According to the BOS.QT regulations, regular BOS.QT students work on research for their dissertation, supervised by a tandem of BOS.QT faculty members, a supervisor, and a mentor. The supervisor is responsible for all scientific, administrative, and technical issues of the doctoral student. The mentor should have a supplementary scientific and content-related advisory role and give advice regarding career perspectives and inspirations from another perspective. Doctoral student, supervisor, and mentor are encouraged to sign a supervision agreement as recommended by the respective university of the supervisor (Promotionsvereinbarung/Betreuungsvereinbarung).
Choosing a Mentor
With your BOS.QT admission you choose a mentor from the BOS.QT Faculty in consultation with your supervisor. As a first step, you contact the mentor and ask her or him to agree to be your mentor. After the consent, you inform the BOS.QT about the name and consent of the mentor. Once the mentor has agreed you contact him to arrange your first appointment. In preparation for the appointment, you think about what you want to speak about and what you expect from the mentee/ mentor relationship. Part of the first meeting should be also a decision about the frequency of your meetings (e.g. yearly/ as required) and to schedule a date for the next meeting.
Supervision agreement
The following templates are suggested for a supervision agreement as provided by the Berlin universities:
Personal Development Plan (PDP)
A personal development plan might be developed by the doctoral candidate itself in cooperation with the supervisor to strengthen the focus of the thesis work.