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Nathan

Thesis Vs Viva?

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“To what extent is the outcome based on the content of the thesis rather than the discussion in the viva? Is there an approximate ratio or is it totally random?”

Here’s another question from a webinar I delivered just before my summer break! I’ve been thinking this over for weeks. It’s a good question because it gives me another perspective to describe what is happening in the thesis examination process.

Here’s my almost-stream-of-consciousness reflection:

  • The viva outcome is not random but is there a ratio?
  • A ratio makes me think of recipes: three parts flour to two parts water and so on. But the viva is not as simple as that.
  • You can’t have a viva without a thesis. So that’s our starting point.
  • But: you can’t have a thesis without a candidate. So that goes back even further.
  • The viva process is an examination of the candidate.
  • The thesis is an artefact that represents the work and achievement of the candidate.
  • The thesis has to be good enough as an output and the candidate has to be good as a researcher.

So how about this as a response, not an answer, to the original question:

The outcome of the viva is based on the work and ability of the candidate. Examiners have to assess the thesis as an output of the candidate’s work and talk with the candidate to give them opportunities to say more about the thesis, their process and themselves.

The outcome isn’t based on some unpicking of thesis and viva but of considering the candidate: their work, their contribution and themselves.

 

PS: registration opens tomorrow for my upcoming 7 Reasons You’ll Pass Your Viva webinars. I have dates in October, November and December for this helpful 1-hour live session which I think of as a confidence boost for the viva. I’ll cover why PhD candidates succeed and what you can do to help how you approach this important event. Registration for all autumn dates opens tomorrow and there’ll be an announcement post going up then too. You can also follow my Eventbrite page or the individual event pages you can find via this link. Thank you!

Nathan

The Improbable

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There’s a lot that could happen at a viva that is extremely improbable.

  • You could have a six-hour viva or be done in 45 minutes. Neither is likely.
  • You could be asked to write a new chapter for your thesis but it’s a very, very rare outcome.
  • You could be surprised by completely unexpected questions but it’s far more likely to have questions about things you know and understand.

You could spend a lot of time worrying about improbable hypotheticals before your viva. Worry alone won’t help but it can steer you towards action or advice that will ease your concerns.

If an improbable situation is on your mind then look for help and work past that worry.

 

PS: if you’re looking for more viva help to work past your worries then set a reminder for one of my upcoming webinars in the next few months. I have dates in October, November and December for my 1-hour 7 Reasons You’ll Pass Your Viva session and registration for all of them opens on Monday 7th September. Follow my Eventbrite page or the individual event pages you can find via this link. Thank you!

Nathan

What It’s For

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The viva is a facilitated discussion to confirm that you did a good piece of work over a long period of time – and in doing so you became a good researcher.

The viva follows a long academic tradition in the UK and is seen as a good mechanism for assessing the progress that someone makes as they pursue their research goals. It’s a custom exam every time, following rules, traditions and experience, unique but not unknowable.

The viva is there to check you and your work out:

  • Is it enough?
  • Have you done enough?
  • Have you developed enough?

(and enough is enough: your examiners aren’t looking for perfection)

Your viva is for you: it’s your viva, your exam, your work, your journey.

That’s what your viva is for.

Nathan

Grading

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I remember that for my Masters there were different grades that people could achieve: distinction, merit or pass.

They were sort of similar to undergraduate grade boundaries in terms of achievement. There were extra conditions like needing to get certain percentages for exams and projects but they were simple groupings more or less.

PhDs don’t typically have that. I’ve seen universities organise special prizes for achievement or recognition but that’s separate to the candidate’s research and viva.

With a PhD, typically you pass or fail.

Actually, typically, you pass: the success rate is almost 100%.

Corrections aren’t a kind of pass but rather a condition of success: you might be asked to make some small changes, amend typos and so on. Do the work and you’re done.

Your grade for your PhD, after years of work, is a simple pass. Success. Finished. Done.

So, if you were going to an exam that you knew you were almost certainly going to pass, what would you do to help your success? Perhaps more importantly, what will you do to help how you want to feel about your viva?

Nathan

Give and Take

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When you’re asked a question at the viva:

  • Give a response to the question;
  • Take your time to do it.

Any question. Any kind of question. Give a response, take your time.

There are no prizes for speed and only your own stress for rushing.

There might not be an answer but you can always respond with an opinion, a hunch, an idea or a question.

Give a response, take your time.

Nathan

Exact/Precise

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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

Expectations Aren’t The Viva

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Viva expectations can give a sense of the flow, taking breaks and how people should behave.

Expectations can give real certainty for some aspects like the general process, what examiners do and securing reasonable adjustments.

And expectations can show a measure of uncertainty for things like the questions you’ll receive, what you’ll feel and how long your viva will be.

 

Expectations aren’t the viva: let’s say that together they create a valuable tension.

You can feel sure of some things, have a sense of others and give yourself an opportunity to get comfortable with what you won’t know until your viva is happening.

Nathan

Uncertainty & The Viva

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There’s a tension between the structure of regulations and expectations versus the unique circumstances of your thesis and situation.

Your viva will be unique but not a total unknown. You can have confidence that the process is set up well and also be aware of what you won’t know until the day.

Uncertainty is the tension you feel. Uncertainty is probably the discomfort you feel.

You can’t get rid of it completely but you can ask questions, check things out, ask for help and get yourself ready.

Don’t let uncertainty drive you to worry. Acknowledge the tension and do anything you can to get certainty for the things you can be certain about. Then prepare for the things that will remain uncertain until viva time.

 

PS: you, your research, your thesis and your viva are all unique. Your upcoming viva experience is a deeply personal thing in how you feel, how you approach getting ready and how you engage on the day. There’s a lot to think about and if you’re looking for some help then please take a look at the latest issue of my viva help zine, Viva Survivors Select 13, The Personal Issue. I hope it helps.

Nathan

EDQs

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Or Extremely Difficult Questions.

You could make some educated guesses at what these might be for your viva:

  • A question on a topic you struggle to talk about.
  • A question about the bit of your PhD you didn’t like.
  • Something which is all about an examiner’s work.
  • Something completely unexpected.

It might be a surprise in the moment or something you’ve been dreading but an EDQ isn’t the end of the world – or, worse, the end of your viva.

If you’re faced with an EDQ then:

  • Pause and think before you respond – which is good advice for a REQ* as well.
  • Remember you can ask for clarity. Ask your examiners to say more.
  • Remember to take your time. More than simply pausing, remember it’s not a race or a rush.
  • Explore your thesis to help you support what you’re saying.

Remember that every question is an opportunity for you to demonstrate something but you are not expected to know everything. EDQs don’t have to dominate how you engage with your viva or be on your mind as you prepare.

 

* Really Easy Question!

Nathan

Non-PhD Vivas

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A PhD isn’t the only research degree that has a viva.

The vast majority of PGRs I meet at webinars are PhD candidates but in the last six months I’ve also shared viva help with MPhil candidates, MScR candidates – and a couple of MRes researchers too.

Over the years I’ve also had professional doctorate candidates reach out to me, EngD researchers and more. There are many flavours of PGR that have a viva!

 

A natural question for non-PhD PGRs is “how will my viva be different?”

Let’s start with how they’re the same:

  • Vivas for research degrees have the same purpose. Your examiners are exploring the contribution you’ve made and how capable you are as a researcher.
  • Vivas for research degrees require the same kind of preparation. You need to take time to read, to think and to rehearse – and you need a plan that works well for you.
  • Vivas for research degrees follow regulations. There are ways of doing things and you can learn all about it in advance.
  • Vivas for research degrees always have a little of the unknown about them. There are expectations but you can’t know everything until you’re in your viva.

To explore the differences it’s good to start with regulations for your university. See what they say about your institutional expectations and requirements. Then talk with other people who have been in your situation to get a sense of what that was like.

Viva prep is the same kind of work whether you have done a PhD or, say, an MPhil. You’ll probably do less prep work for an MPhil viva because there is typically less material to read and prepare for. The kind of work is the same and the importance is the same but it might not take as long. The same could be true for your viva too.

 

Whatever your research degree, know that your examiners are prepared. Know that the purpose is the same. Know that you can be prepared and remember that you did the work.

It helps to explore expectations for your viva, whatever your degree, but it helps more to know that you are ready for it whatever happens.

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