Creative Rehearsal

A mock viva is one approach that you can take to rehearsing for your viva. It’s typically a good approach. Sitting down with your supervisor and responding to questions that are representative of what you’d find at the viva is a great practice.

It’s not the only way though:

• Have a mini-viva: ask friends to use a resource to have a chat!
• Go for coffee: if your friends know a little they can ask relevant questions!
• Give a seminar: invite a group to ask questions after a short presentation!
• Ask me anything: sit down in your department with a sign saying that you’re accepting all questions about your research for a few hours!

You can get creative with rehearsing for your viva. The closer your practice to the expected viva experience the better – but don’t undervalue the emotional help that doing something fun could have.

How else could you get creative with your viva prep?