The programme manager support academic activities, the acquisition of indirect and contract funding, financial management, reporting and communication. They act as a link with secretaries who carry out institute-wide duties.

Each programme group selects a PhD representative. They represent all PhD Candidates in the PhD Sounding Board with AISSR and GSSS Management. The representatives advise AISSR and GSSS Management on PhD-related issues and for this purpose they make inventories of such issues. They also facilitate meetings at programme group level between PhDs and intellectual community oriented activities like discussions of papers and Seminars/Lectures. They introduce new PhD and are the primary point of contact for PhD related issues.

There are four AISSR PhD mentors: Marieke Brand (CA), Nicky Pouw (GPIO) Floris Vermeulen (POL), and Don Weenink (SOC). The PhD mentors integrate the role of AISSR confidential counsellors and their new role as PhD mentor. AISSR PhD students may contact the PhD mentor of their department as well as any of the other PhD mentors.

PhD mentors:

• invite new PhD students to the department, together with the other relevant actors
• act as the first point of contact for PhD students with questions their supervisor or co-supervisor cannot answer
• offer emotional support to PhD students (in relation to work-related stress)
• can be consulted for advice regarding various issues such as:
  • brainstorming about your options in a given situation
  • interactions with your supervisor or supervision team
  • diversity and inclusivity  
  • working with a chronic disease or disability
  • problems combining tasks and roles (such as care tasks)
  • stress and other mental health problems
  • social insecurity
  • questions relating to UvA services (such as medical services and career support)
  • corona related questions regarding for example your planning
• can refer candidates to other UvA specialists or institutions/agencies when necessary
• can initiate a constructive discussion between the PhD student and their (co)-supervisor(s) in the case of a (impending) conflict with the (co-)supervisor(s)
• can be requested (by a PhD student and/or program group leader) to advise/ mediate in case of tensions/conflicts regarding HR related issues and participate in an Annual Human Research Meeting when necessary
• identify general issues that affect PhD students and relay these to the programme group leader(s)/department chair

Confidentiality

PhD mentors safeguard the confidentiality of the PhD students. The PhD in question shall be consulted prior to informing the program group leader or head of department about the issue. PhD mentors work according to the FMG ‘Working method for social insecurity FMG 2020’.