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Tag: viva process

Nathan

Getting Started

Daily Post

Again and again this year I am reminded of a lesson I’ve heard many times.

“Getting started changes everything.”

When I was wondering what to do exactly for 101 Steps To A Great Viva or how to run a Kickstarter, getting started gave me a sense of how much work to do and what the possibilities were.

When I was turning over ideas for a bespoke webinar but not making progress, getting started made me see what ideas I could incorporate from other sessions and helped me find cool things to do with the cohort.

And when I was feeling overwhelmed by a big writing project, getting started allowed me to get a feel for the topic, the points and the humour I wanted to bring to it.

Planning is essential. Information is necessary. A little forethought can really help.

But sometimes these things leads to procrastination. Delay. Avoidance.

Starting viva prep changes everything: you’re on the path to being ready.

Starting to reflect on your PhD journey changes everything: you build your confidence rather than wonder if you’re good enough.

Starting your viva changes everything: no more nerves, no more wondering what will happen.

Nathan

Was That It?

Daily Post

Today marks fifteen years since I submitted my final PhD thesis.

I remember that I went with a friend to hand my copies in. I wanted someone to be a witness with me to this great moment. The university admin department I had to submit my thesis copies to was quiet. The person on reception duties looked up and just about managed to say, “Yes?” to indicate they would listen to me.

With a big smile I said, “I’ve finished my PhD. I’m here to submit my final thesis.”

They kept looking at me. Then looked down at the small pile of books and submission forms I had set on the counter. Then looked back at me. And finally looked over their shoulder and called, “Geoff?”

“Yeah?”

“There’s another one for you.”

Geoff came out from a back room. He quickly glanced over my form. He checked I had two copies of my thesis on the counter. Then picked them up and nodded, “OK, thanks,” and walked away.

My friend and I left the building entirely deflated. Was that it?

 

I celebrated later that day, but I look back on my final submission like many parts of my PhD journey and think, “Was that it?”

All the times I was stressed in advance of something – a presentation, a meeting, my viva – but the actual event worked out fine.

All the things that I thought would be super-amazing and impressive, but turned out to just be work. Still interesting, but work and time and effort.

Meeting my examiners. Going to my viva. Submitting my thesis.

In some respects, my whole PhD!

Was that it?

 

I have no regrets, but today reminds me that sometimes the things we think will be really big and important are just things. Important events are just one day. Great achievements are just one step towards success or progress. Our big news is just one more thing that someone else will hear.

And that’s the way it is. We have to find the meaning for ourselves. Your PhD success is important, but to you, not to everyone. You have to make it matter.

Don’t look back and think “Was that it?”

Make the special days as special as you can.

Nathan

Apologise Or Acknowledge?

Daily Post

Your thesis isn’t perfect. It’s almost certain you have typos or passages to correct. There are likely other approaches you could take in your methods. Your recollection or knowledge might have gaps. And you can’t have done every possible thing even with years to complete your PhD.

So should you apologise to your examiners?

Or simply acknowledge?

  • Yes, there’s a typo and I can correct that.
  • No I didn’t do that and here’s why…
  • I’m not sure about what would happen, but perhaps…
  • Can you tell me more so I can understand…

I don’t know if there are no circumstances where it might be good to apologise to your examiners, but I think for the most part acknowledging and discussing the point is a better course of action.

Nathan

Figure It Out

Daily Post

Questions and comments in the viva are supposed to be fair, but they could also be tough.

You might forget something. You might not know something. You might disagree with your examiners. You might be surprised. You might need time to reflect and think.

All of these are understandable, but faced with a tough question or comment you could default to certain behaviours:

  • Freeze. You stop and go blank, panic gripping you.
  • Flee. You try to bluff and evade, get away from the point and onto firmer ground.
  • Fight. You could be over-assertive from a place of worry.

These are the classic responses to troubling situations. They won’t serve you well in the viva. They won’t help you to engage with a tough question and could only make things worse for you and the discussion. However, you could always:

  • Figure it out. You can take a moment, breathe, pause, think, sip some water and calmly respond.

You can’t choose the questions you’ll be asked in your viva – but you can decide in advance how you would like to engage with your examiners.

You don’t have to freeze at, flee from or fight with tough questions.

Take a moment to figure it out instead.

Nathan

Break It Up

Daily Post

There’s a lot to do in the viva. There’s a lot to do to prepare for the viva, or at least a lot of tasks and thoughts to manage. You might feel a lot about what’s going to happen and have plenty of distractions or concerns to contend with.

If you try to solve the whole of your prep, all of your worries or how you feel about the discussion as it starts, you’re going to dump a huge pile of problems in your path.

Instead, break things up, whatever stage you’re at.

Viva prep is a series of tasks and activities, not one great monster undertaking. There’s work to do but you can do it one piece at a time.

Viva worries can feel persistent, but you can tackle each concern one-by-one. Get help, ask for support and when you have an answer to your problem set it out clearly for yourself that you’ve got past that.

As you get to the viva, remember that while it’s a discussion you only have to respond to one question or comment at a time. You can pause, think and respond. You don’t have to have an answer for everything.

As with everything else, you can take your time to do what you need to do.

Nathan

Keeping Focus In The Viva

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“How do I stay focussed in the viva?” has the same response as “How do I engage well in the viva?”

You listen.

You pause.

You think.

You check details in your thesis.

You ask questions.

You make notes.

You share the best responses that you can to provide context, information and demonstrate who you are and what you did.

Engaging well keeps your focus. Keeping focus helps you to engage well.

Nathan

Again

Daily Post

The viva’s not the first time you’ve responded to questions about your work.

It’s not the first time in your PhD journey you’ve been tested.

You have to have risen to challenges many, many times to get to submission.

And your viva is not the first ever viva! Lots of people around you – and people who you don’t know on the internet – have experiences that can help you unpick what to do and how you could feel about your upcoming viva.

Again and again you’ve worked hard to get to this stage of your PhD. A little more will help you finish.

Nathan

Time Out

Daily Post

There are lots of necessary breaks before, during and after your viva.

When you submit it’s good to pause from looking at your thesis and thinking about your PhD research. You might have other research work to do but at least break from looking at your thesis. Then you can have a fresh perspective when you come to prepare for your viva.

During the viva there are lots of good reasons to have breaks, big and small. A micro-break could be to simply pause while you consider a question or look for something in your thesis. A regular break in the viva could be to use the bathroom, compose yourself or attend to any medical need. You can always ask your examiners for a break.

And after your viva it’s likely your examiners will ask for a short break so they can discuss what has happened and what they need to do now to complete the examination process. While they talk about your corrections it’s a good idea for you to plan ahead to do something – get some water, use the bathroom, get some fresh air – so that you’re not simply waiting.

After your viva is done, try to take a break if you can. A little time out can help you appreciate the milestone you’ve reached and refresh you for the next stage of your journey.

Nathan

Before, After, Between

Daily Post

Before your viva you could be nervous about what’s going to happen.

After your viva you’ll maybe struggle to understand how it happened so quickly.

And between those two points you might not notice what’s really happening because you’re so engaged by what’s going on.

Nathan

Pre-empting Questions

Daily Post

You can’t know what your examiners will ask you at your viva.

You can have a good idea of what topics they will be interested in. You can make reasonable guesses. You can expect certain lines of questioning. You can look at past patterns, vague or clear, from what others tell you about their experiences.

And while all that is useful it is still very different from knowing what questions you are going to be asked.

It’s important to prepare for the viva – and necessary your focus doesn’t skew towards pre-empting particular questions. Don’t prepare only for questions you want, questions you expect or questions that you simply have a hunch about.

Prepare for the discussion by engaging in discussion. A mock viva could help set the tone and help you to find the balance between expecting topics and being prepared for questions that arise from what you’ve done.

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