Is it better to have an easy viva or a hard viva?
I got this question at one of my final Viva Survivor sessions before my summer break. I have lots of thoughts…
First, the answer really depends on what we mean by “easy” and “hard”. It depends on the candidate and their preferences. If easy means zero challenge, does that mean the viva means nothing really? If hard means almost-overwhelming questions and discussions, does that mean it was fair? And regardless of whether you want or have an “easy” or “hard” viva, there are no guarantees one way or the other…
Around a year ago I wrote a little on this topic (Easy, Hard, Challenging). The final thought from that post seems relevant to the question today:
On the day you could find [the viva] easy or hard, but it will still be a challenge.
It’s still a challenge even if you are necessarily talented.
You don’t know what kind of viva you’ll get in advance. You can know what kind of candidate you are, and rise to meet whatever challenge you find in your viva.
