Working Well With your Dissertation Advisor

The relationship you have with your dissertationoften in advisory relationships. This may occur for
advisor is important, both in terms of your professionalseveral reasons. The first most common reason is
development, and in terms of how easy (or difficult)that the graduate student selects the advisor due to
the dissertation process is for you.the advisor's status, rather than his or her capacity to
A good advisor will support you to grow as a scholar,effectively advise. The second most common reason
while helping you navigate the dissertation process sois that the graduate student does not take ownership
you can complete easily. This doesn't mean a goodor direction of the dissertation process, and loses a lot
advisor accepts low quality work or bypasses theof time trying to gauge what would please the advisor
process. Instead, a good advisor helps you findrather than focusing on getting through the dissertation
solutions to your problems, while keeping in mind thatprocess quickly.
the whole point of the process is to help you get yourIf you are in the process of selecting your dissertation
degree.advisor, be sure to ask yourself questions like, "Do I like
While there may be not truly "bad" advisors (though I'mthis person?" "Do I respect him or her?" "Would I want
sure some of you would disagree), poor advisoryto be like him or her as a person?" Be sure to avoid
relationships are created when there is a difference infocusing solely on your advisor's accomplishments or
level of emotional match between advisor andachievements, because remember: those
advisee. In my experience, lack of emotional match isachievements belong to your advisor. None of that
the biggest reason dissertation advisory relationshipsglory will reflect onto you if you can't complete your
fail.dissertation and get your Ph.D.
Lack of emotional match shows up when you needIf you already have an advisor, take care to treat this
reassurance from your advisor, and s/he doesn'trelationship respectfully, and to be clear about your
return your phone calls. Lack of emotional matchrequests and questions. Most advisors will try to meet
shows up when your advisor expects to meet withyour advisory needs, if they just know what they are.
you, and you cancel at the last minute. Lack ofWorking well with your dissertation advisor is an
emotional match shows up when you feel stressedimportant aspect of a successful dissertation process.
and worried about what your advisor thinks of you,The more you and your advisor respect each other
and this fear and tension impacts your capacity toand work well together, the better and easier your
actually get your work done.dissertation process will be.
Unfortunately, lack of emotional match happens quite