You Are Here

Tag: getting ready

Nathan

No More Feedback

Daily Post

There’s a difference between the thoughts you want from your supervisors before and after submission.

While finishing your thesis there are all sorts of things you might want them to consider. Does it read well? Is this right? Does it communicate what I want it to? Can you spot any typos? You want their thoughts on these and other questions because you want your thesis to be as good as possible. It can’t be perfect, but you want it to be good enough.

Your supervisors’ feedback can be a valuable part of the work that you need to do.

After submission, you still need thoughts from your supervisors but the need is different. You don’t need more ideas or suggestions on how to make your thesis better. Instead you want an outsider perspective. Your methods are sound, but what other approaches are there? Your conclusions are valid, but how else might someone look at what you’ve done? Your work is good, but what other good work could someone do in this area?

You’re not looking for more feedback. You’re looking for a different perspective. Not necessarily your examiners’ perspective, but something different to get you thinking. Listening to different perspectives as part of your prep – and responding to them – can be useful practice for the viva.

Nathan

Getting Prep Done

Daily Post

If viva prep seems hard – you’re tired, stretched, stressed, busy – then think about how you can make doing it somehow rewarding to you.

  • Can you incentivise getting it done?
  • Can you record doing it in a fun way?
  • Can you create a routine or ritual that helps you get the work done?
  • Can you include others in your prep in a useful way?

You need to prepare for your viva, but that need by itself might not be enough. What can you do to help you get it done?

Nathan

Writing A Thesis Blurb

Daily Post

I’m not a fan of the abstract in my thesis:

This thesis uses Kauffman skein theory to give several new results. We show a correspondence between Kauffman and Homfly satellite invariants with coefficients modulo 2, when we take certain patterns from the respective skeins of the annulus. Using stacked tangles we construct a polynomial time algorithm…

And I’ll stop there before I lose every reader of this blog for ever! I look at my thesis now and again, and whenever I read my abstract I think, “What does it all mean? Why would anyone care? Why did I care?”

Of course, abstracts are needed to share what a thesis is about. They have a place. I think it would have been helpful for me, to boost how I thought about my thesis, if I also wrote a blurb – the kind of thing you read on the back of a book or a DVD box that’s there to draw someone in.

Maybe instead of using lots of big words to say very little at all I could have said something like:

Do you like knots but don’t know how to tell them apart? I can help with that! This book describes my explorations of several ideas that explained some unsolved maths mysteries. I went further than anyone else had gone before! I didn’t quite get everything I wanted, but I got more than I thought possible when I started. Read on to find out more!

Perhaps it wouldn’t have what my examiners needed, but it could have done something to help me.

What could you write about your thesis to excite yourself? If your abstract needs a little oomph to boost your confidence, what kind of blurb could you write?

Nathan

Separating Viva Prep

Daily Post

Doing viva prep reminds me a little of separating rubbish into recycling and non-recycling.

For your rubbish you might have two or more bins to collect things in. You could have a system in place for cleaning tins or bottles, stacking them somewhere and so on. It’s not a good idea to put everything in one container and then get on with things: with a little organisation the whole process works better.

It’s a necessary task so it helps to have a good way to get it done.

Viva prep is also better with a little planning. It pays to structure your time. It pays to set tasks in advance rather than decide what to do as you go along. It’s necessary as well: despite the many, many hours of work on your PhD you now need to prepare for the particular challenge of the viva.

Hopefully you get my point – please don’t let your takeaway be that good viva prep is rubbish!

Nathan

Finding Fault With Your Thesis

Daily Post

It’s necessary to read your thesis in preparation for the viva. It’s natural that you might find things you want to change now you’re reading it one more time. It’s possible you could even start to worry about the faults you uncover:

  • Seeing the number of typos…
  • Reading sentences that don’t quite make sense now…
  • Remembering ideas you didn’t include…

All these things have simple explanations. A typo escapes spellcheck. A sentence slips past your proofreading. An idea now seems good that you previously left out. Faults don’t just happen, but that doesn’t mean you’re at fault. You’re human. You’re responsible, but they don’t have to matter as much as you might think.

Most candidates are asked to complete corrections, an opportunity to amend little things and make your thesis better. The great majority of candidates are also responsible for doing research that matters and writing a thesis that contains a significant original contribution.

You’re responsible for both the little faults and the great, big wonderful parts of your thesis.

Nathan

Ask Yourself Why

Daily Post

When you’re getting ready for your viva it could help to ask yourself why a lot.

  • If something is particularly strong in your research: why is this good?
  • If you find a typo or a part that needs changing: why will that change make things better?
  • If you find yourself unsure about something: why are you unsure and what could you do?
  • If you feel nervous, confident, uncertain or amazing: why do you feel that way and what does that mean for you?

Whatever happens, whatever you find, what you feel – if you ask yourself why you can go a little deeper. Ask yourself why and you can uncover more.

Ask yourself why and you can find a way to become even more ready for your viva.

Nathan

Catastrophes

Daily Post

Last Christmas Eve just after dark, without warning, there was a power cut in our neighbourhood.

In our house our whole evening changed. Plans for a festive dinner and a movie were abandoned. We made sandwiches by torchlight and ate them nestled under blankets. We read with candles and kept busy with little jobs so that we didn’t think too much.

When I did think I could only worry and imagine the worst. What if the power didn’t come back on? Would everything in our fridge and freezer be ruined? Would we be able to celebrate Christmas the next day?

Over the course of a few hours the power kept coming back on and then shutting off abruptly. Then it stayed off again for a long time.

What now? What should we do?

For half an hour I just panicked. Then by torchlight I got out my notebook and wrote:

We’re fortunate enough to have torches. The power will get fixed at some point. We’re fortunate enough that we could buy more food if needed. We can still find a way to celebrate. We can find other options. It’s not ideal but we can figure it out. We will still have Christmas.

I felt better. I didn’t know what was going to happen, but I knew that whatever did happen we could do something.

Moments later the power came back on and stayed on. I felt a little anxious for the next few hours that it would go off suddenly, but the problem was resolved. We went to bed and the next day was Christmas, just as we’d planned.

 

On Christmas Eve I was catastrophising the situation. Something went wrong, suddenly, and all I could do was imagine the situation getting worse and worse.

The power cut hit me out of the blue, completely unexpected, but for the viva some potential situations can be anticipated. And depending on how you view things, you could believe that you have a future catastrophe. What would you do?

You could forget something.

Your examiners could ask a tough question.

You could doubt yourself.

There could be a delay.

And so on. Lots of things could happen. They could happen. They might not. And even if they do they’re not totally beyond your power to resolve or do something about.

A delay could be uncomfortable, but you could find a way to use the time. If you doubt yourself at any point then you can find a way to remember the contribution you’ve made in your thesis and the talent you’ve developed as a researcher. A tough question or a forgotten detail will not disqualify you from achieving your PhD; taking a moment to think is probably all you need.

Expected and unexpected “catastrophes” are not always as terrible as they first appear. A problem or situation may not be as dire as it seems. Even when confronted with a tricky situation you have the talent and knowledge to do something.

Nathan

Push Yourself

Daily Post

In preparation for the viva it might help to push yourself, to make that extra effort even if it’s hard. You don’t have to do a lot, push yourself, just a little.

  • Push yourself to read your thesis, even if you’re bored!
  • Push yourself to find out more about what to expect.
  • Push yourself to read your examiners’ recent papers.
  • Push yourself to practise being in the viva.
  • Push yourself to believe that you can be confident of your success.

Push yourself before the viva; then when you meet your examiners the experience won’t be a surprise or a great stretch for you.

Nathan

Corrections & Confidence

Daily Post

Consider making two lists as you read your thesis in preparation for the viva.

On one list, make a note of any typos that you find or any sentences that you think need revising. On the other, make a note of anything that you think is good, great or amazing.

After you’ve made your lists put the first one away until after the viva. You’ll find it useful then to help you complete your corrections.

Look at the second list every day on the lead up to your viva. Remind yourself that you have done good work and you can be confident that your thesis has value.

Corrections need to be done eventually. Before the viva it’s far more important to look for things that will help your confidence.

Nathan

Remember You Are Talented

Daily Post

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.

1 … 46 47 48 49 50 … 67