Are you looking for a supervisor to support your PhD application?

A faculty supervisor is a key source of support for PhD students. Supervisors help students achieve their academic goals, develop their research independence, and grow their professional networks. Connecting with faculty members and finding the right supervisor is an important part of the application process for the PhD program. Read the advice below to help you connect with faculty members in your area of interest.

Understand the Requirements

• First, make sure you understand the admission requirements for SPPH PhD applications. PhD applicants are required to have supervisor support for their applications.
• Learn more about the role of a faculty supervisor from Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (G+PS) here. Also review the information on who can be a supervisor or co-supervisor.

Focus your Search

• We strongly recommend that you use the Research Supervisor tool on UBC Graduate School website. Use keywords related to your research interests when using the search engine.
• Establish that your research interests align with the faculty member’s research interests. Familiarize yourself with their work, read their recent publications and past theses/dissertations that they supervised. Be certain that their research aligns with what you want to study.

Reach out

• When you find your desired supervisor, please use the Supervision Enquiry button on the right of the faculty profile in G+PS Website. This webform will provide the needed information for faculty members to get to you know better.
• If your desired faculty member does not have the Supervision Enquiry Form option or does not have a profile, you may send them an email directly. Please make sure to include your degree,  a short overview of your research background, and short paragraph explaining why you want to work with them.

Additional tips for making a good impression

• Do not send non-specific, mass emails to everyone in the department hoping for a match.
• Include a brief outline of your academic background, why you are interested in working with the faculty member, and what experience you could bring to the department. The supervision enquiry form guides you with targeted questions.
• Highlight your achievements and why you are a top student. Faculty members receive dozens of requests from prospective students.
• Demonstrate that you are familiar with their research.
• Convey the specific ways you are a good fit for the program.
• Convey the specific ways the program/lab/faculty member is a good fit for the research you are interested in/already conducting.