Prep For Your Examiners

Viva prep is for the specific challenges that you’ll find at the viva – and two of those challenges are your internal and external examiners.

• Talk to your supervisors, if you haven’t already, to explore why these academics are good choices to be your examiners.
• Read the most recent publications by your examiners to get a sense of who they are and what they do.
• Rehearse for the viva by having a mock viva so that you have a feel for the process that your examiners will be using on the day.

If the viva is a challenge then it makes sense to focus some preparation on the people who will be challenging you.

PS: Looking for more viva prep ideas and information about examiners? Then check out my live 3-hour Viva Survivor webinar on Wednesday 25th March 2026 where I’ll talk about these topics and a lot more. Attendees get four-week access to a recording of the session and follow-up materials too. There’s more information at the link but please get in touch if you have any questions or want to know more. Thanks for reading!