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Tag: reflection

Nathan

Days Of Work

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Between 700 and 800 days probably, if you’re a full time PhD candidate.

Seven to eight hundred days where you show up to do the work. Maybe some were really light on work but others were full dawn to dusk efforts.

Between seven and eight hundred days. Seven or eight hundred days of opportunities.

Probably not all of those 700 to 800 days were good. I’m sure they weren’t all bad either.

700-800 days of learning. 700-800 days of trying things. 700-800 days of moving your research forwards. 700-800 days of becoming a capable researcher.

Between 700 and 800 days of work. That’s what helps you be ready to succeed at your viva.

Nathan

How You’d Start Over

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If you were to start your PhD over again what would you do differently?

If you were to start again what would you do the same?

I don’t know how often examiners ask these questions. I’ve seen them suggested as good general discussion questions but haven’t verified if they’re widespread.

That said, they might be helpful questions to reflect on during viva prep.

 

What would you do differently? Write down three things you would change. Be specific. Say why. Consider the impact of these changes. What else might change as a result? Could you have done any of these at the time or do you only know this with the benefit of hindsight?

What would you do the same? Write down three things you would not change about your approach. Be specific and say why. What was the impact of these actions and why would it be important for you to do it the same again? Were you sure of their impact the first time around?

 

Your examiners need to unpick your process at the viva. It helps if you take time to do that during your prep.

Nathan

The Firsts

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There are a lot of firsts on your PhD journey.

What was the first day of your PhD like? How far have you come since then?

What was the first paper you read? How did it help?

When did you find an answer to the first question you raised? How many more have you found since then?

What was the first step towards the first big result you got? And what was the first big result?

When did you finish your first draft? How did you improve upon it?

After submission you’ll find your first typo, take your first step to being ready, have your first moment of nervousness at the thought of your viva and eventually face the first question at your viva.

There are a lot of firsts on your PhD journey. Don’t forget them – and don’t forget how much more you have done.

Nathan

Compounding Confidence

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The sooner you start recognising your progress, growth, achievement and talent as you work through your PhD, the sooner you can start to feel confident for your viva.

Confidence compounds over time like interest. Regularly reflecting and reviewing on your PhD journey will help your confidence grow even more.

Nathan

Contribution Is Cumulative

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Or, in simpler words, the value of your work builds over time.

It’s unlikely that there was one particular day of your PhD that you did one particular thing that made the only valuable contribution in your work. Even if your contribution is a big maths theorem or is highlighted by a paragraph that neatly explains the other 70,000 words in your thesis these things don’t just appear. They don’t standalone.

Your contribution is pieced together from all kinds of work over years of effort. As you prepare for your viva take a little time to reflect. How did all of this come together? How did your early results develop? And how did the work change you?

Contribution is cumulative – and so is your capability.

Nathan

Remaking My Viva

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Oh no he’s done it again! It’s another video game related post about the viva!

Which is apt because I’ve been thinking about remakes and remasters of video games. This is the practice of taking an older game that people liked and saying, “We can make this look more fancy and play more modern. We can smooth out the rough edges we couldn’t do anything about in the past.”

It’s also typically a way to make money by tapping into nostalgia and fan curiosity!

 

I had my viva in 2008. I’ve been thinking about what I would change or do differently if I could go back. How would I remake my viva and tweak my experience?

  • I could have asked about what I didn’t know instead of just seeing unknowns. I could have worked to find out more about what to expect.
  • I could have realised that the one person I knew of who had failed didn’t have to define my concerns. I knew over a dozen people who had passed.
  • I was a nervous presenter and felt similar nerves for my viva. I could have worked on building up my confidence or found ways to cope better.

Video game remakes often involve upgrading graphics and appearances. I would definitely change the venue for my viva! There were three of us in a long seminar room with rows of tables and filing cabinets at the back of the room. The room was the dumping ground for the spares and castoffs of my department. It wasn’t the nicest venue for a meeting at any time.

A change of venue would be an upgrade. Spending more time rehearsing would be an upgrade. Knowing more about what to expect would be an upgrade.

But maybe all of the stuff I do wouldn’t exist if I hadn’t had that experience and been thinking about it so much afterwards? Who knows?

 

But never mind my viva, here’s the real point: you can upgrade your viva today.

You don’t need to wait for hindsight. You won’t have a second opportunity to make this the best experience for yourself.

Take a little thought to think about what you need to know and what you need to do. How can you make your viva a great experience? What steps can you take? What actions will steer things closer to how you need them to be?

Nathan

Your Reasons

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There’s a reason you did your PhD.

There’s a reason you used the methods you used.

There are reasons why you think what you think.

There is a reason for the typo at the bottom of page 72.

There are reasons for the work you did and didn’t do.

There are many reasons why you’ll succeed at your viva.

When you can reflect and understand enough of the whys and reasons of your PhD journey then you’re probably ready to share them with your examiners – and ready to succeed.

Nathan

Find Useful Numbers

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In the last few months I passed two milestones in my work helping people get ready for their viva. Through delivering my Viva Survivor and 7 Reasons You’ll Pass Your Viva sessions I passed the 500 session mark – and a little after that I went past the 10,000 participant mark.

Not bad for a quiet and shy mathematician who used to dread presenting, eh?

The numbers don’t tell the full story though. They don’t mention the development, thinking, writing, preparation, admin and behind-the-scenes work that goes into making something – but they are a reminder and a reinforcement for me and my confidence.

If I wake up tired or if something isn’t write when I deliver a session I am reminded that I have done this before and have experience to draw from. I’m not perfect but I am ready. If I’m asked a question that is particularly tricky I can take a deep breath and do my best and feel confident in that.

 

My numbers are reminders for me: what numbers do you have?

The number of days you showed up?

The number of papers you’ve read?

The number of words you’ve written?

The number of challenges you overcame?

There’s a big story behind all of your success. Find useful numbers that remind you of your story and your progress.

Find numbers that remind you of the work you’ve done and what that means.

 

PS: Registration closes at 5pm today for my Viva Survivor webinar! I’m delivering this session tomorrow, Wednesday 3rd December 2025. As I said above, I’ve shared this session a lot –  more than 400 times – and it is my comprehensive live session on getting ready for the viva. Check the link for full details of what to expect and if you’re thinking of signing up you have to do it soon!

Nathan

Five Contributions

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List five contributions to research that you and your work have made, big or small. For each one, write one or two short sentences to respond to each of these questions:

  • When did you do the work that lead to this contribution?
  • Why was this work something you pursued?
  • How did you approach this?
  • Who, if anyone, supported you in this and what did they do?
  • Where does it fit in your thesis?
  • What does this contribution mean to other people?

Five contributions and several sentences for each then gives a fruitful space for further reflection.

How would you organise them? Chronologically? Can you group them into related categories? Do they have similar impact or area of impact? Did one contribution allow for another?

And, more than anything, can you see that with very little provocation there is a lot you can talk about at your viva when it comes to thinking about the contributions you have made?

Nathan

Talent & Work & Time

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Talent, work and time are three related things that help a PhD candidate get to their viva – and help them get through their viva.

You need all three and each of them needs the others.

  • Your talent, by which we mean your capability as a researcher, rests on being developed through your work over a long period of time.
  • The work you do requires ability and a good amount of time for it to be done and to mean something.
  • The time for your PhD journey is necessitated by the work you do and the effort and talent you bring to it.

All three of these are wrapped up in you, your research and your PhD journey. All three of these are behind you, supporting you as you work towards being ready for your viva and then help your success at your viva.

You took the time. You did the work. You have the talent.

That’s how you got this far and it’s how you will succeed at your viva.

 

PS: I’ll be exploring viva confidence, which is what today’s post is all about, at my Viva Survivor webinar on Wednesday 3rd December 2025. I’ve shared Viva Survivor more than 400 times. It is my comprehensive live session on getting ready for the viva covering expectations, viva prep, examiners and more. Check the link for full details of what to expect from the webinar!

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