Grad15: Student and Mentor Communications in the Time of COVID

As we move into the second month of work-from-home mandates for many Arizona State University employees and students, the reality that uncertainty and disruption may have a longer-term impact on their academic careers is setting in for many graduate students. 

From travel restrictions to research access and shifting TA and RA duties, uncertainty is becoming a new norm. More than ever, it’s important that graduate students connect with their mentors, advisors and committees.

In this week’s Grad15 mini-webinar, we chatted with Max Underwood, President’s Professor with Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, a nationally-recognized educational leader and practitioner, about some of the most critical conversations graduate students should be having with their mentors and advisors right now.

In preparing for this session, we also reached out to graduate students, graduate advisors, and senior faculty and unit leaders across the university to check in on conversations and concerns that have emerged as top-of-mind as the pandemic continues.  

Major stressors for graduate students almost universally included mental bandwidth, concern over milestones and research, and staying the course academically, financially, and emotionally. And for many, knowing how to ask for help – or how to proactively take the lead in helping their mentors help them – is a struggle.

Student-mentor communication tips in the time of COVID-19

• If you haven’t done so already, check in with your mentors and advisors

Don’t just give a status update on your research or coursework. It’s important to remember that our current situation is impacting all of us in different ways, though there may be recurrent themes. This is the time to get real. Discuss your basic needs: childcare, financial instability or loss of work, concern for loved ones, worries about your physical or mental health,  suboptimal work-from-home conditions, or whatever keeps you up late into the night.

This might feel uncomfortable to some students (and faculty). It’s important, though, because the landscape of your current life will affect your ability to focus, adapt, and move forward in your work just as surely as lack of access to your lab or research materials. You and your faculty need to work together to develop productivity plans, and you can’t do that without first addressing the barriers to your productivity.

• Talk about expectations

Another critical conversation right now is this: talk about expectations, both yours and your faculty members’. Depending on your program and point within it, you may be minimally impacted by the shutdown of our university’s physical infrastructure – or, if travel restrictions remain or your funding is compromised, you could be faced with significant setbacks to the feasibility of your research.

Work with your faculty to problem-solve the ‘what-if’ scenarios, and make sure both you and your faculty are on the same page insofar as flexibility in timelines, expectations for productivity, and potential workarounds. If you haven’t done so, draw up a mentoring agreement or update your individual development plan to put your plans to paper. You can update as situations evolve, but doing so will ensure everybody is on the same page.

• Change gears and create a different type of to-do list

Speaking of individual development plans, this might be a good time to change gears and create a different type of ‘to-do’ list. As graduate students, professional development – article publication, conducting literature reviews, or practicing and perfecting research presentations – can sometimes be given short shrift in favor of the ever-looming milestones. Talk to your faculty about preparing for the job market, preparing for manuscript submissions, or building your teaching portfolio.  It is also helpful to recognize that mentors can be from your intended professional field and not just your faculty.  This may be a good time to develop and deepen those connections with career mentors, including alumni.  ASU has a mentor network where you can sign up and search for alumni in your career interest area: https://mentorship.asu.edu/.

The key right now is flexibility – both in what you do and how you approach it: consider the goals and desired outcomes, not the processes. For students getting ready to hit the job market, for instance, capitalize on the networking opportunities you have through your faculty, your mentors and their networks, or take the time to create an applied project or portfolio that speaks to your research and interests.

• One caveat: beware of overcommitting.

Your faculty might suggest it is a good time to work on your publication record or catch up on a few articles now or otherwise make the most of your time and situation. If your mental or physical bandwidth isn’t up for this now, talk about that – and this is where the real talk in our first tip comes in. Mastering ‘extra’ skills or ‘getting ahead’ should be a bonus, not an expectation.

• Stay Connected

Finally, stay connected. Communicate often. Communicate with your academic mentor, advisor, or research supervisor, but also with your faculty members, your committee, and your research teams. Communicate your anxieties, your needs, and your progress. All these things will be in a constant state of flux right now – for you and your faculty.

Join us for the next mini-webinar on Tuesday, April 28 at 11:00 a.m. on video interview etiquette with Amanda Athey and Melissa Werner.

Register for the free webinar here!