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Tag: reflection

Nathan

Peaks & Valleys

Daily Post

Viva confidence can come from reflecting on the years you’ve invested into your research and thesis. The journey has to show progress, personal growth and development and times that you’ve succeeded in your goals.

Looking back could also show you times when things didn’t work out, or when you faced setbacks. Particularly given the last few years you might remember the impact of the pandemic, both personally and professionally.

When you reflect it’s good to consider both the high points and the low. Use specific questions to unpick how a situation had an impact and what it’s lead to now.

  • A High Point: What happened? How did you come to succeed/develop/grow? Why has that contributed to your confidence now?
  • A Low Point: Why was this a difficult moment? How did you get through this? What have you done to learn from this time?

Highs and lows, peaks and valleys, whatever we call them, every journey of growth and progress has them. No plan goes unchallenged, there are always obstacles to overcome. But if you’re looking back on your PhD and getting ready for your viva, remember that you have overcome your challenges. You have done enough.

Don’t dig too deep into anything painful, but also remember that you have made it through your low points of your PhD. Keep going now and you will succeed at your viva.

Nathan

Use Everything

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Do everything you can to improve your feeling of confidence for your viva. Look back at the story of your PhD and take apart all the key moments and stages to show how you have become a capable, talented researcher.

Examine your successes. Unpick the work you did, what happened as a result and what that has meant for your research and for you.

Explore your setbacks and failures. Why did things go wrong? What did you do to change your approach as a result? What did you learn from those experiences?

Estimate the amount of work you invested. How many days did you show up? How many hours? Realise that you stayed committed to your work, even when it was a challenge.

What other numbers could help you to see the scale of what you’ve done? The number of words written? Papers read? Meetings attended and talks given?

Find ways to remind yourself. Statistics help, but stories help more. Do things that help you to feel confident. Wear clothes that help you feel good. Your confidence is not only rooted in the pages of your thesis and what you did to write them.

Use every opportunity you can find to build up your confidence for the viva. There are many, many reasons to feel certain of your success. Do what you can to remind yourself of them as you get ready.

Nathan

Just A Moment

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Just a moment.

That’s all you need, compared to the years of work in your PhD already, in order to get ready for your viva.

Just a moment.

The shortest of pauses, used regularly throughout the viva, is all you’ll need to think carefully before you engage with your examiners’ questions.

Just a moment…

…is how long your viva could feel! Hours passing by quickly because of how focussed you feel.

Just a moment.

Corrections requested, done, checked and then the thesis is finally – finally! – completed.

Just a moment.

A brief second in time where you cross a stage to shake a hand or receive a certificate in the post to say “You did it.”

 

The end of the PhD is a series of moments. Little snapshots where you do a little more, demonstrate who you are and celebrate your success. A short series of moments, following years of experience, growth and development.

If the end is hard, remember all the work that has brought you this far. Remember that it really won’t be long before you’re finished.

Nathan

Five Questions

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A little exercise that might help with viva prep and getting ready.

Take a sheet of paper and divide it into quarters, giving yourself space to write notes in response to the following questions:

  1. What were your greatest challenges doing your PhD?
  2. What would you change about how you did your research?
  3. How would you summarise your thesis’ contribution to knowledge?
  4. What changes did you make during your research process?

Read through your responses. Turn the page over and write: 5. So what have you learned during your PhD?

Respond to the question on the second page while reflecting on the previous four responses.

You’ll have lots of specific and personal learning from your PhD journey, but your response to the fifth question could be summarised as a lot.

 

PS: One more question! If you’re looking for more viva help, can you please take a look at and support my Kickstarter campaign, running until 31st May? 101 Steps To A Great Viva is a helpful little guide to getting ready and I’m crowdfunding a print run. Any support or sharing is greatly appreciated 🙂

Nathan

Techniques

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A small piece of viva prep: think back over your PhD and pick a method you learned, a piece of software or equipment that you became familiar with or a process for getting things done that you put together.

Unpick the steps involved for what you’ve selected.

  • What do you do at each stage?
  • How do you do it?
  • Why?
  • How well does it work for you?
  • And what has it helped you do over the course of your PhD?

When you reflect on the techniques you’ve learned or developed you have to appreciate the talent, work and time you have invested in your journey. There’s always more to learn and more to do, but you could only have come this far by becoming good at what you do. Remember that as you prepare for your viva.

Nathan

Changes After Submission

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You might have corrections to complete after the viva, but between submission and the viva you don’t need to make any alterations.

Find a typo? Underline it or add it to a list.

See a reference that needs a tweak? Write in the margins or add it to a list.

Read a sentence that could be better? Underline it, write in the margins or add it to a list!

You don’t need to make changes to your thesis, but you might need to make changes to yourself between submission and the viva.

You might need to change your mind on what the viva will be like, if you hear more positive expectations than the worries you’ve been carrying around.

You might need to change your perspective on your examiners if you learn a little about their research.

And you might have to change the story you tell yourself about how capable you are, if you’re feeling a lack of confidence after submission.

After submission, change yourself – not your thesis.

Nathan

Part Of Something

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Remember that as you finish your PhD journey and have your viva that you are part of something.

Several somethings!

  • You are part of a community: there are many people around you who can offer support.
  • You are part of a tradition: lots of vivas happen every year and lots have happened in the past – stories and expectations are not hard to find.
  • You are part of a genealogy of researchers: whatever your path from here on, you can still share your experience and help with future generations, just as you have had help on your journey.

Also remember that your PhD journey is only a part of you: not all of you and not the best of you. As you finish that journey you have to figure out what it really means for your future and what you will do next.

Nathan

To Be Continued

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After submission you need to prepare for your viva – but you also need to prepare for life after the PhD.

For some that could be simple (or welcome!) but for all candidates, particularly those who have attachments to physical spaces, people or even access to resources, consider:

  • What do you need to take home with you? When will you do it? How will you do it?
  • Who do you need and want to stay in contact with? How will you do that?
  • What will you do when you don’t have access to library resources, software or other things that disappear when you are no longer a student? If you’re typically contactable by a university email address, how will you tell people where to find or reach you?

If you’re not sure if you plan to continue with research in some way, then really think about what you need to take home. Do you need all your notes? Do you need all of your papers?

Whatever you need to do, remember that life goes on. You will continue to have opportunities to show your ability and knowledge. Reflect on what you are taking away from your PhD journey – and remember that all of that talent and capability is available to you in your viva as well.

Nathan

Three Things

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Do you want a simple task to help how you feel about your viva?

Every day after submission, take five minutes to write down three things about your research: things that you know are good, that you’re proud of, that you know turned out well or that you know make a difference.

Three things, every day. Three things about your work that then go into the mix of thoughts and feelings for your viva. Three things you could draw on as you go to the viva to share your work. Three things to help build your confidence before you meet your examiners.

Viva prep takes more than five minutes each day after submission, but little tasks can make a big difference. Start with three things to help your viva preparation.

Nathan

What’s Important?

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Two words to prompt reflection on nearly every aspect of the viva and viva prep.

What’s important…

  • …about your thesis? Explore it chapter by chapter with a notebook in hand. Make notes about anything that stands out to you.
  • …about your PhD journey? When you think back over how you did the work, what matters?
  • …about your viva expectations? What do you need to know more about and what are you comfortable with?
  • …about your examiners? Who are they, what do they do and what might they ask?
  • …about your viva preparations? What do you have to do and when will you get the work done?

What’s important? Two words that can start your thinking, exploring and working towards what you need. The examples I give above might help, but maybe for your situation you need to focus on something else.

So ask yourself: what’s important?

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