{"id":5944,"date":"2017-09-12T12:22:30","date_gmt":"2017-09-12T00:22:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/?p=5944"},"modified":"2017-09-12T12:25:09","modified_gmt":"2017-09-12T00:25:09","slug":"supervisors-endorsements-getting-onto-a-writing-retreat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/?p=5944","title":{"rendered":"Supervisor\u2019s Endorsements: Getting onto a Writing Retreat"},"content":{"rendered":"

Supervisors write a lot<\/em> of references. Whenever you apply for a job, a scholarship, an amendment to enrolment, conference funding, or any of a million other things, your supervisors’ comments can make a big difference to the outcome.<\/p>\n

So does your whole career depend on your supervisor’s opinion?<\/p>\n

While a supportive supervisor (and a good relationship) will certainly help open doors, there’s a surprising number of occasions when supervisors’ references need to do a lot more than just say: my student is great! <\/em>In fact, a supervisor’s endorsement may have nothing to do with your quality or skill as a research student. Depending on what you’re applying for, your supervisor might need to comment on your circumstances, your stage of research, or the nature of your project.<\/p>\n

Take, for example, the process of applying to a writing retreat. Here at the Graduate Research School, we receive lots of applications for our writing retreats, and the vast majority contain an endorsement from the applicant’s supervisors. (Endorsements are not a requirement, but they help.)<\/p>\n

Supervisors’ endorsements for writing retreats tend to follow a few common themes. Broadly, they are:<\/p>\n