Challenges for Better thesis supervision

BACKGROUND Conduction of thesis by the students is one of their major academic activities. Thesis quality and acquired experiences are highly dependent on the supervision. Our study is aimed at identifing the challenges in thesis supervision from both students and faculty members point of view. METHODS This study was conducted using individual in-depth interviews and Focus Group Discussions (FGD). The participants were 43 students and faculty members selected by purposive sampling. It was carried out in Tehran University of Medical Sciences in 2012. Data analysis was done concurrently with data gathering using content analysis method. RESULTS Our data analysis resulted in 162 codes, 17 subcategories and 4 major categories, "supervisory knowledge and skills", "atmosphere", "bylaws and regulations relating to supervision" and "monitoring and evaluation". CONCLUSION This study showed that more attention and planning in needed for modifying related rules and regulations, qualitative and quantitative improvement in mentorship training, research atmosphere improvement and effective monitoring and evaluation in supervisory area.