You Are Here

Tag: thesis annotation

Nathan

Exact/Precise

Daily Post

At the viva you’re expected to know your stuff but you’re not expected to know everything.

What kinds of details do you need to know? How exact or precise do you need to be? That depends on your research and how you did it but here are some general things to consider:

  • Ask your supervisor and colleagues. Talk to them to get reasonable expectations for your discipline.
  • Annotate your thesis to make important information easier to navigate to and easier to see at a glance.
  • Take time to create summaries that bring together details that matter so that you prime your memory and thinking for the viva.

And most general of all: consider what the viva is really for. When you have a good sense of what your examiners are there to ask about, even if you don’t know the precise questions, then you can help yourself to get ready for the experience.

Nathan

Top Of The Page

Daily Post

Annotating your thesis is a useful way to make a more valuable resource for your viva and spend some productive time thinking about your work in preparation.

There are lots of things you could do – add bookmarks, underline words, highlight sections – but here are five possibilities for the top of a page:

  • Write a ten-word-or-less summary of the page’s contents.
  • Use keywords to give a quick overview of the page’s highlights.
  • List one key reference for the page.
  • Add a possible question that could be asked about the contents.
  • Write “You can do it” as a reminder that you’re going to succeed.

What else could you add to the top of each page in your thesis to help you out? And what other annotations are you considering for your thesis?

 

PS: if you are looking for more viva help then you have to check out Viva Survivors Select 13, The Personal Issue. The latest issue of my viva help zine came out yesterday and is packed with advice and help on all the ways the viva is personal to the candidate – just like making your annotation right for you!

Nathan

Framing The Page

Daily Post

Every page in your thesis has a significant border. You don’t need to fill all of that space to annotate your thesis well and be ready for your viva. You can make some sensible additions to your thesis pages to make your thesis as useful as possible:

  • You can add sticky notes or bookmarks to help navigate your thesis;
  • You can add short summaries at the top of key pages;
  • You can use colour to draw your attention to specific sentences;
  • You can add notes to help unpick or explain your writing;
  • You can add reminders for the things you really need to remember.

And you can do a lot more.

You don’t need to fill your pages to be well prepared. You can do what you need to get the most from your thesis.

Nathan

120 Words

Daily Post

I was going through my files in the last few months and found the speech I gave at my sister’s wedding. When I gave the speech I was nervous but I also had a fair amount of experience with speaking in public so it wasn’t too bad. I got some laughs, I encouraged a few heartfelt tears and I didn’t take too long.

To help with the latter I researched a typical speaking speed: the low end estimate is 120 words per minute. If I didn’t want to speak for more than five minutes, I had to say everything I needed in 600 words, give or take. That was my guideline as I drafted and redrafted.

Now, at the viva you’re not required to give a response within a time or word limit, but thinking a little about them in preparation can help you shape your responses:

  • If you write a short 120 word summary over a handful of sentences then you know that’s about a minute of speech.
  • If you write ten keywords then that can help jog some thoughts.
  • If you write a full page you know that’s a lot to say.

You don’t want to take notes and prompts to the viva – although you might want to consider annotating your thesis to mark things out usefully – but you can make a variety of summaries and prompts in advance to help you think through how you talk about things generally.

Adding this to rehearsal can give you a lot of practice at shaping and sharing your thoughts. You’re not limited to 120 words – but maybe considering a range of options can help you find what feels right for you.

Nathan

Refreshing Your Memory

Daily Post

Photographic recall isn’t needed for viva success. You are expected to know about your field and remember your research but you don’t need to know everything. Your thesis is a resource you can use in your viva to support your memory, your thinking in the moment and what you’re saying in response to your examiners’ questions.

If you worry about remembering things or simply want to be well prepared then you can take steps in your viva preparation to refresh your memory and support yourself in the viva.

  • Read your thesis carefully during prep.
  • Add sticky notes or bookmarks to help you navigate your thesis.
  • Annotate anything in your thesis that you want to stand out.
  • Find opportunities to rehearse responding to questions.

Build your knowledge, refresh your understanding and find ways to prompt your memory. That’s enough to help you be ready for your viva.

 

PS: if you’re looking for more ideas of what you need to be ready for your viva (and what you can do to help yourself) then check out Viva Survivors Select Volume 1. This is my complete collection of helpful viva zines I made last year. Volume 1 has eight issues, 165 curated posts from the archives and lots of new helpful resources – plus an introductory offer price until 31st January 2026!

Nathan

Little Differences

Daily Post

Thesis annotation is an accumulation of little differences.

Margin notes, underlining, bookmarks, highlighting, red pen, encouragements and more.

All of those little differences become a big improvement on your thesis for the viva.

What will you add to make your thesis better?

 

Nathan

Keeping Tabs

Daily Post

What can you do with sticky notes and highlighter tabs as part of viva prep?

  • Plan out your tasks!
  • Mark out chapters!
  • Point to typos!
  • Highlight key references!
  • Draw attention to important paragraphs!
  • Add notes!
  • Mark out key sections!
  • Colour code information!
  • Leave encouragements for yourself!

This is scratching the surface of course. There’s a lot you can do with very basic stationery to help make your thesis much more valuable as a resource for the viva.

Think about your needs. Keep it simple but get the most from your thesis and do what you can to build yourself up.

Nathan

Top & Bottom

Daily Post

Header and footer margins are fairly big in a formatted thesis. Plenty of space for you to add useful notes.

At the top of a page you might:

  • Write a short sentence about the page contents;
  • Have a keyword;
  • Highlight a particular place on the page;
  • Leave an encouraging note;
  • Write a reminder.

At the bottom of a page you might:

  • Add a remark about a key reference;
  • Summarise any corrections you expect;
  • Note any particular points you expect questions on;
  • Leave another encouraging note;
  • Write another reminder!

There’s a lot of space at the top and bottom of every page in your thesis. Plenty of space for you to add useful notes – but you have to decide what will be most helpful for you.

Nathan

Margin Space

Daily Post

In preparation for your viva you can use margin space to add to your thesis and make it as useful as possible for your viva.

You also need to balance.

Helpful but not overfull.

It doesn’t make sense to try to cram long sentences in.

Start by deciding on what you need from the space. What do you need to add to your thesis to make it useful? What does it make sense to put in the margin?

Keywords? Stickers and sticky notes? Things that draw attention to specific lines?

You have a lot of space in the borders. Your margins can be a useful space for viva prep, but don’t leave them cramped. The point is to make something useful for your viva.

A little thought and a little annotation goes a long way.

 

PS: viva coming up and an hour free tomorrow morning? Check out the details of 7 Reasons You’ll Pass Your Viva which is running at 11am tomorrow (Wednesday 24th September 2025). Find out why you can be confident, get access to a catch-up recording and my pdf guide to getting ready for the viva. Registration closes later this afternoon.

Nathan

Choose Your Highlights

Daily Post

There’s a lot you could highlight in the text of your thesis as part of viva preparation. You could highlight:

  • Key questions you have found answers to;
  • Essential references you want to make stand out;
  • Quotes that help you to explain something;
  • Key numbers that make sense of data;
  • Important pages or sections you want to be able to find.

There’s a lot you could highlight. It’s your choice to decide what matters most and where to direct your attention.

 

The same is true when it comes to the things you highlight from your PhD journey. What are the highlights of the years you have spent working on your research and thesis? What do you want to remember? Where will you choose to put your attention?

What you choose to highlight makes a difference to your preparation and your confidence for your viva.

1 2 3 … 7