Daily viva help for PhDs
“Ready for the viva” doesn’t mean “not nervous about the viva”.
Ready doesn’t mean perfect in any way.
Ready and prepared aren’t quite the same thing – but they travel in the same car.
Ready for the viva means you’ve practically prepared and found some confidence for the day.
There’s always more that you could do to feel more ready, but a finite list of tasks is sufficient to get you ready.
Ready is personal. What does it mean for you?
Sticking Post-it Notes to mark the start of chapters.
Bookmarking the webpage with your university’s viva regulations.
Underlining a typo, and then leaving it alone.
Making a list of things you know.
Reminding yourself that you are talented.
There’s lots of big pieces of work that help someone like you create a thesis. There’s lots of big things that you need to do to get ready for your viva.
Don’t forget the little things that will help too.
Count them up to build your confidence for the viva. All along the timeline of your PhD – months of work, weeks of grinding through papers, projects and problems – nestled here and there are moments of shining success. Brief joyous periods where you figured something out, or the data said what you hoped or you found an answer!
And then you were back to work, looking for the next thing…
The work matters: it shows your determination, your skill, your talent. You stuck to it!
The success matters: it shows that you achieved something. You did it!
It’s easier to see the work than the success sometimes. Recognise them both as you prepare for your viva.
What are the most important papers or ideas that started your research journey?
What were the most important days of your PhD?
What are the most important passages in your thesis?
Where did you do the most important work of your research?
What are the most important skills you’ve developed or built on while doing your PhD?
All of these questions have subjective responses, but are all worth considering. Your work must have important stuff, and even with typos or different perspectives or things that could be changed, it’s far better to focus on what is important and good about your research, than direct attention to things that could detract.
A question with an objective response: who did the work to create a thesis from all of this important stuff?
(don’t forget the answer to that one)
I’d say a good 75% of my PhD results seemed obvious afterwards:
All obvious afterwards and in some cases very simple to explain to others. I remember two pages of my thesis that describe a process which took me upwards of 100 pages of notes to figure out the first time! 100 pages to figure out notation, to understand with near-endless diagrams what was happening, capture intermittent steps to show what was working and so on. Two pages in my thesis.
The rough work, long thinking and difficult days that lead to simplicity and “obvious” answers in your thesis or research are worth remembering. The outcome and answers matter, but don’t lose sight of the work – and the person who did it!
Two words to describe what you have when you start a PhD – in a way, the reasons why you were accepted on the programme.
You showed something, in your application or interview. You had some skills, some knowledge, some enthusiasm – some combination of all of these.
You didn’t have everything you needed to finish your PhD at the start, but you had the promise and potential to find success.
Consider, now that you’re probably closer to the end, what did you have when you began? And what do you have now?
Potential realised? How? What did you do to get this far? And how far might you go now that the end of your PhD is near?
Edison failed in his pursuit of a lightbulb 500 times, 1000 times or even 10,000 times depending on which (probably exaggerated!) account you read. What is certain is that he made mistakes, but he didn’t really fail because he kept pursuing. He tried things, probably believing for good reasons that he would be successful, but he was wrong a lot.
All of that wrong helped him to be ultimately right.
Now, hopefully you haven’t succeeded in spite of 10,000 mistakes during your PhD – but if you arrive at submission you must have made mistakes along the way. Things forgotten, things that didn’t work out, things you can’t explain, things that are wrong… Through all of that you’ve made it to success and submission. Mistakes are part of the PhD process, both of doing the research that becomes your thesis and of developing the skills that make you a capable researcher.
It’s fine to remember you made mistakes, but not helpful to dwell on them. Understand them, but not focus on them.
Determination is another part of the PhD process, wrapped around mistakes and setbacks and failures. Determination to see things through. If you make it through a difficult path to submission, then you’ve got the determination to prepare for and pass your viva.
I’ve always liked the idea of putting a thinking cap on: doing something to particularly stimulate ideas or cleverness. There are times when I’ve worn a baseball cap as I sit down to write or work on something tough. I know it doesn’t make the ideas come any easier: it’s a reminder though, something to help signify what I want to be true, “I’m here to get this done, and I can do it.”
Let me be clear: in all the hundreds of viva stories I’ve heard of, I’ve never heard any where someone wore a hat to their viva!
But I have heard stories of musical playlists that help the candidate feel reassured.
I’ve heard of outfit choices that help people feel better.
I wore a pair of my good day socks for mine!
Thinking caps are probably out. But what else could you do reaffirm for yourself that you’re at your viva to pass? What else can help you feel confident?
A little bravery goes a long way. Yes, the unexpected question could scare you, or an honest mistake that seems huge, but you have talent, you have knowledge, you have your thesis.
This should lead to a confidence that you must be good. Good enough to meet with your examiners and defend your work. The tiniest amount of courage will see you through. The smallest reserve in the face of worry or fear. You can find it.
It’s normal to be nervous in anticipation of an important event like the viva. Find your courage. Be brave.
If you could get to submission, you can get through the viva.
Think of three things that you’ve got better at by doing a PhD.
You have to get better at lots of things during a PhD, but progress and change can be so small day-by-day that it’s hard to see. Look back now, reflect and convince yourself.
Your development can be one of the roots of your confidence for your viva.