The 7 types of PhD supervisor | Avoid one type at all costs!

In this video, I share with you the seven types of PhD supervisors that I have encountered throughout my time in academia. Which one have you got?
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▼ ▽ TIMESTAMPS
0:00 - micromanager
2:31 - ghost
4:40 - the slave driver
7:21 - the boaster
9:11 - rich and poor supervisors
11:39 - the supportive supervisor
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[@benholstder2533]

The narcissists. They hate themselves but can't deal with it, so they act grandiose and hate everyone else instead: the staff is always bad, students are trash, other academics "don't know what they're doing" and what's worse they criticize their own students to you. Numerous times I heard him call them stupid, incompetent etc. The way they create a toxic environment and pull you in it is extremely dangerous. Suicidal thoughts made me realize that this was not okay and I changed advisors ASAP.

[@TharosaRajaratne]

I love the fact that there are absolutely no introductions in your videos. Just straight to the goodies. Love it!

[@ademikunle]

Don’t stay with the slave driver. It’ll affect your life generally. Also, you’ll end up becoming a slave driver yourself because you’ll get used to it think every student has to go through the same treatment. Run boy run!

[@knuppelgast]

The PI of the lab where I did my MSc thesis was such a supportive guy. We had weekly meetings where he would show interest in everyone's research (also BSc and MSc students) and would frequently give advice. I remember quite a number of times where he would randomly email around papers that might be interesting, or would contact researcher from other universities for a plasmid (that I didn't even ask for) after quickly mentioning it to him during coffee breaks. I am now finished with my MSc thesis, but I still had contact with him about my future as a PhD student. I am not going to do it at the same university, but he still gave a lot of advice in general and helped me look at some PhD positions in detail (to see whether they would be good or not).

[@cea6770]

My supervisor was a mix. He was a very early career theoretical physicist and had no money, which was his justification for being a slave driver. After more than half his students left, and he got more grants, he tried being a micromanaging yet supportive supervisor. The ratio between micromanaging and supportive changed constantly depending on whether he was poor or rich at the time and just seemingly random mood swings. The trick of setting time constraints was helpful, but he would still ask for results before the set time, despite many of them being simulation results and the time estimates being very accurate and impossible to do quicker.

[@tukufelicitas644]

I am in this same situation right now, I am glad someone is talking about it because by the grace of God when I graduate from this program, I want to start writing about supervisors like this since most students go through it but nobody really talks about it. Thank you Andy

[@Natketty]

My previous supervisor was a weird compositon of all the flaws of the supervisor types ahahah Just a complete nightmare. Even regarding money, he had money from grants to put cameras all over the lab to spy on us all day, but made us re-use yellow tips! Edit: a comments below talking about the "narcisist" type perfectly describes him! Yes, this is a category in his own!

[@wellesmorgado4797]

I had a nice chap as my supervisor (R.I.P.), but he was mostly of the ghostly type, near retirement. He was really old and poor (no grant at the time). I think this might be more common among theoretical PhD's, and it taught me to do my work all by myself. Maybe a micromanager type would have me publish much more, but I think the human side also has some importance, and my supervisor was cool headed and helped me keep going in a good direction.

[@Afs913]

Well-done! More often than not we see supervisors that solely seek their own wishes by just crunching your true aspirations.

[@Tebsana]

I'm not sure PhD student but a research masters student, and I've been really fortunate to have a supportive supervisor. I want to do a PhD so this video is really helpful as it'll help me see red flags for potential PhD supervisors

[@adam.o8183]

I posted on an earlier video of yours about a PhD supervisor from Australia I had, who was clearly a Micromanger/Slave Driver. As a result, i swaped departments due to toxic enviroment they created. Just wanted to let you know, my current supervisor is a very nuturing and supporting supervisor, who is constantly on the prowl for oppertunities for me to publish. I actually had to moove countries for this to happen, but i'm glad I did. However, they have now put me on a career projectory pathway and started prepping me for a postdoc by making me a teaching assistant and i just realisesd something after watching your video. Due to my experinces, i have become 'the boaster' for the first years i am mentoring, as i thought this was a good thing lol 😵.

[@Stirdix]

I swapped advisors a lot, and have seen a fair bit. An undergrad, I started with a boaster (whom I left on generally good terms; I just didn't enjoy the research area), followed by the ghost (rarely saw him, did very little - very relaxing summer for an REU, worked maybe four hours a week, but not so good for my professional development). I wrote my senior thesis under someone who probably would have been a micromanager if he had fewer students, but he was a theoretical physicist managing like 20 students/post-docs (and operating relatively independently, unlike some experiments). The lack of time per student balanced out what would have been a micromanaging personality to make a person who was very detail-oriented in the research while not being overwhelming. Grad school, I moved from someone who was probably supportive (we didn't talk much before - due to non-research obligations - I basically ghosted him for a year, during which time he took on another student instead, since he hadn't heard from me) to a ghost (or something; not sure, I may just not have been pushy enough about staying in touch) to my current advisor. My current advisor is wonderfully supportive and also a really good match with me personally (in that we approach problems in similar but complementary ways and often want to go down the same rabbit holes).

[@ajreed3112]

I have a current advisor that is really supporters since I reached out to them when considering the PhD a year ago. The only thing I have noticed with them is that then tend to dominate the conversation during our meet-ups, where at most I talk for about 10 minutes total. I do not see this as a bad thing, rather trying to navigate how to express my thoughts in a real collaborative way.

[@digitaljobshop]

I had the ghost supervisor. He ended up losing his job and I had 2 years left without the lab there and my supervisor didn't answer any of my emails. Had to get the VP of institute involved. I made it out with 1 first author paper and barely graduated, took 7 years.

[@bhangrafan4480]

Excellent advice, informative perspective, all undergraduates should watch your channel before deciding on a PhD.

[@peterkelemen8300]

Just starting my postdoc tomorrow and it's a great video to see what kind of supervisor should I become. Great video!

[@thedantmtour-beststreetfoo4081]

Fabulous video!

[@dr.vanathiperumal8307]

Well said. Managed without weekends and social life. With little time to enjoy life.

[@wanyuhuang8802]

Great advise for dealing with micromanager. Thank you.

[@christophcrockett2153]

I truly appreciate all of your insights! Your videos have given me much more confidence for my upcoming program. Each of your videos very much feels like sitting down with a knowledgeable friend who is going to give it to you politely, but straightforwardly. Your videos have helped me to develop a firm sense of many particulars.

[@lluvik2450]

i just always find it so incredible to witness how much they know, they seem like an infinite pool of knowledge

[@bhangrafan4480]

As for the slave dirver, I think you have hit upon the latent threat of walking out causing them to reassess their management style in case they lose a pair of hands ("Man overboard skipper!").

[@anldemeli4560]

Some of them are indifferent, they don't care your work, they don't reply your emails or it needs 2-3 reminder mails, in a phone call they say "oh, sorry, I'm super busy, I'm swamped etc., but I will turn you in 2 weeks" I wait 2-3-4 weeks, again send messages, "oh sorry, let's do this".

[@guybeauregard]

Looking back, I'd say my supervisor was an enthusiast, supportive all the way--and also able to deliver tough love when needed. I learned a ton in the process, not just about the research field, but about how to do this job with enthusiasm. Writing the dissertation was at times a miserable experience, but that was not because of the supervisor!

[@kokoro324]

I left PhD due to mental breakdown caused by a micromanager. Can’t say I regret it 😅.

[@isky92]

I can totally relate concerning the "ghost" supervisor :)

[@ennemuk]

Avoid the ones that say they do "hands off supervision"... An excuse for neglecting to do their actual job as supervisors..

[@_elenaio_]

Thank you for these videos Andy! Could you make a video about applying to multiple PhD programmes within the same University and School/Faculty, but with different supervisors, please? I'm in this situation and I'm not sure what to do.

[@nothing5779]

Can u tell us more about the issues?

[@digitalmadrasa4219]

Or sometimes you have a supervisor who works in two and more departments

[@bhangrafan4480]

You are in real trouble when the 'ghost' is your only supervisor. This does happen, usually with those very political types who are angling for head of department, or belong to various outside bodies and like to spend most time working on their 'profile'. With the ghost it usually falls to a post-doc or research associate who is also interested in the same project to do a lot of the supervisor's job for them.

[@quillheart877]

I’ve been lucky so far with my supervisors. Two supportive ones and one ghost

[@munsa8]

In my case its a mixture of a micromanager as well as slave driver. I feel suffocated. He always wants to know what im doing, where I am every hour. As an agreeable person, I avoid conflict but i just feel like im losing my mind. The bad thing is he works with his wife in the lab, so it pushes the toxic stuff further. I've got the silent treatment, being ignored, and saw favoritism and was treated harshly. Yet when i approached the head of the department, he claimed the issues can be resolved and I should give this lab another chance. As a result, everyone was nice for a few days, only to turn back to gaslighting me and giving me cold shoulder yet again.

[@HereWeGoAgainses]

I think the worst type is the opposite of the supportive type. I've had a supervisor who encouraged me to drop out before i had even started the phd officially!! I had just applied for the grant. I reported her to the head of the PhD programme and he encouraged me to drop her as a supervisor. You knew it's REALLY bad when that happens!

[@smitanarjary]

My supervisor during my Masters was a Ghost Supervisor ... I was frustrated while doing my thesis and which now have left me unsatisfied with my Thesis results and now kind of scared and confused of how to identify these types of supervisors for PHD

[@Anu4343]

I am an advisor and I micromanage on Mondays and ghost myself on the other days. I slave drive when I’m close to getting promoted and I am a poor professor housed in a rich university. I boost to coverup my insecurity and what helps me get through are my super supportive students.

[@rakshithm1257]

there is a place for you in hell!

[@rakshithm1257]

@@Anu4343 sorry,you're on your own pal : )

[@andreabknight]

I was so lucky- I had a supportive supervisor 🙂

[@Deepak.Singh.27]

Unfortunately I worked with a combination of micro manager and slave driver. It badly affected my mental and physical health. Then a "boaster" advised ( or pushed 😅) me to leave the slave driver - the decision I ever took.

[@Yummyumchan]

What if mine is all at the same time, depending on his mood? 😢

[@bhangrafan4480]

I was trying to think who your videos remind me of. It suddenly came to me, Russell Brand (?!)

[@investogramma]

I had a really supportive supervisor, but just get kicked anyway

[@abbasnosrat8898]

I have a supportive/poor supervisor as my main and a ghost as the second😅 I'm a master's student btw

[@crabcrab2024]

You risk becoming a “boaster” ! 😁

[@Afrika_61]

Lol😂 you have to write a comedy sketch show for this…

[@scatmanlord9484]

There is also an 8th type, the "baby supervisor" 👶🏻, who wants everyone to solve everything for him or her. This supervisor is also known as the "political advisor" because the only ability he or she has left is being good at doing politics and "pretending" to be good at his/her job.

[@sciencefliestothemoon2305]

The one that thinks he is hot stuff, games the publication system, doesn't like negativ results and at the same time has only the bare minimum of stats knowledge and is figure blind. Then threatening not to agree to publish the data, because it doesn't fit his or her narrative.

[@kajukaustabh]

I've got the ghost

[@samhitak6216]

Basically all these supervisors are witches masquerading as sweet candies

[@meierlinksd4996]

Okay, just a couple of notes and then a comment. Yes, with both the "Slave Driver" and the "Micro Manager", they do have a slight similarity in that they both push you, but each in a different way. The Micro, at heart, might be seen as a real life White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland. "I am dreadfully late!" As you mentioned, this supervisor might have his or her hair on fire from administration. However, what the Micro monopolizes is your Time. Even when you have to meet with a different supervisor or other professor, they want you on their schedule, not yours. The Slave Driver, on the other hand is not monopolizing your Time. No. They are monopolizing your Effort. It is also a manner of control. This person might be the type of person that you mentioned in one of your other videos. That is, this person will not let you go, even if you reached the ABD state. He or she wants you back in the lab, doing his or her work for him or her. If they get their "teeth" into you, they do not want to let you go, only to then find your "replacement". Hence why that supervisor may be doubly toxic. Now, as far as Rich Man/Poor Man, there is one thought I have. There is one type of person that can bypass all of the flip-flopping and remain as Rich Man Supervisor. In a word, Prestige. The way I would label this type of professor is the Alan Dershowitz. This professor has made news (whether good or bad) in general, so more people are familiar with him. In physics, this person might be someone like Michio Kaku. Because this supervisor has a type of "Grand Prestige", this person can usually get any grant or other revenue all he or she wants. Again, it usually takes time and perhaps a famous book, trial, experiment, or theory in order for this to happen. Then, the university won't worry about these people, because their prestige attracts both an unlimited supply of students, but also donors. Hope that helps. And yes, appreciate all that you do.

[@crabcrab2024]

I hate micromanagers!

[@user-zb3op6vz3c]

Supervisor who keeps on saying "Can you do this?" , "Can you make this?" a clear sign that he or she is a fraudster or charlatan or an imposter academia. Zero intellectual contributions from this type of supervisor. This supervisor is poised to steal your research work and ideas or intellectual property by claiming your work as his or her work.

[@bhangrafan4480]

Were those micromanagers.... women by any chance? (oops!)

[@JohnVKaravitis]

What animal is that, that died on your chin?