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Tag: defend not defensive

Nathan

Support Your Choices

Daily Post

When a candidate hears “defend your thesis” it’s easy for them to think of the viva as a battle, a struggle or a debate.

Perhaps a better way to describe the viva is that it’s a chance to support your choices. Your examiners have read your thesis. They’ve prepared for your viva. They have questions and opinions but the space is there for you to support what you’ve done.

You can clarify the unclear, add details or expand on your process. In sharing more of your research you have the opportunity to support your choices. So in your preparation be sure to check details that need checking, highlight details that are important and summarise anything that could make a difference.

The viva is one more opportunity to show what you did, what you know and what you can do.

Nathan

Defending Your Work

Daily Post

In the viva it means supporting your thesis.

It means restating what you did, or replying to a question about a related aspect. It could be listening to another point of view and reconciling it with your work. It could be clearing up a mistaken belief that your examiner holds. It could be making your work clearer because it wasn’t clear in your thesis. It could be all of these things and other things besides.

Defending your work does not mean being defensive. Defensive is not listening. Defensive is thinking that you are right, no matter what. Defensive won’t help.

You could be angry or upset with a comment or question, you can feel what you feel – but you’ll serve your thesis and your viva better by defending your work, rather than by being defensive.

Listen to the question or comment. Check it against what you think and feel. Think about your response. Check it for emotion – you don’t need to be a robot, but be careful you’re not just reacting to a negative feeling.

Defend, not defensive.