A Research-Reflecting Haiku
Reflect and ponder,
Why? How? What? When? Where? and last:
Who? (that would be you)
Think about everything you did, from as many angles as possible, but remember: you did it. That means a lot.
Year: 2018
Set Chief Needs
“Set Chief Needs” is the neatest anagram of “Thesis Defence” – and also good viva prep advice!
Ahead of the viva consider what you need to be ready:
- What do you need to feel confident?
- How do you need to annotate your thesis?
- What do you need to consider about your examiners?
- What do you need from your supervisors?
- What help do you need?
- What papers do you need to re-read?
- And so on!
Set Chief Needs works well…
…far better than Send Fit Cheeses…
Significant Original Contribution
I’ve heard these three words used so many times to describe what a PhD needs to produce. I’ve said them myself thousands of times in workshops! But what do we mean when we say these words? What are we getting at? Checking the thesaurus gives some helpful ideas…
Significant: compelling, important, momentous, powerful, serious, rich…
Original: authentic, initial, first, beginning, pioneer, primary…
Contribution: addition, improvement, increase, augmentation, present, gifting…
Significant original contribution is nice shorthand to capture the result of a PhD’s journey. Go deeper into the words to remind yourself just how awesome your research is.
Onwards
After your viva there’s more to do. Not your corrections, not wrapping things up, not admin. Your PhD is coming to a close…
…and the rest of your life is right there waiting for you.
You’re not the same. Your PhD means something. What might it mean for you?
A change of title? A mark of respect? New opportunities? More money? More responsibility?
While you’re doing your PhD, it could feel like the most important thing you’ll ever do. Afterwards, as you go on, you have to find something else. So what will it be?
Expect Corrections
Most people have to do some. They’re not a punishment. They’re your examiners saying, “Here, you missed this,” or “This is good, but if you try this it will be better.”
Or occasionally, “That’s not how you spell that!”
You can’t predict exactly what you’ll be asked to do. Most PhD candidates will get minor corrections. Some don’t get any. Some are asked to do major corrections or resubmit. Check with your institution’s regulations about what different outcomes could mean for you. Be sure so you can plan ahead.
Expect that you’ll have some corrections to do, but expect that your thesis – and you – will be pretty good by the time your viva comes around.
What If You Have No Community?
At workshops I often advise people to talk to their colleagues when preparing for the viva:
- Ask about their viva experiences to get a sense of what vivas are like;
- Offer to take someone for coffee and use the time to chat about your research;
- Find out about other research in your field.
Simply: you have to pass the viva by yourself, but you can get a lot of help from others.
At a recent workshop, someone chatted to me afterwards, “That sounds great, but I’m a part-time researcher. I’m not based on campus. I only come in to see my supervisor. I don’t really know anyone in my department. What can I do?”
I had to think for a few minutes. Over the years I’ve tried to clear out my own biases of what a PhD is. I was full-time, funded, had a shared office in a busy department, compulsory development programme – and I learned soon after my PhD that wasn’t always the case.
Still, I felt safe to assume that everyone has colleagues they can talk to. But what if you don’t?
I don’t have definite ideas, but here are some initial suggestions:
- Email recent graduates, introduce yourself and ask about their viva experiences.
- Decide to give a seminar about your work, a PhD in sixty minutes with time for questions. Invite people to come.
- Ask academics in your department about their process when they take on the role of examiner.
I hope these thoughts help. I doubt that the person who chatted to me is unique. I’ll be thinking about this topic more in the coming months. Please get in touch if you have any suggestions too!
Pros & Cons
It can be useful to think through the pros and cons of different things related to your viva:
- Whether you start preparing for the viva a month or two weeks before the viva…
- Whether or not you try for an examiner who you’ve cited in your bibliography…
- Whether or not your supervisor will be present on the day…
- Whether or not you have a mock viva…
Some you can weigh up and get a clear idea of what to do. Some aren’t so clear. Is it better or worse to have an expert in your field examine your thesis? Should you create summaries of every chapter?
There are pros and cons for everything. Sometimes they lead you to a clear answer, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes you just have to listen to your gut feeling.
At some point you have to take action. Whatever the pros and cons, however clear the issue, you still get to choose the course you take.
The Longcut
I like this term. The longcut is the anti-shortcut. The longcut doesn’t cut corners or take chances with success. It’s slow, patient and persistent.
You didn’t take shortcuts with your research. You didn’t take shortcuts with writing your thesis. When you come to get ready for the viva, you don’t want to take shortcuts, you want longcuts. You want to do good work that will help you be certain of being ready.
Don’t skim your thesis the day before. Don’t rely on the bare minimum. Don’t just think about what might happen.
If you’re busy, still make time. Think about what will make a difference, make a plan and do work to get yourself ready for success.
Take the longcut.
Clockwatching
Years ago I worked in a discount store every Saturday. I showed up at 9am, went home at 6pm, and got paid £20 for my troubles. At 16 it seemed like a good deal! Those Saturdays dragged though, because between 11 and 5 we had to “watch the shop”. The owner wanted all of us to be a physical presence, a deterrent against thieves. We stood on our aisles, waited and watched for six hours.
I watched the clock. I made games of it. Another minute gone. Another ten. I broke hours down into quarters. I worked out my pay per hour. Then per minute. Watching the time didn’t make the standing around easier, quicker, better or less boring! If anything, it just frustrated me. The clock just ticked on as always. Clockwatching never helped.
A decade passed and I was in my viva, and I found myself watching the clock again. I stole a glance when we finished talking about my first chapter and felt worried: 45 minutes on one chapter… I had seven! We took a break as we finished chapter four and we were two and a half hours in! At least in the discount store there was a time the clock was moving to when work would be done. Two and a half hours… Was this good? Was this bad? How much longer would it be?
I stopped watching after that point, kept my eyes on my examiners and the room. Watching the clock didn’t help. Clockwatching in the viva never helps. Knowing the time doesn’t help you to answer a question, to think or to be engaged with your examiners.
Take off your watch. Take down or cover the clock. Don’t worry about how long the viva might be. Put your attention on being your best self.
Why I Do This
I’ve been asked a few times recently why I do a daily blog. The inspiration to do it came from Seth Godin, a person I greatly respect, who has published a daily blog for many years. I saw someone trying something I thought was a good idea – but that’s more about what I do, not why I do it.
It’s hard to pin down a single reason for why I do a daily blog on the viva. Five that come to mind:
- I wanted to help more people prepare for the viva.
- I wanted to do something that would give me a space to create.
- I wanted a regular practice to get better at something.
- I hoped it might lead to more opportunities for work.
- I wanted a new challenge.
A daily blog on the viva has given me plenty of ways to satisfy these reasons, and more. In eighteen months I’ve been amazed by how many people have read it; floored by how many have let me know that it has helped; I’m proud of how much it has helped me refine and build on what I do. And ideas lead to more ideas, opportunities lead to more opportunities: doing this has presented me with challenges many times over!
Still, the daily blog is what I do, not why I do it.
Your thesis is what you’ve done, not why you did it.
Get back in touch with that. Reflect on why you started, and whether or not your why changed as you went through your PhD. How have your research and your thesis resulted from your why? What is the journey that connects the why and the result?
Where will your why take you next?