Finding a Faculty Sponsor can be the most difficult part of the Student Directed Seminars application process, but it doesn’t have to be. The most important thing to remember?
Start early.Approaching a Potential Faculty Sponsor
There is a Faculty member I have taken a class with that I think would be a great sponsor for my Seminar!
Great! Don’t be afraid to approach them about your request. You can send them a polite email, or even better, ask them in-person in their office hours. This is an excellent option since they already know you and are familiar with you.
Things to Remember:
- Make sure you have a good idea of what your seminar will look like (i.e. content, structure, etc.), so that you can share the details with them.
- Direct them to the website, and more specifically, the FAQ for Faculty and Staff page to ensure they have a good understanding of what the role would entail.
- If they agree to be your Faculty Sponsor, make sure they fill out the Faculty Sponsor form (found in the application).
- Your Faculty Sponsor should be a tenured or tenure-stream Faculty member. SDS sponsorship requires additional work which may not be recognized by colleagues with other appointments. However, with the support and approval of a Department Head, the SDS Advisory Committee will consider approval of seminars being supported by colleagues other than tenure or tenure-stream faculty. It is imperative, however, that individuals in this latter case who agree to take on this supervisory role do so voluntarily, understanding that it is not a condition of their UBC employment.
But what if I don’t have a potential Faculty member in mind for my Seminar?
Not to worry! Send an email to tlell,elviss@ubc.ca that includes the idea behind your seminar (topic, content, structure, etc.). We will then use this to information suggest a few Faculty members we think will be appropriate for your seminar and support you in appraoching them.