Methods CoP

The Methods CoP was created by a group of first-year IMS students who found that while coursework provided theoretical knowledge, integrating these methods into our thesis work was often daunting. Without readily available guidance, we noticed that many of our peers felt overwhelmed by their complex thesis projects.

We are aiming to create a network where students can navigate these challenges together, leveraging peer support to enhance both academic success and student well-being. The Methods CoP empowers students to learn from their peers, build connections in the IMS research community, and ensure no one has to face these obstacles alone.

Through the Methods CoP, we are committed to bringing IMS students together to connect, share, and grow alongside each other, transforming challenges into opportunities for collective advancement and giving methodological support to those in need.

The initiative is being developed in collaboration with the IMS administration, including Dr. Pamela Plant, Dr. Lucy Osborne and Sarah Topa. We are also working closely with the Peer-to-Peer Mentorship Program Executive Team.

We are currently recruiting advisors. Once we have a robust pool of advisors, we will be sharing the profiles with all IMS students via email, likely in summer 2025.

We invite all IMS graduate students who feel comfortable giving advice on research methodologies, study design, or data analysis to become an advisor. The Methods CoP allows students who have navigated similar academic challenges to offer advice and support to others.

You’ll have the opportunity to make a lasting impact — helping others navigate some of the challenges that you might have experienced yourself. You’ll also get the chance to improve your leadership skills, teaching, and problem solving skills all while building connections and boosting your teaching CV.

Yes! If you have experience in any specific aspect of research or a particular method that you feel confident about, you can become an advisor. Your shared experiences, no matter how big or small, can make a difference to someone else's research journey. Also, if there’s anything outside the comfort zone, we encourage students to share their knowledge of the resources available to others for support.

Every semester, we’ll reach out to each of our existing advisors and ask if they’d like to renew their profile.

We also understand that plans and commitments change; so if at any point you no longer wish to be contacted by students for support, feel free to reach out to our team at adam.levitan@mail.utoronto.ca and we can either suspend or remove your profile.

There is no strict time commitment associated with signing up to be an advisor. Hours aren’t tracked, so there’s no minimum commitment that we’re looking for. Rather, we ask that students only sign up to be advisors if they have the availability to arrange the occasional meeting with students that might reach out.

The Methods CoP does not create formal mentor-mentee pairings. Instead, it provides access to a network of advisors who offer support on study design, research methodologies, and data analysis, helping students overcome academic challenges in their research projects

We always encourage open communication with your PI, which is especially important if you’re hoping to arrange shadowing or other in-person opportunities in your lab. Advisors must be mindful of hospital and site-specific policies regarding permissions to access restricted areas.

The nature of your support is up to you to decide, and the permissions offered by your supervisor and site.

Yes! Regularly throughout the year, we will reach out to each advisor and provide the opportunity to update their profile, including methodology areas of support.

The profiles of advisors (and their emails) will be shared online among all IMS students via a OneDrive link, accessible only with a utoronto email account. Profiles will not be posted on external, publicly accessible web sites.