Using co-creation to facilitate PhD supervisory relationships

The supervisory relationship is widely understood as central to the experience, success and wellbeing of PhD students. However, complex issues and struggles are frequently reported as associated with it. Although an extensive literature recommends useful, practical changes to improve supervisory relationships, current approaches generally focus on ameliorating difficulties within existing supervisory paradigms, rather than challenging or offering fresh perspectives on them. The co-creative approach has been successful in higher education, mostly at undergraduate level and in small-scale settings, providing opportunities for collaborative exploration of issues and development of solutions. Building on this, we explore the use of co-creation within the post-graduate research setting, bringing together stakeholders to unpack and address common issues experienced within the supervisory relationship. In order to assess the value of co-creation in tackling supervisory issues, we conducted a three-staged study involving PhD students and supervisors. Through qualitative and quantitative data (interviews and surveys), we identified specific issues linked to the supervisory experience. We subsequently hosted small- and large-scale co-creative workshops to encourage PhD students and supervisors to collaborate for addressing these identified issues. As a result, this paper argues that co-creation is an effective tool for enhancing the supervisory relationship and for co-solving problems associated with it. In addition, we present qualitative evidence supporting our novel use of the methodology and of the process of co-creation itself in addressing key identified issues within the supervisory relationship including isolation, a desire for community and improving communication skills