How to Write a Eulogy for Your Research Supervisor - Eulogy Examples & Tips

Writing a eulogy for your research supervisor can feel oddly formal and deeply personal at the same time. Your supervisor may have been a boss, a mentor, a coauthor, a letter writer, and sometimes a human being who made lab coffee taste like ritual. This guide gives you a clear approach to writing something honest and useful. It includes examples you can adapt, templates to fill in, and delivery tips that work in academic settings such as memorials, departmental services, and lab gatherings.

Who this article is for

This is for graduate students, postdocs, lab technicians, research staff, and collaborators who have been asked or feel called to speak about their research supervisor at a funeral, memorial, or departmental remembrance. Whether you were close to your supervisor or had a strictly professional relationship, there are sample scripts and templates for different tones. We explain academic terms you might see so nothing feels awkward at the lectern.

What is a eulogy in an academic context

A eulogy is a short speech that honors a person who has died. In academia the eulogy often appears at a memorial service, a departmental meeting, or a celebration of life. The audience may include other faculty, students, administrative staff, family members, and collaborators. A eulogy for a research supervisor combines human stories with some context about their professional life. It is allowed to be imperfect and to be personal.

Useful academic terms and acronyms explained

• PI This stands for principal investigator. The PI is usually the faculty member who runs a lab and secures grant funding.
• Postdoc Short for postdoctoral researcher. A postdoc is someone doing temporary research after their PhD to gain experience.
• PhD Doctor of Philosophy. This is the doctoral degree many members of a research group will hold or be pursuing.
• IRB Institutional Review Board. This is a committee that reviews ethics for research involving human participants.
• Grant Funding awarded to support research. Grants often determine what a lab can study and who they can hire.
• Corresponding author The person who handles manuscript submissions and communications on a published paper.
• Lab meeting A regular group meeting where members present data, discuss progress, and give feedback.
• RA and TA Research assistant and teaching assistant. These are common roles in academic labs and departments.
• Tenure A long term job status for faculty that offers job security after a review process.

First things to check before you write

Before you start drafting, confirm a few logistical and emotional things.

• Who asked you Make sure the family or the faculty contact is okay with you speaking. Some families prefer a family member to lead and a colleague to represent the department.
• Length Ask how long you should speak. Academic memorials often allocate three to eight minutes per speaker.
• Tone Check the expected tone. Do they want formal academic remarks, a casual lab gathering vibe, or a mix?
• Audience Know who will be there. If students and family are both present avoid jargon without explanation.
• Content boundaries Ask if there is anything the family or department asks you to avoid, such as private medical details.

Structure that works for a supervisor eulogy

Keep the structure simple. It helps both you and the audience follow the thread.

• Opening Say who you are and how you knew the supervisor. One clear sentence sets context.
• Professional sketch Give a concise overview of their role, research focus, and major contributions.
• Personal anecdotes Share one or two short stories that reveal character. These are the heart of the eulogy.
• Influence on people Explain how they mentored students, shaped the lab culture, and impacted the field.
• Closing End with a final line that honors their legacy, a call to remember, or a brief quote.

How to balance achievements and humanity

Academia loves lists. The temptation to read a CV out loud is real. Resist that temptation. People remember a short narrative more than a long list of positions and grants. Mention key roles and perhaps a landmark paper, but anchor those details with a story about how the person actually interacted with people.

For example mention they were the corresponding author on an influential paper, then follow with how they celebrated the first submission with the lab. Or say they brought in a big grant and then tell the story of how the grant allowed a student to finish their thesis.

Choosing anecdotes that land

Pick anecdotes that are specific, sensory, and brief. A good story has a setup, a small action, and a payoff that points to character. Aim for one to three stories. If you have many memories, pick the ones that will translate to an audience outside your immediate circle.

Safe anecdote examples

• The time they came in at 3 a.m. to help fix an experiment during a thunderstorm and still brought the team donuts the next morning.
• The habit of starting lab meetings with a brief check in about life. It made saying I am having a hard week okay.
• The joke about their emails being written like a poem. We printed one and framed it in the lab office.

Addressing complicated supervisory relationships

Not every workplace relationship is simple. If your supervisor was strict or demanding you can still speak honestly without being hurtful. Focus on growth and lessons learned. You do not need to air grievances in public. Acknowledge complexity and name one way their leadership changed you for the better or taught you something you still carry.

Examples for complicated relationships

• They pushed us hard. I resented it at times. Looking back I see how that pressure made me better at asking tough questions and at finishing projects.
• We did not always agree. They expected clarity and I expected freedom. Over time I learned to give both to myself.

Using light humor carefully

Humor can give people a breath. Use small earned jokes that insiders will appreciate and that are kind. Avoid anything that would single out or embarrass the deceased in front of family. A gentle lab in joke is often perfect.

Humor examples

• They had a science themed mug collection. We suspected each mug curated an experiment lucky day.
• They insisted on clean pipettes like it was a moral choice. We joked that cleanliness was in their tenure packet.

Sample eulogies you can adapt

Example 1: Short formal departmental eulogy, 3 minute version

Hello. My name is Dr. Lina Patel and I was a postdoc in Professor Morgan Chen s lab for four years. Morgan was our principal investigator, a scholar of protein folding, and a fierce advocate for rigorous science and for people.

Professionally Morgan published broadly and led a lab that produced excellent work on misfolded proteins. They secured funding that supported student stipends and novel equipment. Those achievements mattered because they were rooted in a desire to create opportunities for young scientists.

I remember our first major grant. It was a tense week of last minute edits. Morgan stayed late with us, reading every page and offering tiny edits that improved clarity. When we got the award Morgan brought in a cake and announced, with a grin, that the lab now officially had permission to buy new pipettes. That moment showed their belief that small comforts make big differences for people working long hours.

Morgan set a high bar for data integrity and a higher bar for kindness. They demanded clean notebooks but also taught us to ask for help without shame. I am grateful for their mentorship and for the ways they shaped my scientific thinking and my ethics as a researcher.

Please join me in a moment of silence to honor Morgan s work and their care for people who did that work. Thank you.

Example 2: Casual lab memorial, 4 minute version

Hi everyone. I am Sam, a PhD student who joined Dr. Alvarez s group in 2018. When I think of Ana, I think of lab meetings with terrible coffee and brilliant paper ideas. Ana believed that the messy part of thinking out loud was where real progress happened.

Ana had a ritual. Every Friday she would bring back a strange pastry from the market and say try it and tell me what you think. Those pastries became a stand in for feedback. If you shared a half baked idea on Friday you could expect honest critique and a pastry. Over time we learned to give Ana both things in exchange.

She fought for student stipends, wrote recommendation letters that read like love letters, and taught us how to fail better. She was also the person who noticed when someone had not spoken for weeks and would send a message that said are you okay more than anything else.

We will miss her critiques and her pastries. We will miss her insistence that science is for people not just for metrics. Thank you Ana for every late night and every note that said keep going.

Example 3: For a complicated supervisor, honest and respectful

My name is Daniel. I was in Professor Kline s research group for six years. Our relationship was not simple. Kline demanded precision and had little patience for sloppy thinking. That made me angry at times. It also forced me to learn how to argue clearly and how to defend my work under pressure.

In the last year Kline and I had a long conversation about failure. They admitted they had pushed too hard during my candidacy. We talked and we found a kind of truce. I am thankful for those conversations. They gave me a clearer sense of who I wanted to be as a mentor.

That is the complicated gift of working for someone like Kline. In grief I can hold both my frustration and my gratitude at the same time. Both of those things are true and both of them matter.

Example 4: Group tribute from a lab

We are the members of Dr. Nguyen s research team. We want to say a few words together. Dr. Nguyen created a space where questions were welcome and where failures were treated as lessons not as shame. We stayed for the science and we stayed for each other.

One tiny story captures this. When a replicable protocol refused to behave, Dr. Nguyen suggested we cook dinner and try again in the morning. We cooked, we laughed, and the next day the protocol worked. For us Dr. Nguyen taught that rest can be part of the method.

We will miss their leadership and their laugh. We will honor them by mentoring the next generation the way they mentored us.

Fill in the blank templates

Use these templates as a starting point. Replace bracketed text and then edit to make it feel like you.

Template A: Formal departmental

My name is [Your Name] and I worked as a [role] in [Supervisor s Name] lab from [year] to [year]. [Supervisor s Name] was a leader in [field]. They were known for [professional contribution]. One memory that shows their character is [brief story]. They taught me [lesson]. We will miss [what people will miss]. Thank you.

Template B: Casual lab meeting

Hi I m [Your Name]. I came to [Supervisor s Name] lab as a [role]. If you met [Supervisor s Name] you know they loved [quirky habit] and they believed in [value]. My favorite memory is [short funny or tender story]. I am grateful for [how they helped you]. Thank you for being here.

Template C: For complicated relationships

I am [Your Name]. My relationship with [Supervisor s Name] had its hard parts. They pushed me in ways that at times felt too intense. Over time I learned [lesson]. In the end we found some understanding and I am thankful for that. If I could say one thing now it would be [short line you want to say].

Practical tips for delivery in academic settings

• Print or use index cards Big font reduces the chance of losing your place mid emotion. Lab gatherings can be loud so cards help.
• Practice with the microphone If the memorial uses audio equipment check it in advance and practice speaking into the mic.
• Time yourself Many academic memorials have multiple speakers. Keep to the agreed time to be respectful.
• Coordinate with the department Someone in the department will likely manage the order of speakers and the program. Share your speech if requested so they can include quotes or readings.
• Bring a backup reader Ask a trusted colleague to be ready to step in if you cannot continue.
• Respect family wishes Family members may want certain details included or excluded. Check first.
• Recordings Many departments record memorials for archival purposes. Ask about consent if you plan to share the recording more widely.

How to mention publications, grants, and titles without losing people

If you want to highlight scholarly achievements pick one or two that are meaningful to the story you are telling. For example name a landmark paper that changed the field and then tell how the team celebrated that day. Mentioning every honor can feel like reading a CV out loud. Instead use achievements to illuminate character or the lab s trajectory.

What to avoid when speaking

• Avoid private medical details unless the family has explicitly asked you to share them.
• Avoid inside jokes that will confuse or alienate family members in the audience.
• Avoid turning the eulogy into a rant about academic politics. This is not the time.
• Avoid reading a list of publications or grants without context. People respond to stories.

After the eulogy

People may ask for a copy. Offer to email your remarks or to send them to the department to include in a memorial page. Some groups create a digital memory book where photos, stories, and the eulogy can live. If people want to donate to a scholarship or a fund in the supervisor s name share the official contact point rather than informal collection methods.

Checklist before you speak

• Confirm time limit and tone with the family or department.
• Print your speech with large font and bring a backup.
• Practice aloud at least three times and time it.
• Mark emotional beats and pauses so you can breathe.
• Ask a colleague to be on standby in case you need help finishing.
• Have contact details ready if people ask for a copy afterward.

Glossary of terms for memorials and academic processes

• Memorial service A gathering to remember someone who has died. It may be formal or informal.
• Obituary A written notice announcing a death that often includes service details and a short biography.
• Departmental communication Many universities have a communications office that will help draft a notice for staff and alumni. They can advise on tone and privacy.
• Scholarship or memorial fund A fund set up in memory of someone that supports students or research.
• Consent for recordings Permission to record or share a memorial. Check with family and university policy before public sharing.

Frequently asked questions

How long should a eulogy for a research supervisor be

Three to eight minutes is a good target. That is usually enough to give context about their work, share one or two personal stories, and offer a closing line. If multiple people are speaking check the overall schedule and trim your remarks accordingly.

Should I mention their academic achievements and publications

Yes mention one or two meaningful achievements, but do not read their entire curriculum vitae. Use achievements to illuminate character or to explain how their work impacted students and the field.

What if I am grieving and might not finish

Tell a trusted colleague or family member beforehand that you may need a moment. Designate someone to stand by to finish a line if you cannot continue. Practicing aloud will also build confidence.

Can I include technical details in the eulogy

Only if they help the story and the audience can follow them. Translate jargon into a sentence that a non specialist would understand. For instance say they studied how proteins fold into shapes that make life work rather than reciting technical method names without explanation.

Is it appropriate to use humor

Light, earned humor is usually welcome. Use jokes that are kind and that most people in the room will understand. Avoid anything that could embarrass the deceased or their family.

Who should I coordinate with in the department

Talk to the department chair, the person organizing the memorial, and the family contact. They will guide you on timing, location, and any content preferences. They can also advise about media or recordings.