Daily viva help for PhDs
A to do list could be a good way to tackle viva prep or start framing what you need to do. How about:
The third and fourth items are, of course, simplified – but that doesn’t mean that doing them has to be very complicated.
There’s a few key things it would be good to know around submission time. Questions which occur to candidates all of the time, but which I very rarely have answers for because they’re particular to their institution. If you’re submitting soon, find answers to these questions:
You’ll likely pick up answers to most of these questions by osmosis during your PhD. It’s within your power to find answers to all of them, and find out how things are done at your university.
If your answer to Question 7 is anything other than “nothing” then find someone who can help. It’s up to you.
Viva Survivors Summer Sabbatical: I’m taking July, August and September off from new writing to concentrate on other creative projects, so will be sharing a post from the archives every day throughout those months. Today’s post was originally published on December 11th 2017.
I encourage candidates to reflect on their research, their examiners’ publications and think about how these things connect. It’s useful advice but at the same time a little vague. What concrete steps can candidates take? It isn’t always clear to know what to think or do, so here are eight questions to get the process of digging deeper started:
Saying “reflect” is easy; doing it can be hard. Use these questions to start the process, and if you find other questions that help then share them.
Viva Survivors Summer Sabbatical: I’m taking July, August and September off from new writing to concentrate on other creative projects, so will be sharing a post from the archives every day throughout those months. Today’s post was originally published on September 25th 2018.
There’s a mindset of exploration in viva preparation.
If you’ve done the work for a PhD, being an explorer is probably second nature to you. You’re good at exploring; to prepare well for the viva you just need to continue using skills you already have.
Viva Survivors Summer Sabbatical: I’m taking July, August and September off from new writing to concentrate on other creative projects, so will be sharing a post from the archives every day throughout those months. Today’s post was originally published on August 22nd 2018.
What do you need to know about the circumstances of your viva for you to feel happy?
Who do you need to turn to for support with your viva prep?
How do you describe your significant original contribution?
How much help do you need from your supervisor in the weeks leading up to your viva?
What are you most proud of in your research?
What are some of the most important references that support your thesis?
How do you explain why you wanted to do a PhD?
Reflecting on each of these questions can help as you get ready for your viva.
What should I include in a 15-minute summary of my thesis?
The candidate asking me this had been prompted by their examiners to prepare a presentation to start their viva. This isn’t a common situation, but it’s one way to begin the viva. I can’t remember what I said in the moment that I was asked – it was towards the end of a three-hour webinar – but remembering it today I’m struck by several thoughts.
Fifteen minutes isn’t very long to summarise a thesis, so it pays to be concise. It helps to rehearse. It helps to think things through. And the question, as asked, is worth interrogating: should isn’t helpful. There are lots of things one could do.
Here are fifteen points and questions to reflect on if you were asked to prepare a fifteen-minute presentation for the viva:
Even if you – like most candidates – are not asked to prepare an opening presentation, reflecting on many of these questions could be useful before your viva!
A little nudge to start viva preparations:
There will be many more for each category, and many more helpful categories of things that could help someone get ready. Five is a good starting place.
You need to read your thesis to get ready for the viva. Then look deeply. Really look. What do you see?
Scanning your work isn’t sufficient to be ready for your viva, but it helps you get there. Looking at and analysing the larger “bones” of your thesis is better than trying to commit hundreds of pages of words to memory.
It has to be a top ten rather than the top ten, because there are so many useful things that one could do to get ready for the viva!
There’s more you could do, but this list would give someone a good overview of the practical work that helps.
What else would you add to this list? And what are you going to do next to get ready?
When you submit, you’ve done a lot already that helps you in the viva. After submission you have an opportunity to do a little more work to help you get ready. If your viva is over video, you can do a little extra to help you be ready for that particular situation. Here’s a non-exhaustive list of things that could help.
Like most in-person vivas, video vivas are typically fine. They’re not meant to be ordeals. Preparation can ensure yours won’t be.