Not Too…
How much preparation do I need to do? Not too much. How long will the viva be? Not too long. How tough will the questions be? Not too tough. How critical will my examiners be? Not too critical. How often...
July 2022
Your Turn To Speak
The viva is a conversation between you and your examiners. They use questions to facilitate a discussion about you, your research and your thesis. They’re looking for you to demonstrate your capability as a researcher and the contribution in your...
Identifying Mistakes
Typos matter because they need correcting. It’s important to work towards your thesis being as clear and polished as possible – but it also helps you to know that perfection is an ideal. Most PhD candidates have to complete corrections...
In The Way
If you feel worried or anxious before the viva then stop and ask yourself, “Why?” What is getting in the way? For example, if you feel unprepared it could be that you’re pressured with the time available. It could be...
Officially
You’re not Doctor Somebody until graduation. On the day of the viva you’ll pass, you’ll shake hands perhaps, and after that you’ll smile whenever someone uses the title. It’s not official until the corrections are done, checked, passed and after that until the...
The Expectations That Matter
It’s not length of the viva or asking for breaks. It’s not the opening questions or depth of discussion. It’s not the number of corrections or when you know the result. Knowing about all of these things help, but the...
Finding Magic Feathers
In Dumbo, the little elephant with the big ears believes he can fly because of a magic feather. He can’t, there’s no magic, but it’s enough to help him believe at least for a time – until he recognises that he...
Practice Doesn’t Make Perfect
You can’t have perfect recall. A mock viva won’t make you bulletproof to a difficult question. Notes and summaries won’t cover everything. Remember that perfection isn’t the point of preparation. Prepare to become prepared. Read, revise and rehearse to...
Reading Allowed
It’s not a good idea to have a script for the viva. You can’t take such detailed notes in that you are effectively quoting pre-prepared responses. Besides, there are so many possible questions and variations of questions that to even...
A Helpful Acronym
If you’re looking for some help reflecting on your research ahead of the viva, consider reading one of the chapters in your thesis and then respond to the following questions: What is valuable in the chapter? What difference does it make?...