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Tag: the PhD journey

Nathan

Goodbyes

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Goodbye to your office and officemates perhaps, to a community of fellow travellers on the road to academic success.

 

Goodbye to the piles of paper and folders of files. Whatever your future plans you might be letting go of a lot of stuff.

 

Goodbye to your institution? Maybe. Goodbye to where you live now? Perhaps. There can be a lot of logistics and a lot of feelings that go with moving on from the PhD.

 

Goodbye to the You-That-Was-A-PhD-Candidate. Hello to the You-That-Is-A-PhD-Graduate.

Hello to You-Who-Survived – you managed to keep going in difficult circumstances.

 

At some point after your viva you’ll have to say some goodbyes. And at some point you have to figure out what all of that means for you. Take your time.

Say your goodbyes. Be ready for the feelings. Be ready to say a few hellos too.

Nathan

Imperfect Metrics

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Viva success is not based on how many days you showed up to do your work.

Success isn’t determined by the number of chapters you have written, the number of papers you cited, how many conference talks you’ve delivered or whether you have several publications out there.

All these numbers can give a boost to your confidence though. The numbers mean you did something, repeatedly, and over a long period of time.

You need to look a little deeper for proof of your knowledge and capability as a PhD candidate, but a good starting point might be the imperfect metrics of a few numbers that show you did the work.

They count for something.

Nathan

Qualified

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Three qualified people is what you have, at a minimum, at your viva.

Every viva in the UK has one candidate and at least two examiners.

The latter are qualified because of how they are selected. They need to meet criteria, such as having a doctorate, experience and training. There will be a specific reason why they were asked to be your examiners rather than someone else.

You are qualified because you did the work. You invested the hours. You made something. So you’re capable now and qualified to be at your viva.

 

Remember: qualified is not a synonym for perfect. No-one at your viva is perfect or is expected to be perfect. You’re all just continuing to demonstrate your best and most capable selves.

Nathan

Your Viva, Your Prep

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There are regulations, trends for the viva process and departmental good practice which can give you an idea of what your viva might be like – but then your viva will be one of a kind, unique and never repeated.

There are a lot of well-founded good ideas for the general process of viva preparation, both in terms of what someone could do to get ready and when – but your situation is unique, your preferences are your own and you have to make it work well for you.

 

Vivas are unique to the individual, their research, their thesis and their circumstances – even while there are lots of things that can be certain or expected about the process.

Viva prep is the same: unique to the individual but grounded on good practice and useful ideas that are applicable by any candidate.

What do your PhD circumstances mean for your viva? What do they mean for your viva prep?

Nathan

It’s One Day

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That’s the viva: one day after many days.

A few hours after several thousand hours.

One conversation after many conversations.

One more challenge after many, many challenges.

 

Your viva is a few hours on one day. A conversation that matters. A real challenge after you have already overcome a lot of challenges. It’s not trivial but nor is it so far above and beyond anything you’ve done and everything you’re capable of.

You did the work over many thousands of hours. Show up and do a little more.

Nathan

Don’t Wait

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Don’t wait until your viva day to think about how you explain your contribution.

Don’t wait until your viva day to wonder about what your examiners might ask.

Don’t wait until your viva day to experience what it’s like to be asked a question about your work.

Don’t wait until your viva day to find out what vivas are like.

Don’t wait until your viva day to know whether or not you’re ready.

Nathan

The Secret

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There’s a really obvious trick to viva success. It’s a secret hidden in plain sight, obvious when explained, and even though it makes absolute sense some candidates refuse to believe it even when it’s pointed out to them.

Are you ready?

 

The secret is that it takes a dedicated, knowledgeable and capable PhD researcher to succeed at the viva.

That’s it. Someone who has done the work. Someone who showed up. Someone who grew and learned and can demonstrate that.

Sound like someone you know?

Nathan

Being Hard On Yourself

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Any candidate could have done more or could have done things differently during their PhD.

There always other options. There are always missed opportunities. And there is always the benefit of knowing now what you didn’t know then.

Reflecting a little about possibilities could be useful, but will it help to be hard on yourself? Will it help you get ready for your viva by stressing about what you could or would or should have done? Will it help to put that extra pressure on yourself?

There is a big difference between reflecting on the journey and thinking about what you “should” have done. Mark the line and don’t cross it. Don’t be hard on the person you were when you did the work. Don’t be hard on yourself now as you get ready for your viva.

Nathan

All The Choices

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When you reflect on your PhD journey, take a little time to think about the choices you made.

  • Some choices will have been about purpose. How you wanted to do things and how you did them. Were you able to follow your intentions? Did they lead where you expected?
  • Some choices will have been about options. Do you pick Plan A or Plan B? How did you make the choice? Did it work out as you thought it would and what did you learn along the way?
  • Some choices will have been hard. How did you arrive at that situation? Was there any other choice open to you?

Looking back, some choices might seem like they were obviously right. For some you might now think that you would choose differently. Hindsight is wonderful.

Looking back you can see that you have got to the end of your PhD with work, growth, adding to knowledge and by making choices. These choices alone don’t have to define you, but they do influence how you think about yourself, your work and your PhD.

If you’ve not arrived at your viva day yet, you still have time to make choices that can help you get ready.

Choose wisely.

Nathan

You Make It Good

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Remember that the contribution in your thesis is only there because you did the work.

Remember that your thesis, imperfect though it probably is, only exists because you took the time to write it.

Remember that you have got to your viva because you put in the effort over a very long period of time.

Whatever your research, your thesis and your viva have that make them good is because of you.

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