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Nathan

Big Things I Learned At My Viva

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I find it helpful to look back on my viva now and then. A lot stands out to me that I wasn’t expecting at the time. As time goes by some realisations grow more important in my mind, so I thought today I’d share a few to think about for yours.

  • Comfortable clothes help a lot! You can look smart and be comfortable. You may want to dress to impress, but don’t wear shoes that are too tight or something that you find impossible to keep straight. Smart can be nice – but comfortable is what you need.
  • I was asked to give a presentation to start my viva. This was good for me. It forced key talking points and questions to be on my mind. Even if you’re not asked for a presentation (they’re not common) consider spending time thinking about what you would include. Or give a presentation for friends as part of your preparation for the viva.
  • I learned that vivas can be four hours long! Mine was. Yours could be, although it’s not very likely…
  • …which makes it all the more important that you ask other people about their experiences. You can’t predict your viva, but if you listen carefully to enough stories you can get a sense of what yours could be like.
  • Corrections aren’t a punishment. Examiners ask for them to try to help make your thesis better. I didn’t know that. I didn’t think my thesis would be perfect, but at the same time I hoped I wouldn’t be asked to make any changes. That’s unrealistic. As I later learned, most people are asked to do some kind of corrections. You probably will too.

A big learning point has only come with time and distance: my viva was important, my PhD was important and is important to me still – but neither of them are the most important things I’ll ever do. Take it seriously, of course, but you don’t need to obsess and worry.

And when you’re all done, take some time to reflect. What have you learned from your viva?

Nathan

Mistakes Happen

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They do.

Slips, errors, accidents, typos, absent-minded actions and more. There’s a worry for some candidates that examiners will not forgive mistakes. Perfection is not the standard for the thesis or the viva, but you can still wonder, “What will they think about X?”

Well, let’s assume that whenever you find out about X you can’t do anything to change it (because otherwise, you probably would and it wouldn’t be a worry). Maybe you know X happened while writing up; maybe you discover X when you’re preparing for the viva; perhaps you’re asked and only realise X in the viva. Essentially your next steps in all these cases are the same.

Simply think about the Why, How and What of the mistake:

  • Why did the mistake happen?
  • How could you do something about it?
  • What do you think you need to do about it now?

Mistakes happen, and sometimes you need to act to correct them. Sometimes you just need to acknowledge them. Reflect on the why, the how and the what to explore how you might respond to examiners’ questions about mistakes in the viva.

Nathan

Nowhere To Hide

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A candidate told me they were afraid because they had nowhere to hide in the viva.

Examiners would have spent lots of time reading their thesis and so the candidate worried they would be unable to evade questions on the day.

Literally in the viva room as well, there is nowhere to hide. On viva day it’s just you and your examiners: talking, discussing, figuring out what the thesis means and what that then means for the end of your PhD.

So yes, nowhere to hide…

…but also no need to hide.

Why hide in the viva? You have your work, your thesis, your ideas, your know-how, your talent. Why would you need to hide?

Nathan

The Decision

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Before the viva, your examiners will have an idea of the outcome. They’ve read your thesis; they have thought about it; they have experience. They will have an outcome in mind before the viva based on what they think of the thesis.

But it’s not set in stone. It’s an outcome they think is likely, but you still have to show up and show them what you know, what you think, what you can do.

In very rare cases examiners tell candidates the result at the start of the viva. In those cases they are so sure of the viva outcome that they want to put the candidate at ease to then have a great discussion. But those cases really are rare. Don’t expect it for your viva.

Expect that your examiners will have an idea: they do their job in the preparation and come prepared to do their job on the day. They come with a decision that they look to see confirmed by your actions and your words.

You can make a decision too. You can decide to be ready for your viva. You can decide how you will show up on the day.

So decide.

Nathan

When Examiners Disagree

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Your examiners have to reach a decision, but it may be that they don’t agree on everything. It could be that one likes a particular idea or experiment or conclusion in your thesis and the other doesn’t. It may be that they can just work it out before they meet with you, but it could be the case that you have examiners who disagree with each other about something in the viva.

What do you do?

  • First: listen and let them lay out their positions. You may have strong feelings for a topic, but let them talk first and see whether this is something you actually need to respond to. They may just be expressing different opinions, it may not be disagreement.
  • Second: be sure of what you are responding to before you respond. If someone doesn’t like something, ask why. If they are vague, ask for details. Be clear and then respond as best you can. You don’t have to take sides, you just have to explain what you think.
  • Third: if discussion results in corrections, get as much clarity as possible to see what’s involved. If there is disagreement about corrections between examiners, ask again for clarity.

Remember: it is not your job to resolve disagreements between your examiners. They’re professionals: expect them to be professional.

Wait for them to clearly state their points, then do what you can to engage with them and find out what (if anything) you have to do as a result.

Nathan

Success

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What does viva success look like to you? What’s the outcome that will make you happy?

If you set it as getting no corrections, or finishing within a certain time limit there may be nothing you could do to be successful.

If you try to be perfect, responding to questions quickly or with perfect paragraphs of ideas and arguments, you will almost certainly fail.

If you define success as doing your best, being prepared, being switched on and ready to engage with your examiners then you’ll have a goal you can achieve.

You get to choose. What will success at the viva mean to you?

Nathan

Easy Viva, Hard Viva

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Is it better to have an easy viva or a hard viva?

I got this question at one of my final Viva Survivor sessions before my summer break. I have lots of thoughts…

First, the answer really depends on what we mean by “easy” and “hard”. It depends on the candidate and their preferences. If easy means zero challenge, does that mean the viva means nothing really? If hard means almost-overwhelming questions and discussions, does that mean it was fair? And regardless of whether you want or have an “easy” or “hard” viva, there are no guarantees one way or the other…

Around a year ago I wrote a little on this topic (Easy, Hard, Challenging). The final thought from that post seems relevant to the question today:

On the day you could find [the viva] easy or hard, but it will still be a challenge.

It’s still a challenge even if you are necessarily talented.

You don’t know what kind of viva you’ll get in advance. You can know what kind of candidate you are, and rise to meet whatever challenge you find in your viva.

Nathan

Looking Forward

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Think about what might be good in the viva.

  • If you could, what would you like to talk about with your examiners?
  • If you could ask any question, what would you ask?
  • What tone would you want for the discussion?
  • If you could show your examiners your talent, what would you do?

What are you looking forward to? And how could you try to make it happen?

Nathan

Don’t Know, Do Know

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Candidates often worry about “what they don’t know” but frame it as a nebulous fear that waits out of the corner of their eye… What they don’t know is something that examiners do know, and examiners are looking to use that against them perhaps. What they don’t know is unpredictable, unclear and uncertain. That makes it something to be afraid of.

It can seem unclear, but I think we can examine this more clearly by contrasting what you don’t know with what you do know.

What You Don’t Know

  • Everything.
  • What your examiners think about your thesis.
  • What questions they want to ask.
  • What the outcome of your viva will be.

What You Do Know

  • Enough – you’ve read enough papers, done enough work, built up enough knowledge.
  • What you think of your work, what your supervisor thinks of it, what others have told you about it.
  • How to answer questions: you’ve built this talent up throughout your PhD.
  • What the most likely viva outcome is, and why that happens.

Seth Godin has truly timeless advice on this sort of thing: you get to choose which list you focus on.

In this case, the second one is much, much more useful.

Nathan

Stories & Statistics

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Both have a place in shaping your expectations of the viva.

Stats can give you an outline, a pencil drawing that is a reasonable shape of the viva experience.

Stories can help to colour in that picture, give you details to help you see what vivas are like and how they feel.

Both have a place: your outline might vary a little, you might paint with different colours, but listening to stories and putting them together with the statistics for viva experiences should give you a useful blurry picture for your viva.

Squint and maybe you’ll see your future! Ask for advice, ask to hear about experiences, and then see how they make sense with where you are. No-one needs to go to their viva with a blank page for expectations.

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