The Ministerial Order on the PhD degree programme says:

§ 1. The PhD degree programme is a research programme which at an international level qualifies the PhD student to independently undertake research, development and teaching assignments in the private and public sectors, for which a broad knowledge of research in required. Stk. 2. The PhD degree programme is mainly implemented by undertaking research under supervision.

[Translate to English:] Lis Wollesen de Jonge

11 November 2022 by Lis Wollesen de Jonge

This means that the student must balance in a field where he/she is in the schism of being both independent and under supervision.

Ideally, as a student you should go through a process where you move from being “dependent” over being “independent” to finally becoming “interdependent”.

I think that it is important that both supervisors and students are aware of this movement through the PhD process as the form of supervision and the relationship between the two parties change over time. This is a subject which we continuously have taken up in the PhD programme committee, and on 23 January 2023 a workshop will be held in Foulum for all PhD students and supervisors at which “Independence in a modern PhD” is on the programme. The same workshop will be arranged for students and supervisors in Flakkebjerg in a collaboration with the PhD programme under Environmental Sciences (the date will be announced at a later date).

Through short presentations and informal discussions, the workshop will provide new perspectives regarding i) how we achieve independence in a modern PhD degree programme, ii) how students and supervisors work together most effectively on achieving that goal, and iii) how we best protect against uncertainty, the impostor phenomenon and lack of well-being/job satisfaction.

We would like to appeal to both students and supervisors to participate in the workshop.

AU elections

I would also like to take this opportunity to remind everyone of the election at AU. This year PhD student members will be elected to the GSTS PhD committee. PhD student Anne-Cathrine Danielsen is running as AGRO’s candidate; therefore, please remember to do your duty and vote for Anne-Cathrine. In AGRO’s own PhD committee the new student representatives in 2023 are: Monica Quevedo from SYSTEM, Esben Øster Mortensen from KLIMA, Anne-Cathrine Danielsen from JORD and Jovana Janjic from CGB. We look forward to welcoming them to the committee. I would also like to say “Thank you” to the students who have served on the committee in 2022 – you have done an important and huge job!