Nathan

Beyond Burnt Out

Daily Post

Remember: you can’t prepare well for your viva if you’re burnt out.

You can’t read, review and rehearse if you’re already exhausted. As important as the viva is and as urgent as it might feel to do something for it you can’t do what you need to do if you’ve got nothing left.

When you submit your thesis sketch out a plan or two for your prep. Make rest a central part of your prep period: there’s work to do and you probably have other commitments but if you don’t get enough rest you can’t do everything else that you need to do.

You can’t prepare well for your viva if you’re burnt out.

Nathan

Don’t Worry*

Daily Post

Don’t worry about what might happen at your viva – take steps to learn more about what to expect.

Don’t worry about the variety of questions you might be asked – find spaces to rehearse responding to questions and build up your confidence.

Don’t worry about remembering everything – work through your prep to help your memory as best you can for the things that matter most.

Don’t worry about the outcome of your viva – find ways to remind yourself of what you’ve done and what that means.

 

* Or rather, don’t only worry. Feel the feeling and then take steps to help change the feeling.

Nathan

Finding The Lines

Daily Post

As you prepare for your viva and then engage at it you might brush up against all kinds of lines.

  • The line might be the boundary between what you know and what you don’t know.
  • It could be what separates your work from someone else’s.
  • The line could even be what defines a disagreement between you and your examiner.

Finding a line might be a cause for concern. Not knowing something can be uncomfortable. Not being sure, at least at first, of what you need to say to an examiner can be worrying.

Whatever the situation, when you come up against a line you need to figure out what’s next. Maybe you need to ask a question. Maybe you need to check something out. Maybe you need to sit with the discomfort and think for a moment.

When you find a line you need to do something. Take a moment, figure out your next step and then do it.

 

PS: Rehearsal can be a good way to practise encountering difficult situations. You can get experience figuring out what you would do in an uncomfortable moment at your viva. For more reasons to take rehearsal seriously, take a look at Viva Survivors Select 14, The Rehearsal Issue which is out now. If you like the blog, want more help and want to support what I do then please check it out. It’s the latest issue in my series of curated collections of viva help: twenty posts from the blog’s archive and new help to help you get ready!

Nathan

The Work

Daily Post

The work you need to do to get ready for your viva – and to do well at your viva – is the same as the work for your whole PhD so far:

  • You have to find out more.
  • You have to figure out more.
  • You have to figure out how to tell others about what you’ve learned and done.

The purpose and need involved with prep and the viva might be specific and different to the rest of your PhD but the work is the same. It’s the same for every PhD candidate regardless of discipline.

So: what does that work look like for you as you get ready?

 

PS: You can find out more about the specific work of rehearsal in Viva Survivors Select 14 which is out now. If you like the blog, want more help and want to support what I do then please check it out. It’s the latest issue in my series of curated collections of viva help: twenty posts from the blog’s archive and new help to help you get ready!

Nathan

Make Prep Fun

Daily Post

Viva prep is important. It’s the work that helps you get ready for your viva.

It matters. You have to do it and you have to do it well so that you can do well at your viva!

It’s serious stuff but you’ll probably do it better and get more from it if you have some fun here and there:

  • What can you do to reward yourself for completing tasks?
  • How can you make your work aesthetically pleasing?
  • Can you set a fun tone for yourself by working in an interesting place or listening to nice music?
  • And who can you invite to work with you to help get the work done?

Viva prep matters. What can you do to make it fun too?

 

PS: You can definitely make rehearsing for your viva fun by asking friends to help, giving a seminar or going for nice chat over coffee. Rehearsal is also the topic of the latest Viva Survivors Select collection. If you like the blog, want more help and want to support what I do then please check it out: twenty posts from the archive and new help to help you get ready!

Nathan

Three Days

Daily Post

On submission day sketch out a couple of plans for getting your viva prep done. It’s unlikely that you’ll start immediately but think about how you would break up the work you need to do. Sketch out one plan giving yourself a month and one where you have only two weeks. Which seems most sensible given your circumstances? Or do you need a better third plan?

On the day you start your viva prep check that you have what you need. Download any papers you were thinking of checking, gather your resources and message any friends or colleagues who you were going to ask for help in the coming weeks. Remove friction from the work you’ll do in the near future.

On the day before your viva take ten minutes to write some notes about what you’ve done. Convince yourself that you’ve done everything you need to be ready for your viva. Reflect on all that you’ve done to get this far.

It takes more than three days to be ready for your viva. The right task at the right time can make a big difference.

 

PS: One activity that really helps with viva prep is rehearsal and it just so happens that Viva Survivors Select 14, The Rehearsal Issue is out now. If you like the blog, want more help and want to support what I do then please check it out. It’s the latest issue in my series of curated collections of viva help: twenty posts from the blog’s archive and new help to help you get ready!

Nathan

The Meaning Of “Pass”

Daily Post

It means you did enough. You don’t need perfection to pass your viva and your PhD.

Do your best.

You’ll likely find typos in your thesis after submission. That’s OK.

You’ll likely find questions at the viva that you find challenging. That might be uncomfortable but it’s OK too.

Good is enough.

Minor corrections means “you’ve passed so long as you make these changes.”

“Pass” means you did it – but like the rest of your PhD journey you have to figure out what that really means for you.

 

PS: Rehearsing for your viva helps you feel more like you’re going to pass. If you’re looking for helpful thoughts on rehearsal then Viva Survivors Select 14, The Rehearsal Issue, is out now. If you like the blog, want more help and want to support what I do then please check it out. It’s the latest issue in my series of curated collections of viva help: twenty posts from the blog’s archive and new help to help you get ready!

Nathan

On General Questions

Daily Post

I’m often asked by candidates about the general questions that come up at the viva. It’s a natural topic to ask about but it’s a really hard question to respond to!

More often than not I just want to say: Your thesis is different to every other ever written. You are unique. Why would you get general questions or questions that others get?

Instead of general questions consider general categories: examiners need to ask about contributions, PhD experiences and the candidate.

After possible general opening questions like “What attracted you to this project?” or “How would you summarise your thesis?” you can expect that your examiners will want to dig deeper into your research. They won’t ask general questions – they’ll ask specific questions based on the work you’ve presented.

Trying to know general viva questions is hard. Knowing categories of questions is easy. Knowing your stuff takes work but it’s simple. Prepare for your examiners’ questions by reviewing your work and rehearsing with whatever questions your supervisors and others ask you.

 

PS: If you’re looking for more helpful thoughts on rehearsal then Viva Survivors Select 14, The Rehearsal Issue, is out now. If you like the blog, want more help and want to support what I do then please check it out. It’s the latest issue in my series of curated collections of viva help: twenty posts from the blog’s archive and new help to help you get ready!

Nathan

Viva Survivors Select 14

Update

Cover of Viva Survivors Select 14, The Rehearsal Issue, September 2026 by Nathan Ryder. Cover shows a stylised red pawn figure stood on a theatre stage behind the curtains. A sign reads "Mock Viva Today!"

It’s release day for The Rehearsal Issue, the latest issue of Viva Survivors Select!

You can find The Rehearsal Issue on my Payhip store now. After exploring general viva prep in many other issues in the series and spending a few issues to focus on particular aspects of getting ready it felt only right that I take one collection to really cover why rehearsing matters so much for the viva.

Page 1 of the issue, titled HELLO! A description of the contents.

The Rehearsal Issue contains twenty curated posts from the Viva Survivors blog archive. The posts explore the value of prep, options beyond the mock viva and how rehearsal connects with confidence. As with previous issues I’ve also included two new pages of viva help too – including a new concise version of my mini-vivas resource.

It’s been a continuing treat to draw the art for this issue as well. I love the shades of red on the cover and enjoyed the challenge of creating the interior black and white art too. I hope you enjoy the illustrations too!

Page 7 of the issue. Titled "Preparing For A Video Viva", the first two-thirds of the page are the text of the blog post. The bottom third shows an illustration of a desktop setup for a video viva.

Viva Survivors Select 14, The Rehearsal Issue, is out now for £3. If you like the blog, want more help and want to support what I do then please consider buying Viva Survivors Select. If it helps you then please pass on details of The Rehearsal Issue and Viva Survivors Select to anyone you know who is looking for viva help.

Thanks for reading!

Nathan

 

PS: the next collection, The Questions Issue, is due out on Wednesday 14th October 2026!

Nathan

Can’t & Can

Daily Post

You can’t memorise every paper you’ve read for your research but you can be sure of the ones that matter.

You can’t know every question you’ll be asked at your viva but you can be ready to respond to any question you’re asked at your viva.

You probably can’t remove all trace of nervousness but you can build your confidence for the viva.

You can’t be perfect but you can be enough.

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