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Tag: the PhD journey

Nathan

“But There’s A Problem”

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I think nearly all PhD candidates can point to at least one thing in their thesis or research that’s a Problem.

A specific issue, question, idea, result – a thing – that invites reasoned concern. Non-hypothetical, something you can talk about, analyse, offer opinions on, but perhaps something that is still undecided. Is it good or bad? Right or wrong? Perhaps it opposes conventional thinking, or is different to how your examiners might think or approach a topic.

Unlike vague hypothetical worries – resulting from general nerves over the importance of the viva – a Problem can become a focus for concern that can’t simply be defused by general practice and prep. If you have a Problem, you can’t push it away. You have to work with it. Dig deeper, learn more, write notes, discuss it with your supervisor and be ready to discuss it with your examiners.

Remember too that a Problem is not automatically disqualifying. A good thesis does not mean a perfect thesis. A Problem does not mean a fail or even major corrections. After three or more years of research, there may not be the space to remove all problems or Problems from a thesis. You may simply have to say, “This is as far as I could come.”

Also remember, that after three or more years, if you have a Problem in your thesis, then YOU are the person best qualified to understand it. Your work, talent and time created this Problem, but also made you the person most capable to discuss it in the viva.

Nathan

Thoughts on Viva Prep

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A loose collection of thoughts on getting ready for your viva…

If you’ve not submitted your thesis then you don’t need to start getting ready for your viva.

You need time to read your thesis, annotate it, check any relevant papers, make any useful summaries and rehearse.

A useful range for time needed to do viva prep well is 20 to 30 hours, depending on size of thesis, free time, confidence and so on.

Everyone is different:

  • How long do you think that will take for you?
  • How busy are you generally?
  • Then how long before your viva do you need to start preparing so you don’t rush and stress yourself?

Sketch a plan around submission time for how you might do the work. Probably only start the work once you know your viva date. Don’t overcomplicate things. Don’t tie yourself up in knots. If you have a problem, get help. If you need support, don’t be afraid to ask.

Viva prep is work that continues the development that has lead you this far, not something wholly new. You already know and can do the overwhelming majority of what you need to do for your viva when you submit.

Maybe viva prep is not so much getting ready as proving to yourself that you are ready.

Nathan

Does The Viva Matter?

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Yes.

You won’t get your PhD without passing, so it matters.

It may be that your examiners have very few issues with your thesis, no problems to tackle, but they still have to have a good discussion with you. The PhD is for you – the thesis is part of the proof that you have hit a certain high standard. So while the thesis could be convincing, you have to be too.

You have to pass on the day, but you already have to have passed many other challenges. You have to pass, but really you have to already be able to pass to get to the viva.

The viva matters, but don’t forget the journey you’ve completed to get there.

Nathan

Fractions

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A PhD typically takes at least three years. A viva typically takes three hours at most.

Writing a thesis could take months of effort. Preparation for the viva takes maybe a few dozen hours.

The viva takes a fraction of the time you spend preparing for it. Preparation takes a fraction of the time spent writing your thesis – which in turn is only a fraction of the time you spend working towards your doctorate.

The fractions matter, but not as much as the whole they are part of: the viva is important, prep is important, but the real difference that helps you pass your PhD comes from the work you do over a long period of time.

Nathan

Cast Your Mind Back

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What did you not know at the start of your PhD that you know now?

What could you not do at the start of your PhD that you can do now?

You had to start somewhere. There had to be gaps you needed to bridge, things you needed to discover.

Reflecting on your progress should help with confidence for the viva, because you appreciate just how much you must have developed to get the work of your PhD done. You did it, and you must be good enough.

Still, when you look back it can raise the odd worried thought. Perhaps something is unfinished. Perhaps there are gaps in your knowledge. Perhaps there was more to do.

If you have unanswered questions or unpolished skills, it won’t be because you’re lazy. A PhD is long, but doesn’t give enough time to learn everything or become proficient in every method. Perfection is not the standard required for you, your thesis or your viva.

You did the work to get you this far, and you must be talented, you must be good enough. Look back to the start of your PhD to get a sense of just how far you have come.

Nathan

Explaining Absences

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If you had to pause your PhD – for medical reasons, for personal reasons, for pandemic-related reasons – then you can absolutely explain that to your examiners. I think it should be enough to say, “Oh, it was disrupted for personal reasons,” and you’re done. A PhD is important, the viva is important, but the work that goes into them shouldn’t be put on such a pedestal that day-to-day human life is overshadowed by them so completely. But you can say more if you want to.

Most of the time, when someone asks me about anything to do with the viva, my first thought is to direct them to think, “Why?” But absence, whatever the reason, was probably quite personal. I don’t think your examiners need to know “Why?” – so perhaps think “How?” instead.

Think concretely and clearly about the impact that the absence had. Did it pause things? There was a gap and then you had to start again. Did you have to change your plans? Explore the differences brought about by the delay. Did you have to leave things out? List what didn’t make it into your thesis.

For absences, reflect on how it had an impact over why it happened.

Nathan

Scene Changes

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I’m always fascinated by how movies switch perspective or place, or how they jump forward in time.

Sometimes they jump from one place to another, abruptly – you were here with these people, now you’re here with these people!

Sometimes a scene changes with a fade to black……………and then fade back up to the new place or time.

Star Wars is famous for the way it “wipes” to other scenes, a line moving across to take away the old and reveal somewhere new.

And there are movies that show somewhere new, but then also tell us something about where we are with a subtitle – a place or time, a year, a city, and so on.

All of these different techniques do different things. They direct attention, refocus, change expectations – and they make me think about the scene changes for a PhD.

  • How do you go from working perhaps every day to get a thesis finished to life post-submission?
  • How do you frame things now?
  • Is the change a gradual fade to black, or an abrupt stop?
  • Do you need subtitles, new information, a new framing?

Wherever you are in your journey towards thesis completion, or if you’re post-submission already and on the way to the viva, think about the scene changes around you. Unlike a movie, you’re in charge of them. They can be gradual changes, they can come with subtitles to help guide you; you might feel that you have to jump from one thing to another.

Remember that a lot of these things allow you to take some measure of control – maybe not a full Director’s Cut, but you have some authority!

Nathan

It’s Never Just Luck

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“Luck” during a PhD can only come from your working to be in a good space to begin with.

“Luck” with a result or an idea or the final state of your thesis is the result of work, not simple good fortune.

“Luck” in the viva’s outcome denies all you’ve done.

Don’t be so modest. Don’t downplay what you did, and what you can do. Yes, you may have been fortunate, but you still had to work for that opportunity or outcome!

Nathan

Unanswered Questions

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The lack of an answer in your thesis or in the viva doesn’t mean a problem for you.

Perhaps it tells you something about the question. There’s a reason you don’t know. What is it? That’s important.

Or maybe focus on why you can’t give an answer directly. What’s missing? Where’s the gap? That will be important too.

An unanswered question might not be unanswerable forever. Discussing “why you can’t give an answer now” could be the best response you could give in the viva.

Nathan

Unlucky

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Flashback to one of the earliest posts in this blog: “You’re fortunate, you’re not lucky.”

A tricky question, a tough correction, a difficult discussion – none of these are unlucky. They happen for a reason. You missed something. You made a choice that didn’t come together. You had a lapse of concentration. Some of these things may or may not be beyond your control. But still, you’re not unlucky – that would mean that your PhD and viva were just random events.

You’re not simply lucky if you pass; you’re not simply unlucky if something doesn’t work quite right. And given that a massive majority of viva candidates pass the viva, it’s not likely that you would be unfortunate either.

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