Miskates Happen
I have to turn off the captions for myself when I deliver a webinar. It might help some participants to see an AI-generated track of my words, but I can’t see them on my screen. For the most part they’re...
corrections
“No Corrections”
“No corrections” is a possible outcome for candidates at their viva. Not for many: it seems to be the case for around 10% of UK PhDs. You can hope you get this outcome, but that’s about it. “No corrections” is...
Flaws & Problems
After submission it’s likely that your thesis will have flaws. It’s possible that your thesis may have problems too. Both of these have the potential to be talked about in the viva and have consequences for corrections afterwards. Flaws are...
Not Exclusive
Your thesis is not written only to pass the viva, or only to live up to your examiners’ expectations. That’s worth keeping in mind as you write it, but also as you prepare for your viva. To share your contribution...
Small & Little
Don’t sweat the small stuff. Do every little thing to help yourself. These are not contradictions when applied to the viva and viva prep. When you find a typo after submission, you could underline it or add it to...
An Imperfect Thesis
“Submitted is perfect” was a piece of thesis writing advice that jumped out to me on Twitter a few weeks ago. I wish I could remember where I saw it, though I imagine the person sharing it was not unique...
No Early Updates
Between submission and the viva you might spot some changes you want to make in your thesis. Perhaps you see a typo that has to be amended, a sentence that could be simpler or a diagram that’s just not right....
The Last Correction
Most PhD candidates are given corrections to complete after the viva. Typically examiners give a list of typos, clear instruction on sections that need to be revised and so on. While they’re often not too numerous or too onerous, corrections...
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...
Get Corrections Done
Big or small, whether they feel fair or not, after the viva just get your thesis corrections done. Your examiners will be clear about what needs doing and why – if there’s any doubt in your mind, ask them. Corrections...