Reading & Writing
It’s necessary to read your thesis in preparation for the viva. You don’t need to memorise your work, but it helps to have a good recall of the flow of your thesis to make using it in the viva easier....
annotation
Red Pen
Using a red pen to annotate your thesis can be useful. Underlining typos, circling important things, boxing off ideas. Using a red pen also carries a lot of negative associations. Crosses in the margins of tests or essays in the...
Annotation & Emphasis
One way to think about annotation, as part of viva prep, is that it helps to emphasise parts of what is in your thesis. It’s not about last minute additions or pre-answering questions in the margin: annotating your thesis emphasises...
Limits of Annotation
Annotating your thesis as part of viva prep can help create a more useful resource. Making things easier to find or easier to see can help your viva run smoothly. There are so many options open to you: bookmarks, Post-it...
Headers & Footers
Annotation can help make your thesis more useful for the viva – and there’s a lot of empty space in the borders of your thesis pages. The top and bottom of a page could be helpful to highlight key points,...
Thesis Highlights
Two or three little colourful pens can make a big difference to your viva. Highlighters can help make important details stand out in your thesis so you don’t have to search for them. A little effort during your viva prep can help...
Do I Need A Printed Thesis?
Over the last year a lot of PhD candidates have asked me variations on this question. Any response has to be layered, because there’s lots to think about. Often, the question is being asked because it has been more difficult...
Must-Have Annotations!
Everyone is talking about them for Summer 2021! Your thesis is the must-have accessory for your viva wardrobe, and can be accessorised itself, in so many wonderful ways: Strategic Post-it Notes to show the brilliant beginnings of chapters or index the...
7 Questions To Help You Annotate Your Thesis
Annotating your thesis is useful viva prep. You have to really think about your thesis while you do it and you create a more useful resource for afterwards. I have general ideas I think are good for annotation, but every...
Viva Prep Basics
In my Viva Survivor sessions I cover a lot of different topics, including a good half an hour on practical steps to take between submission and the viva. Here’s the 1-minute version! Read Your Thesis. No excuses, don’t skim, read...