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Nathan

Three Mugs Of Tea

Daily Post

On any week day, before work really begins, I need to have had three mugs of tea. There’s nothing super fancy about the tea I drink. It’s not a special blend, made in an ornate pot or served with a wedge of lemon. I just need three mugs to give me enough caffeine and comfort to get to work.

Three will mean I can get to work writing or presenting, thinking or editing. Three mugs will probably get me through the morning. I drink water too, but the tea is the fuel that nudges me to get going.

Could I do the work I need without it? Probably, at least to some extent. It might take longer or I might feel more tired by the end, but I could probably get things done. But it’s a relatively simple need to meet, in order to work well.

With that in mind, what do you need on the day of your viva? What will help you to work at your best?

By the day of your viva you will have finished your research, submitted your thesis and prepared for the day itself. So what simple things could help you feel either more confident or more comfortable for your viva?

Figure out what you need. Make sure you meet those needs. Feel better for your viva.

Nathan

No Need For Luck

Daily Post

You have to have a lot for your viva.

You need some research, developed over several years or more.

You need a thesis, written to an appropriate standard.

You need one or more supervisors to help along the way.

You need a little time to get ready before the viva, doing the right things to help you be prepared.

You need to be a good candidate – someone who has done the work, improved through the effort and success – someone ready to engage with their examiners’ questions.

If these are the things you need to satisfy for the viva then you don’t need luck.

Nathan

Three, Two, One

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Three or more years of research and writing.

Two to four weeks of preparation time.

One day with a challenge.

Put the viva in the right perspective.

Nathan

Finding Reasons

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If before your viva you feel an abundance of nervousness, then you have to look a little and find reasons to feel confident. Confidence doesn’t eliminate nerves, but it does help to put those sorts of feelings into perspective. Nervousness recognises that something is important – confidence gives you the self-belief to know that things will be alright.

Look and find reasons. They could be reminding yourself of all the work you’ve done. They could be bound up in realising just how talented you are. Or you could focus on the process of the viva, what you need to do – what you can do – and what that means for you engaging with that process.

There are plenty of reasons to feel nervous about your viva. There are even more reasons to feel confident of success at your viva. Find them.

Nathan

Candidate & Thesis

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You need both candidate and thesis to be good for a PhD. Your examiners need to ask you – the candidate – about both in the viva.

What’s your thesis’ contribution? How did you do it? And what can you do well?

They’re looking for clear confirmation that your thesis has a significant, original contribution, that you did the work and that you’re a good researcher.

 

If that sounds like a lot, remember:

No candidate, no thesis.

No thesis, no candidate.

 

Nathan

The Magic Numbers

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Some numbers are magical for the viva, and some can only cause you to worry.

Don’t think about how long your viva might be. It’s not worth obsessing over how many pages of references you have in your bibliography. And don’t check your word count to try to boost your confidence.

Instead of counting little details or wondering about things you have no control over, focus on how long you’ve been doing the work.

Several years – which can be properly understood as thousands of hours. Consider the time and effort you will have spent in getting ready for the viva itself. Remember the time invested in becoming a better researcher – and your many achievements along the way.

What other magic numbers could help you feel good for your viva?

Nathan

The End, And Onwards

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If you’re post-submission and trying to prepare for your viva but finding it hard then remember: you could not have got this far unless you were good.

Could you keep going for this long and this far if you were not talented?

Make a plan, ask for help, do a little each day, but remember: you did this. You got this far.

And if you got this far then you can get to the end of your PhD journey, and onto the next adventure.

Nathan

The Demonstration

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The verb that could most clearly summarise what you have to do at the viva is demonstrate. Your examiners have read your thesis. Now they need you to give them more in the viva.

  • You have to share what you know and what you can do.
  • You have to clearly describe and explain what you did for the last few years.
  • You have to show just how good you are as a researcher.

In the viva you’re giving a demonstration of how much you’ve done and how good you are. Your thesis counts towards your success, but you have to be ready on viva day to demonstrate just how capable you are.

Nathan

Focus On The Good Stuff

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There are tricky things to explain in your viva. There will be times when you struggled. There are probably questions still to answer and problems to solve. But you don’t have to exclusively reflect on all of that during your preparation.

  • What is your strongest contribution in your thesis?
  • What were your most rewarding times working on your research?
  • What do you think is the most valuable aspect of your work?
  • Where have you seen yourself grow the most in your own personal development?

Make time before your viva to focus on the good stuff.

Nathan

Knowing Enough

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You can’t know what the first question in your viva be will be until it’s asked.

You can’t know how long your viva will be until your examiners say, “OK, we’re done!”

You can’t know how you will respond to a tricky question until you experience it.

You can’t know in advance just what you’ll need to correct after the viva.

There’s a lot you can’t know before you get to the viva and experience it. That’s just the way it is.

But you can know that you’ve done enough to get you there. You know you’ve done enough to succeed. You know who your examiners are in advance, and can know all about their research, if that helps. You can know what to expect from the viva by reading regulations and listening to stories of viva experiences.

When you stop and think, there’s a lot you can know before you get to your viva.

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