The supervision and mentoring of graduate students is a challenging exercise in effective
interpersonal communication even when the faculty member and student share the same
cultural background. Differing expectations about workload, progress, and a considerable
power gap often create the perfect conditions for misunderstanding in this curiously
symbiotic relationship. Throw a few cultural differences in communication styles into the mix,
and we certainly face a communication conundrum. The challenges, however, can be …