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Tag: responding to questions

Nathan

Two Pictures

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I wanted to call this post…

The Picture In My Head Is Not The Picture In Your Head

…but even I have my limits!

This phrase came to me recently when my daughter was trying to explain something from school. She was getting frustrated, starting to tire of my questions until just before she got angry I thought to say, “Sweetie, the picture in my head is not the picture in your head. I don’t understand yet what you mean, so I have to ask questions to try and imagine what you’re seeing.”

And she stopped and considered; then we started again and after a few more minutes there was understanding.

Your thesis has tens of thousands of words, and the picture it puts in your examiners’ heads may not match the picture you have in yours. So they have to ask questions.

The picture of a viva in your mind might be muddled or unclear compared to the stories your friends tell you. Asking questions and listening to the responses helps.

Your description of your contribution to research, while clearly matching the picture in your head, may be lacking detail when a reader sees it in their mind.

The picture in my head is not the picture in your head. And the picture in your head is not the same as the picture in your examiners’ heads, your supervisor’s mind and so on.

Patient listening helps. Careful questions help. Practice before the viva helps your performance on the day.

You can’t simply will someone to see the picture you see.

You can learn how to guide someone to a closer understanding of your picture though.

Nathan

Show Your Working

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These three words were drilled into me in my former life as a mathematician. In solving a maths problem it wasn’t enough to find an answer, I had to show how I had got there. I couldn’t claim a result without proof.

“Show your working” is important for PhDs more generally, not just for low-dimensional topologists!

Postgraduate researchers show their working in their thesis, but then also in the viva. They have to explain their thinking, share the knowledge they have and demonstrate their ability.

A viva isn’t only about reciting facts. You have to show your working – but of course, by this stage, you must have a lot of experience doing that. Preparing for the viva is partly reviewing those experiences, and partly practising doing it one more time.

Show how you’ve worked in your viva – and show once again how you can do the work.

Nathan

Facts, Opinions, Hunches

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I know. I think. I feel.

There’s a place for all in the viva, potentially.

Some questions will hit a target made up of facts. Things you know. Things you have discovered.

For some questions you weigh up information against your experience and knowledge. You think and offer what you think is appropriate. Perhaps someone else could think differently.

Then you could be asked a question and you don’t have an answer. You have nothing to weigh up. Instead you could offer what your gut feeling says. A hunch you can’t shake. This could be right or wrong – and there might be no way of anyone knowing.

You can know, think or feel in the viva. In all cases you have to be clear. Be clear with what you’re saying to your examiners. Be clear in your own mind so that you don’t confuse yourself.

Listen to the question, pause and then see: do you know, think or feel your response?

Nathan

Dressing Your Ideas

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I’m a huge Hercule Poirot fan.

I’ve read most of the novels by Agatha Christie. I love the many adaptations featuring David Suchet. Indeed, this isn’t the first time that I’ve exercised my little grey cells to write a post with the Belgian Detective in mind.

For our recent anniversary my wife bought me a little book of Poirot quotes. The first quote listed in the book really resonated with me:

“Words, mademoiselle, are only the outer clothing of ideas.”

I like this. Words express ideas; they’re not the ideas themselves. When one responds to a question – say, in the viva – one has to choose words to help express the idea one wants to share. Words are only the outer clothing though. It’s important then to pick them carefully when responding to a question.

Practise or rehearsal before the viva can help a lot. Time spent reflecting on fundamental concepts or the findings of your research can help you to share your ideas effectively.

Exercise your little grey cells in preparation and you’ll be rewarded when you make the same efforts in the viva.

Nathan

Easy or Hard?

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Questions in the viva do not fall neatly into one of two piles.

Easy and hard are relative terms that don’t help to describe the questions that prompt the kind of discussion found in the viva.

An easy question for one candidate could be very hard for another.

An easy-to-ask question could have a very hard-to-formulate response.

A hard question could have been considered many times before by a candidate, while an easy question has no certain response.

Best to get away from labels of easy and hard completely.

Questions in the viva can be challenging or not. In either case, they are there to drive the discussion. They’re asked with an expectation of a response from the candidate. You can’t predict what questions you will be asked before your viva, but you can prepare yourself to respond to whatever question your examiners bring to you.

Nathan

Spotlight

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A part of my discomfort before my viva was due to general nervousness and lack of confidence in presenting and discussing my work. I knew my stuff but I wasn’t comfortable talking about it. I didn’t want to be in the spotlight!

A mock viva would have helped.

Talking about my research with friends would have helped.

Learning more about vivas would have helped.

If the viva spotlight seems at all scary to you then the best thing you can do is find a way to rehearse. The second best thing is to learn more of what to expect from that spotlight experience to prepare yourself.

Rehearsal is the key though: find and use opportunities to simulate the viva ahead of time.

Nathan

Too Little, Too Much

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If you say too little in the viva then your examiners will ask for more.

If you’re saying too much then they will steer the conversation with comments and questions.

Don’t worry about whether you’re saying too little or too much in the viva. Show up ready to listen, respond and engage with the discussion.

Nathan

Reframe

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As you prepare for your viva, consider your thesis as the record of your research.

You followed a method or were guided by a particular reference. Why? What did that give you? What if you had followed another method? What if you used a difference reference?

Reframing could help you to see other possibilities – not better, but maybe not worse. Something different.

Reframing could help you add more evidence for your thinking: now you are even more certain you made the right choice.

This kind of reframing can open your mind to questions from your examiners. They might ask you to consider other perspectives. They will probably ask questions to gain a better  understanding of your perspective. The more practice you have before the viva, the more comfortable this could be when you meet your examiners.

Nathan

All The Answers

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Knowing exactly what to say to answer every question in your viva isn’t a reasonable expectation. It’s not required for the viva. Your examiners don’t expect it from you. You would probably need to know all of the questions before they were asked (and you won’t).

You’re not expected to know all the answers, but you are expected to respond to every question.

A response could be an answer or an opinion. A response could be sharing an idea or offering a hypothesis. A response could be a gut feeling or a question for clarification.

A response could even be saying “I don’t know,” and then explaining why.

You can’t have all the answers but you have many options for offering a response.

Nathan

Pause, Think, Respond

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The three words to keep in mind when you are in your viva.

Pause: take a moment to check you understand the question.

Think: invest a little time into organising your thoughts.

Respond: start talking, being clear to yourself and your examiners.

  • Big question? Pause, think, respond.
  • Little question? Pause, think, respond.
  • Easy question? Pause, think, respond.
  • Hard question? Pause, think, respond.
  • Know the answer? Pause, think, respond.
  • Haven’t a clue? Pause, think, respond.

Pause because you don’t need to rush. Taking time will help how you think and what you say.

Think because that’s the only way to get the ideas that you need to come out right.

Respond because you might not always have an answer, but you can always find something appropriate to continue the conversation.

In your viva: pause, think, respond.

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