Dr Sarah Olive receives UKCGE Research Supervisor Recognition

Posted on 12 November 2019

Dr Sarah Olive has become one of three University York academics, and one of 36 academics nationally, to participate in the UK Graduate Council for Higher Education’s pilot of the UK’s first Research Supervision Recognition Programme.

The programme and associated framework of ten criteria enable new and more experienced supervisors to reflect on their practice and if they wish, to apply for formal recognition through the scheme.

Sarah received her UKGCE Research Supervisor recognition in June after writing a 5000 word reflective portfolio, in which she identified and evidenced her good practice in terms of recruitment and selection of research students, good supervisory relationships with candidates, good supervisory relationships with co-supervisors (mainly Dr Clémentine Beauvais, in this case), supporting candidates’ research projects, encouraging candidates to write and giving appropriate feedback, keeping the research on track and monitoring progress, supporting candidates’ personal, professional and career development, supporting candidates through completion and final examination, supporting candidates to disseminate their research, and, finally, reflecting upon and enhancing her supervisory practice.

Elements of her supervisor practice that Sarah chose to highlight included recruitment activity using the departmental social media accounts (@deptedyork on Twitter and Facebook), designed to introduce prospective students to prospective supervisors and their research topics as well as to give some insight into PhD student life in the department; her support for students to apply for Associate Fellowship of the UK Higher Education Academy through the YLTA scheme (York Learning and Teaching Award); and the compilation and sharing of two resource lists aimed at PhD students and supervisors in the department. She also foregrounded the research cluster working on English in Education topics that she has been able to develop with Dr Clémentine Beauvais. This cluster involves work on Shakespeare in education, children’s literature and film, and the translation of children’s literature, with members meeting outside supervision for conferences, writing days or with students working as research assistants on staff projects and the FutureLearn online course ‘Pictures of Youth’ developed by Beauvais and Olive.

Anyone interested in applying for UKGCE Research Supervisor Recognition can access support through the University's dedicated seminars and mentoring.