The student-advisor relationship is a cornerstone of the doctoral and postdoctoral training experience at Stanford and offers opportunities for mutual learning and the potential for enduring professional ties. It also underpins the university’s research mission and helps shape the careers of both students and advisors.

“A strong advising relationship gives students someone who knows their goals, recognizes their strengths, and can help them navigate challenges and opportunities,” said Yvonne (Bonnie) Maldonado, vice provost for faculty advancement and the Taube Professor of Global Health and Infectious Diseases, and a professor of pediatrics (infectious diseases) and of epidemiology and population health in the School of Medicine. “It also benefits faculty: Advising helps them understand students’ experiences beyond the classroom. At its best, advising is a relationship built on trust that supports both student growth and faculty engagement.”

A series of workshops aimed at helping faculty develop and practice skills for effective graduate advising begins on Oct. 14. The lunchtime sessions, which cover topics such as setting expectations, navigating differences of opinion, and providing effective feedback, are coordinated by the Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education and Faculty Development and Engagement, a unit of the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Advancement (VPFA), and are presented by faculty members and the university ombuds. Now in its third year, the program offers two workshops each quarter; last year, 150 faculty members participated.

The workshops grew out of an internal review of advising at Stanford that was based on student survey data. Overall, students from all backgrounds, across Stanford’s seven schools, gave PhD advising high marks, said Chris Gonzalez Clarke, associate vice provost for graduate educational programs and faculty engagement.

“Yet we have high expectations for excellence in teaching and research, and wherever there is an opportunity to help improve the experiences for students, that’s what we want to do,” he said.

Graduate advisors wear many hats, and doing the job well requires more than expertise in their field. Successful advisors foster mutual understanding around roles and responsibilities while also communicating effectively with students, sometimes across cultural or generational differences.

“Advisor-student relationships play such a pivotal role in doctoral education, and can offer profound benefits, so we want to do our very best to get these on an excellent trajectory. In some cases, there can be gaps in expectations between faculty and students as they are finding their way. These workshops give faculty tools to help navigate these challenges and provide a supportive and productive learning environment,” said Ken Goodson, vice provost for graduate education and postdoctoral affairs and the Davies Family Provostial Professor in the School of Engineering.

“Faculty have to be a mentor and a supervisor and an advisor,” said Sofie R. Kleppner, associate vice provost and executive director for postdoctoral affairs. “Those roles are different. It’s quite a complex relationship.”

The faculty development programs teach skills that can help faculty members balance those roles and stay responsive to students’ needs.

“The landscape for trainees is constantly changing: There are different expectations around the job market today. AI is changing the face of every single field,” Maldonado said. “It is important for the faculty to understand what challenges the trainees may be facing, while still keeping to the tenets of how to do academic research.”

Although the workshops originated with a focus on STEM labs, the skills taught apply to advisor-advisee relationships in all fields, as well as to peer relationships between graduate students or between faculty colleagues.

Real-world examples

The goal of the workshops is to give faculty members tools they can use in their interactions with graduate students. Attendees work in groups to discuss how to apply the techniques to real-world situations, such as when an advisor and a student have different expectations about work or lab responsibilities, or when differences of opinion arise.

“Disagreement is natural and healthy and important, especially in an academic setting,” said Brenda Berlin, Stanford ombudsperson. “The training is about effective communication techniques when disagreements arise.”

The program complements work being done at the School of Medicine, where a pilot program called Team for Inclusive Laboratory Environments, or Stanford TILE, provides consultation and training services for creating environments where trainees can thrive.

“The School of Medicine provides a unique environment that encompasses a patient care mission in addition to research and education,” Maldonado said. “By providing both school- and university-based opportunities, students can gain a deeper understanding of the multiple paths available to them.”

Techniques that get results

In addition to teaching practical techniques, the interactive sessions point attendees to additional campus resources that offer support for challenging situations such as the university ombuds, TILE consultations, and the Graduate Life Office.

Past attendees have found that the sessions produce results.

For example, one faculty member used the active listening skills learned in the workshop to have a conversation with a graduate student who came to them distressed and considering leaving the program.

“The student reported that it was the first time someone had listened carefully to what they had to say – and they ended up staying in the program,” Rasberry said. “That doesn’t mean the problem disappeared, but it does mean that something happened for this student that hadn’t happened previously.”