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Tag: viva expectations

Nathan

The Waiting Room

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It could be that, like me, having to wait for something means your thoughts turn to asking “What if…?” These questions aren’t always helpful for keeping calm or confident. Sometimes they even prompt nervousness. They could be natural to ask, but seriously unhelpful in those moments.

Before or after the viva, wherever you are, there’s a good chance that you’ll need to wait.

Waiting to start, waiting while your examiners talk afterwards. Wait to get going or wait for it to be done and the result known. Waiting might simply feel uncomfortable or it could spark anxious questions, depending on your temperament and how you feel in those situations.

If you know you feel uncomfortable in those situations, what could you do?

By now, I’m pretty confident when I deliver a presentation or seminar, but I still get nervous waiting. So I have a routine that starts things off. I have a small series of tasks to calm me and engage me while the time ticks down. I have music that I listen to which connects me with the work I’m about to do.

What could you do? Is there something you could listen to before your viva that might help? Is there a series of steps you could take to keep you calm? A process for setting up your space that would help you?

And afterwards, if you’re at home or your university, what could you do while waiting for your examiners to finish their discussions? Could you go for a short walk? Make a drink? Talk to someone?

You’ll most likely have to wait on the day of your viva. What can you do to feel comfortable in those moments?

Nathan

Zap!

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If you could wave a magic wand and improve some aspect of being ready for your viva, what would you do?

  • Perhaps you could memorise your thesis.
  • Would you want to know all of the questions in advance?
  • Maybe it would be good to feel really certain that you’re ready.
  • Or would it help to see your thesis beautifully annotated to help you?

All great, idealised outcomes. But there’s no magic wand. We can’t get perfection.

Instead, you could take small steps towards all of these. You can’t be perfect, but you can make things better.

  • You could read your thesis and break it down into a list of sections.
  • You could practise in a mock or with friends to get comfortable responding to questions.
  • You could do things to reflect on all you’ve achieved on the PhD journey so far.
  • And you could add a careful set of notes to your thesis to help you on the day.

No Zap! No magic. Just lots of small, positive steps to helping you get ready. What will you do?

Nathan

Homework For Examiners

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That’s your thesis.

Before the viva they have to read it, think about it, make notes, think some more, read papers and write reports and then think some more because that’s the job they’ve agreed to do. That’s the role of the examiner. They have to examine your thesis so they can then examine you in the viva.

Whether your feet are firmly planted in one discipline or you’re playing Twister between two or more, your examiners will do what they need to do so that they can examine you properly. You might have expertise that spans multiple areas; theirs might be more concentrated. Still, they will do the necessary work to do the viva well.

Examiners are never perfect. They’re professional. They’re prepared. But they might not know as much as you, or be familiar with all the terms and ideas that you use. So they do their homework. That might put them out of their knowledge comfort zone, but they still do their homework.

Expect them to be ready, whatever their background.

Expect that you will be too.

Nathan

On Point

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Big, open questions in the viva like “How did you get started?” or “Can you tell us why this method is valid?” could have big, open responses. It might be necessary to talk about a lot of different things to really respond to a question, and it’s not unreasonable for a candidate to be concerned about saying everything they need to or staying on track.

What could you do in your viva to stay on point with a response? A few thoughts:

  • Pause. Stop for a moment when listening to a question and just after to make sure you understand it.
  • Think. Is there a way to break the big question down? Are there key points you have to talk about? Can you do something simple to keep focus?
  • Note. Quickly write down keywords. Tick them off if you need to so you cover the appropriate points.
  • Pause again. There’s no rush. Quick pause, sip of water maybe, and ask yourself, “Have I said what I needed to so far?”
  • Check your thesis. Stay on the page relevant to the discussion. Flip forwards or backwards to find details. Does anything jump out that needs to be referenced?
  • Ask your examiners. Ask if they want to know more. Ask if you’ve been clear on a point if the topic is complicated.

If there’s a lot to talk about it’s natural to be concerned about going off the point you want to make. Thankfully there’s lots of little things you could do to make sure that isn’t such a big concern.

Nathan

Scripted

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There are a lot of questions that could be asked in a viva. There are lots of resources that share typical questions you could use to prepare for the viva. If you wanted, you could write down key points and perhaps try to memorise them. A mock viva could help you to get a sense of what the viva experience might be like too.

But none of them can give you a script to prepare for and follow.

Instead questions, if used well to prompt practice and discussion, can help you to stretch a little. Exercise your ability to respond to questions, to think on the spot, to dig into a topic and listen and reflect and talk. All of this can build your confidence for the viva much better than rehearsed lines for you to read out or recall.

You need rehearsal for the viva, but you don’t need a script.

Nathan

The Most Challenging Question

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I think there are two possibilities for most challenging question a candidate could be asked in their viva.

First, the opening question of the viva. Not knowing what that opener is until it’s asked could make it very challenging. You’ll probably respond to it well, but the anticipation might make it feel tough.

The other possibility for most challenging is whatever question you really don’t want to be asked. Whatever it is, whatever part of your thesis or research, if there’s something you really don’t want to talk about there’s likely to be significant challenges in your mind when it comes to responding.

To help prepare for the first question: remember that your examiners want your viva to go well. They want to help with that by helping you to start well. The first question is likely to be simple stated and reflective – something to get you talking about your work.

To help prepare for the question you don’t want: ask others to ask you it. Prepare. Make notes. Talk about it. Talk about why you don’t want it and invest time in talking about the thing that you don’t want. Hoping you won’t be asked is not enough. Invest time in getting better at talking about it.

You will be asked a first question; you might not be asked about the topic you really don’t want to talk about. Either way, a little prep for both will help you face the challenges of your viva.

Nathan

The Viva Speedrun

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Over the last year I’ve introduced my daughter to more and more video games. While we have different tastes and skill levels, we both love exploring, creating things within games and the simply joy of playing.

What neither of us has is much taste for is the desire that some gamers have for speedrunning – trying to complete games as fast as possible. Sometimes a game will have a certain bonus or prize for finishing in a certain time; sometimes people like to brag on YouTube that they are the fastest in the world. It definitely takes skill to do, but it’s just not for us.

 

Which brings me to remind anyone who needs to hear it that there’s no trophy for finishing your viva in a certain time limit. There’s no prize or even bragging rights if you were faster than a friend.

A long viva might not always be comfortable, but there’s not a lot you can do about it. You show up, ready to engage, and discuss whatever you need to until it’s done. Speed doesn’t matter. Long vivas don’t necessarily lead to more corrections.

Passing is already a great achievement. You don’t need to set any records to show that you’ve done something amazing.

Nathan

Sooner Than You Think

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Your viva prep won’t take all that long. A pause on the day won’t be more than a few seconds. Whatever length you anticipate for your viva it will be completed very quickly – especially if you compare it to the rest of your PhD.

All of it will be finished much sooner than you think; prepare for it all carefully and you can enjoy it in the brief moments you’re engaged with the viva process.

Nathan

The Basics

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The viva is an oral exam at the end of the PhD. You submit a written thesis based on your research in advance. Typically two examiners, one internal and one external, will read your thesis carefully. In the viva they facilitate a discussion with you.

The viva is different for every candidate but there are common expectations. Most candidates pass. Most candidates are asked to make amendments to their thesis.

Nervousness is common, but only a symptom of how important the viva is. Candidates can prepare and rightly feel confident of their success given their experience, work, talent and knowledge.

 

I am sometimes asked very simple questions about what the viva is and what happens. I make assumptions sometimes about what someone might know, and get puzzled looks about certain details. The three paragraphs above are my attempt to share “the basics” in 100 words. What do you think?

Nathan

Consider It Now

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An examiner could gently challenge you on why you didn’t use a certain method. Or they might wonder what would happen if you did X instead of Y. What if you had tested for this instead of that, and so on.

It’s reasonable to expect that kind of a question in the viva. It’s not unreasonable to say, “I’ve not considered that before,” or perhaps, “I don’t know, I’ve not thought about that…”

…but it’s better to say, “Let me think about that now,” and then consider and give the best response that you can.

It might not be the full picture. It might not be an answer. It could be that you can’t say everything you might want to. But for any question or line of discussion that you’ve not considered before, you can consider it now.

Take the time. Show what you know, show what you can do. If an examiner has asked you a question, it’s not to trick you or trap you: they’re giving you an opportunity to demonstrate something.

Not considered it before? Consider it now, then talk.

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