Daily viva help for PhDs
The skill set, knowledge and attributes you have as a researcher are due to your experience. You are talented because you have put the effort in consistently over a long period of time.
You work through your PhD journey and build up your talent. You pass your viva because of that talent.
Don’t forget that while you get ready. Build a strong foundation of confidence for your viva.
There are many causes of doubt before the viva. One possibility is that a candidate believes some aspect of their research or thesis isn’t good enough. They find a weakness and then can do nothing but dwell on it.
If you find yourself in a similar position, reflect on one or more of the following:
Finally, is it really a weakness? Are you seeing weakness when in fact there is just a small flaw that you are making into a bigger problem than it needs to be?
Say no to distractions. Find time and space to do what you need to for your viva prep.
Say no to typos when you find them in your thesis. They don’t need to be your focus. Make a note and move on.
Say no to other tasks to free up rest time. Getting ready requires more than reading and reflecting. You need time to just rest.
Say no to your doubts, if you have them. Could you have got this far by being merely lucky? Could you have got this far while making serious mistakes?
The answer, of course, is “no”.
A video viva is still just a viva in the same way that an ebook is still just a book. There are fundamentals that we would expect in both cases – a conversation in a viva, text in a book – but features that mark the experiences of a long distance viva or an ebook as being different in some way.
Video vivas require special equipment. There are extra rules and regulations. It really helps if the people involved have had practice with the software beforehand. The distance can cause a signal delay that is awkward at first.
And yet, for all the differences between a video viva and one on campus, it’s still just a viva. Complete within a few hours, very little extra prep, no big differences in what is being done. Rather than focus on what makes the experience unusual compared to previous expectations, it’s much better to invest time in preparing for it.
It’s not necessary for every PhD candidate to cite their examiners in their thesis.
It might be helpful for you in particular to have cited your examiners. Or rather, who you have cited might have an influence on the list of academics who might be considered to be good choices for your examiners.
If, as it turns out, you have cited your examiners then it’s worth looking at their work again during your prep for the viva. Be sure of how you have made use of their work in your own.
If, as it turns out, you have not cited your examiners then it will help you to take a look at their while you get ready. Get a sense of what they do and how it connects with your work, if at all.
You don’t need to cite your examiners in order for them to be good choices. You do need to read their work as part of getting ready, regardless of whether or not you have cited them before.
Between Christmas and New Year I shared some of my favourite writing from 2021. In case you missed those posts here are links to each with a piece that particularly stands out to me.
Best of Viva Survivors 2021: Viva Prep – lots of practical posts but the one that jumps out as always-relevant is Kind Prep. You need to be kind to yourself as you get ready, whatever practical tasks you have to complete.
Best of Viva Survivors 2021: Long Posts – after many interactions with PhD candidates in webinars over the pandemic, Space To Feel was a post I had to write.
Best of Viva Survivors 2021: Short Posts – one of the most helpful framings I’ve found in describing questions in the viva is treating them as Opportunities To Engage. No tricks, no traps, each question is an opportunity.
Best of Viva Survivors 2021: Confidence – I set myself a little challenge in writing The Basics. Confidence comes from many places. A key source could simply be understanding what the viva is all about and realising that, given the situation, you can do well.
2021 was not an easy year and 2022 has not started very well.
I’m always hopeful, but we still live in interesting times. Who knows what the rest of the year will bring?
From me, there will be another year of Viva Survivors posts! Subscribe if you’d like to get them sent to your inbox every day 🙂
Last year I waited for the latest Spider-Man movie for a long time.
I wondered if I would even get to see it at the cinema because of the pandemic. Then I wondered if all of the rumours were true or not – no spoilers in this blog post, don’t worry! Then I built it up in my mind, expecting that it would be good.
The first trailer was amazing! The second trailer was spectacular!! And then after all of that build-up the movie was great!!!
And also over in the space of a few hours. My great expectations were matched and in some cases smashed, but it wasn’t long before reality intruded, work and normal life beckoned…
It’s not wrong to have great expectations about your viva. It’s not wrong to think of it as a big deal. It is, of course, hugely important.
And it will also be over in the space of a few hours. Remember that whatever you expect it will happen and be done on just one day.
Your viva is important – and then you have to go and do something else with the talent, skill and knowledge you’ve developed over the course of your PhD.
You can ask for a break in the viva.
You can let your examiners know that you need one for a medical or health-related reason.
You can ask for one because your viva is becoming long.
You can ask for one if you’re on campus or over video.
You can ask for one if you’ve had one already.
You can ask for one before the end of the first hour.
If you need one, at any time, ask for a break in your viva.
After submission you need to read your thesis to prepare for the viva.
Inevitably you’ll find a word that is in some way wrong. It’s not spelled correctly, it’s the wrong word, you meant something different or perhaps it is a string of words that don’t communicate what you need.
What do you do?
If the typo is simple then you have two choices: underline it in the text or make a clear list. After the viva, when you have to complete corrections, you have an easy-to-follow guide of what to do. You don’t need to correct them now. Marking it in your thesis or having a list is enough for the viva.
If the typo is more complicated then it’s probably best to make a note in the margin of what would be better for your thesis or – if needed – write a longer explanation on a Post-it Note and stick that in. Then you can explain things better – if needed – in the viva and complete the correction more easily afterwards.
Either way, a typo is just a slip that got past you when writing up. It’s part of the process. You get to make it better.
Make a plan for submission. Set milestones to help keep you on track. Check the details for the official things you need to do. Maybe ask a friend to go with you if you have to submit paper copies and make an event of the occasion.
Make a plan for your prep. It doesn’t take a lot to get ready; if you’re already busy it helps to map out what you will do and when you will do it. Ask for help in advance so you can arrange specific times. Start soon enough so you don’t have to rush to finish.
Make a plan for the viva. Think about how you would like it to go, how you would like to present yourself, what you will need for the day. Plan your outfit and supplies. Plan your space if your viva is over video. Decide on how you will try to engage with questions. Check the details but remember that you can’t control everything: you can plan to do your best.
Make a plan for the short break at the end of the viva. Find something to do in that brief period of waiting to occupy yourself.
Finally, make a plan to celebrate your success!