop on “Equal opportunity aware PhD supervision” was offered in November 2015 as a part of the Faculty´s overall action plan for equal opportunities. Ten students attended the workshop and students´ feedback was used as input to the FESTA guidelines.

What we learned in the project

Since it would be impossible in the context of Uppsala University to make the study circle mandatory for supervisors, one weakness with the study circle concept is that it reached supervisors who already possessed a strong interest in supervision and gender and diversity issues. At the same time, the study circle offered a unique opportunity for participants to reflect together and share experiences. That was highly valued because it is otherwise not really a part of the culture (yet). Moreover, at the department for organism biology, the study circle led to two workshops (one for supervisors, one for students) which was attended by (almost) all supervisors and students; this might be a point of departure for a better supervision culture (including gender aspects) at the department.

Through cooperation with FESTA partners, we have learned that the context for PhD education and supervision is very different in different countries. Moreover, we have realized that our concepts and language are highly influenced by a pedagogical discourse used within the context of educational development in our University. The fact that partners are working in other contexts and use other discourses has implied a variety of perspectives which has enriched our understanding.