How to be your own best supervisor with Dr Vikki Burns: the PhD Life Coach

Do you get overwhelmed, procrastinate or worry that you’re not good enough? Tell yourself that you can’t get done all the things that you have to do but also feel like you’re not doing enough? Find yourself wondering what you’ve actually done this week? Don’t worry, it’s totally normal. It’s normal for PhD students and it’s normal for your supervisors too, so please don’t think you’re broken. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be like this. You can feel better AND get more done in less time.

In this two hour online workshop we will explore what it means to be your own supervisor and why developing this ability can help you succeed and enjoy your academic life. We’ll learn how to find the line between being too hard on yourself and being too easy on yourself, and instead make some guidelines that are compassionate, firm, ambitious and supportive. We’ll also learn how to develop the skill of self-supervision over time, so you can learn to be the best possible supervisor for you as you progress through your research degree.

The workshop is led by Dr Vikki Burns, an ex-Professor and certified life coach. She worked in academia for 20+ years, reaching full Professor, before starting her life coaching business in 2022. You can hear her talking about supporting yourself in academia on The PhD Life Coach podcast (search Spotify/Google etc). You might want to start with episode 1 which is an introduction to this workshop – how to be your own best supervisor.

This workshop will take place via Zoom. If you have not received the meeting link and passcode before the session starts, please email researchoffice@yorksj.ac.uk.