1. Values & Culture
We have three values. I wasn’t always a fan of lab values, but the more I’ve worked in larger organizations, the more I’ve seen how useful it is to pick a few on purpose. We could list dozens. Choosing three gives us focus.
High-quality work. A good way to think about quality is usefulness. Doing genuinely useful work is really hard, and that’s what we should strive for.
Balance. This runs along several axes. It means learning to say yes and no to things and setting boundaries, including with me. It also means balancing hard science with how that science exists in the world. How do we communicate our results? For software especially, how do we make sure it’s useful and used? There’s a lot of great software out there that nobody uses.
Collaboration. Science and engineering are human practices as much as quantitative ones. How effective our work is depends on how it engages with people. So we’re social, we’re generous with credit, and we’re fair. Being generous takes intent, and you often have to create those opportunities by inviting other people to work with you.
University is a unique time. You’re surrounded by passionate people, and that rarely happens again in the same way. Make the most of it.
Every student is different, so treat this handbook as a set of defaults we can adapt together.
If there’s a problem #
Disagreements and friction are a normal part of any working relationship, and I want to hear about them. If you can, start with me directly. If that doesn’t feel possible, or doesn’t resolve things, here are other options, roughly from informal to formal:
- Your supervisory committee members
- ChemE’s Associate Chair, Graduate Studies
- SGS Centre for Graduate Mentorship & Supervision (CGMS): confidential support, facilitated conversations, and mediation
- UTGSU, the graduate students’ union: confidential advocacy
- The University Ombudsperson: for concerns not resolved through regular channels
You never need my permission to use any of these, and using them won’t change how I treat you. SGS also has a guide to conflict resolution in graduate studies.