The autumn term has whizzed past at a dizzying speed, and if you were a master’s student on any of the taught programmes in the UK, you would be getting a supervisor assigned to you for your chosen topic over the winter months. At IDS, things are done a little differently. More in line with how research is conducted at the doctoral level, IDS allows its master’s students the freedom to choose their own supervisor from the broad range of faculty and researchers working here.
In this blog post, I share some top tips for finding a dissertation supervisor while doing your master’s at IDS.
Contacting potential supervisors
As you explore your interests and sharpen your research questions over the winter break, you will have ample opportunity in the spring term to reach out to IDS researchers who are open to supervising. Visit the IDS website to look up the researchers working in different areas and send them a short email explaining how your proposal relates to their research while highlighting your own interests.
Request and book in-person office appointments if possible. It’s a unique opportunity to interact with IDS researchers, and I have personally found it very helpful in terms of gaining new perspectives on my interests, receiving author recommendations, and even just how to read and write better.
It’s also a great way to interact with non-teaching IDS researchers with whom you may not have the opportunity to meet otherwise. Do not be discouraged if you do not receive a reply straight away – IDS Research Fellows are active researchers and may be travelling for work. It’s perfectly alright if you have to wait a couple of weeks before sending a follow-up email.
Accessing resources
Another thing you can do during this period is check out the video interviews filmed with some IDS researchers to help students connect better with their potential supervisors. You will find supervisors sharing their current projects and research expertise, what they look for in potential mentees, and useful tips on managing time, structuring your thesis, and planning a deadline.
Once you have chosen a supervisor and have their agreement, remember to provide a courtesy acknowledgement about your choice to any other researchers you have been consulting with.
While this iterative process of finding your own supervisor certainly gives you a lot of freedom and agency, the process can be quite daunting for those not used to approaching people and who feel nervous about sending off an imperfect proposal.
While feeling nervous is normal, my experience at IDS has shown me how welcoming and encouraging the IDS community is. You can always turn to your friends and course-mates to bounce ideas off as you think through your research interests before sending your email. And even if your interests are nascent, it’s always worthwhile to send off that initial email and then discuss with the researcher what direction your research could take.
It’s alright if it ends up being a topic you no longer wish to pursue; these discussions will go a long way towards helping you firm up your thinking about what you eventually wish to pick. Watching the supervisors’ video interviews can also be a good way to get a glimpse of a researcher’s areas of interest and narrow down the list of people you eventually want to speak with.
Balancing priorities
Your dissertation will happen in the middle of the Great British Summer, which, in Brighton, brings the ever-present temptation of heading down to the sea, relaxing with friends, and watching the sunset at 10 pm. For some students, it also means searching for new accommodation, making travel plans, and applying for different work opportunities. In our case, it also meant heading to the pub to catch the latest FIFA World Cup game and cheering on underdog teams as they held established ones to goalless draws.
All this is to say – distractions abound! Make sure you have a plan that balances your priorities and pick a dissertation topic that you love enough to keep coming back to amidst everything else going on.
Caring for yourself
While there is a temptation to use every waking hour to work on your dissertation, it is really important to ensure you rest, take breaks and look after yourself. Sussex campus (where IDS is located) is based within the South Downs National Park, where you can take relaxing walks. Take a nap, phone a friend, sit on the beach, or just spend the day doing nothing. It’s important to know when to take a few steps back and just switch off the mind.
Wishing you all the very best!
Zarak Rais is currently pursuing an MA in Governance, Development and Public Policy at the Institute of Development Studies. Find out more about this degree: