Make A Space
Gather the things you need to get ready. Your thesis. A notebook or papers. Pens and assorted stationery. A loose page with a sketch of the coming weeks. Decide where to do your prep. Find a place and make your space....
Daily viva help for PhDs
Gather the things you need to get ready. Your thesis. A notebook or papers. Pens and assorted stationery. A loose page with a sketch of the coming weeks. Decide where to do your prep. Find a place and make your space....
A helpful part of viva preparation is making your thesis ready for the viva. Then, throughout your discussions with your examiners you have a silent partner, able to support how you think and what you say. You can write in...
Be careful what you wish for your viva, because you have no direct control of what will happen. Wishing for this question or that direction of conversation, for a certain length or a particular comment is a distraction. Be careful what you...
As you prepare for your viva, remember who did the work. Remember who read the papers. Remember who figured things out. Remember who wrote your thesis. Remember who became more capable and more knowledgeable. Remember who made a real contribution...
For all the prep I did, it never occurred to me to think about where my viva was going to be. It was early June, but a warm week. The seminar room, which I was very familiar with, was on the...
Your viva is coming up and you got this! Whatever questions, comments or criticisms your examiners have, you got this! Whatever pressures you faced throughout your PhD, you got this! However the pandemic impacted your work, you got this! Whatever...
Beneath the surface of the viva is a conversation. For all the importance it has, it’s a discussion and one you can prepare for. Beneath the surface of your thesis is a contribution. Across thousands of words you tell the...
You don’t get to choose your examiners. You might be asked for your opinion but ultimately, your supervisors will decide. They have the responsibility of nominating the two people who will examiner your thesis and convene your viva. You don’t...
Viva preparation is not a production line. It doesn’t follow anything as neat as moving from one task to the next, finishing one component and moving neatly on to the next. Prep does not follow a flow diagram: it’s not reading...
When you read your thesis before submission you’re trying to make it better. Each draft moves your research towards a better state of presentation. Each revision helps you tell the story of your work in a more polished way. You...