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Tag: viva expectations

Nathan

Drivers, Worries, Actions

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In the viva, examiners drive the discussion by asking questions that:

  1. Explore your contribution;
  2. Investigate your authorship;
  3. Assess your capability as a researcher.

In turn, a candidate typically worries that:

  1. They haven’t done enough;
  2. They won’t remember enough about the process;
  3. They aren’t good enough to get a PhD.

To combat these a candidate could:

  1. Review their thesis and work to build confidence in the contribution;
  2. Rehearse explaining how they did the PhD to build confidence in describing the work;
  3. Reflect and remember how they have developed to build confidence in themselves.

Preparation helps with the discussion and lessening worries!

Nathan

Describing Examiners

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Your examiners are interested in your work. They have to be, or they just wouldn’t be there.

Your examiners are prepared for the viva. Like you, they have to get ready to do this particular event.

Your examiners are experienced. They are academics – even examiners at the start of their academic career have training, guidance and support to do the job well.

Your examiners are human. They’re just people, like you. They know the viva could make you nervous and they know you want it to go well.

They want it to go well too – and given the work that you’ve done and the work your examiners do, your viva most likely will go well.

Nathan

Always Something

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No matter how much work you put into your research and thesis, or how much time you spend on viva prep, there’s always something that your examiners could say or ask that you haven’t anticipated.

And no matter what they ask, because of all of the work you’ve committed to your research and thesis, and all the time you’ve invested into getting ready, there’s always something you can do to respond to their questions and be part of the discussion.

You can ask a question. You can pause. You can think. You can check your thesis. You can remember something. You can take a situation and analyse it. You can work through a question or a problem. You can, in the end, always find a way to respond.

Whatever situation you find in the viva, there’s always something you can do.

Nathan

Opinions

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The viva is a discussion. It’s not a Q&A. It’s not an interview. It’s not supposed to be combative or about proving who is right or wrong.

Remember that your examiners are allowed to have different opinions to you. They may not agree with a conclusion. They may think that X needs more Y to account for Z.

And that means that you may have different opinions to your examiners. Different opinions don’t mean that someone is wrong. It might mean that – or it could mean that someone needs to think more, explain more, share something else or do something else.

If your examiners ask for a change or strongly suggest something then ask why. Explore more and dig deeper. And do your best, not to prove them wrong, but to engage as best as you can with what they are offering to the discussion.

Nathan

Viva Varieties

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When you hear lots of different stories about the viva it’s natural to group them together.

Short vivas. Long vivas.

Tough vivas. Easy vivas.

A presentation to start or an opening question to get things going.

Lots of questions. Hardly any.

Lots of corrections. No corrections.

Two examiners, a chair, a supervisor, a third examiner.

Expected questions and unexpected remarks.

Previously found typos and unknown errors.

And there’s more. There’s a huge range of viva experiences. Some are much more common than others. Many aspects of what “variety” your viva will be won’t be clear until you have yours.

You can’t prepare for everything, but you can be prepared. You can know the goals and expectations of your examiners, you can know what you need to demonstrate in your viva and then rise to meet that.

Long or short, easy or tough, whoever is in attendance, you can succeed.

Nathan

Ask For A Break

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The viva is not a test of endurance, a space where you have to simply work through everything until it is done.

You can take a break. You could be offered a break after an hour or two. You could need one and ask. You can ask for a comfort break, a medically-related break, a break to think or check something in your thesis. You can have a break to compose yourself.

There are many reasons to take a break in the viva and no wrong times to ask for one, if you need one.

Nathan

All Your Way?

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It’s not in the nature and setup of the viva that things will simply go exactly how you want. There is so much about the viva that is beyond your control:

  • You don’t choose your examiners. You can make suggestions, but you might not get who you really want.
  • You don’t know what the questions will be in advance.
  • You can hope, but not know what your examiners will think about your thesis and research.
  • You can learn about the viva’s general expectations, but there’s no way of knowing until you’re in there how close your viva will skew towards the general experience.

All of which is to say, you can write well, prepare well and do well, but not know what will happen or what the outcome will be until it arrives.

And yet the majority of candidates pass – and pass with minor corrections. A viva could be long or difficult, but it’s done on the day. Your examiners could be kind or questioning (or both!) and still you can respond to everything.

Expectations help to frame the viva situation. Preparation, hard work and the PhD journey help to succeed in your viva reality.

Nathan

The Formality

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There’s a general expectation that a candidate will pass their viva if they’ve submitted their thesis. The pass rate is so high that reaching that stage is a really good sign that success will follow in due course.

But the viva is not simply like ticking a box on some paperwork, nor is it a simple process in general. Perhaps compared to the scale of the rest of the PhD journey we could say it was “a formality” but only with reference to that great scale!

Expect to succeed – but also expect your examiners to be prepared, to do their jobs, to ask questions and expect you to respond. Do the work that’s needed, following a pattern of work and dedication that you have demonstrated over the course of your PhD and perhaps the viva will feel – with hindsight – like a formality.

Nathan

Better Than Anyone Else

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Remember you know your work better than anyone else!

I have read and heard these words so many times from people trying to reassure viva candidates. They’re not wrong but I’ve had a growing feeling for some time that they brush over a lot of points.

The viva isn’t solely about knowing things – it’s a test of what you can do as well, a test of how you think.

You did the work, but your examiners must have done lots of work too to be able to examine you.

I worry too that the phrasing implies that the viva is simple, straightforward, easy. While the majority of candidates pass and many describe it as positive I don’t think – in nearly thirteen years – I’ve ever heard anyone describe their viva as easy!

“You know your work better than anyone else” is too simple. It leaves too much out.

How about: You did the work, so you have the skills and knowledge to do this too. How does that sound?

It might not roll off the tongue as easily, but it gets closer to the truth of the situation.

Nathan

Loving Your Viva

Daily Post

A poem, seeing as it’s February 14th!

Most candidates won’t love their viva,

‘Though most PhDs won’t hate it either;

If you prepare and give it a chance,

Examiners won’t lead you a merry dance.

 

Believe it will be tough

You’ll make your day rough,

But trust what you know

And a good day will show.

 

Three verses suffice,

I’ll stop this device!

Reflect, prepare – give your confidence a shove!

Thus a greater chance your viva to like, if not love.

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