Warming Up
How will you warm up on the day of your viva? You might not need to perform vocal exercises or physically stretch, but you could: Read through a summary of your thesis one more time. Check that you have everything packed...
Daily viva help for PhDs
How will you warm up on the day of your viva? You might not need to perform vocal exercises or physically stretch, but you could: Read through a summary of your thesis one more time. Check that you have everything packed...
Have a break when you submit your thesis. Give yourself space to rest. Have a break now and then when you prepare for your viva. You don’t need to cram everything into one hectic period of activity. Have a break...
A viva over video is still a viva. It’s alright that there are pauses caused by technology. A viva over video is still a viva. Practise with the software you’ll use and think about the space you’ll be in. A...
Who do you know who could help you get ready for your viva? Your supervisors can help with a lot: setting expectations, hosting mock vivas, sharing ideas of what examiners do – there’s a wealth of support from them potentially....
There are lots of questions you could be asked at your viva, including questions you’ve never been asked before! But by the time you get there you will have had lots of practise responding to questions, certainly enough to do...
You need both candidate and thesis to be good for a PhD. Your examiners need to ask you – the candidate – about both in the viva. What’s your thesis’ contribution? How did you do it? And what can you do...
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....
Some numbers are magical for the viva, and some can only cause you to worry. Don’t think about how long your viva might be. It’s not worth obsessing over how many pages of references you have in your bibliography. And don’t check...
A viva is not a random collection of questions and comments from your examiners, strung together by whatever you say in response. Your university has regulations that govern the viva. Your department has expectations for what a good viva “should”...
There’s a knock at your door. A courier leaves a package in your arms. It’s not heavy, but it has a strange heft to it. You don’t remember ordering anything. You’re not expecting something. But here it is, addressed to...