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Tag: viva prep

Nathan

Break It Up

Daily Post

There’s a lot to do in the viva. There’s a lot to do to prepare for the viva, or at least a lot of tasks and thoughts to manage. You might feel a lot about what’s going to happen and have plenty of distractions or concerns to contend with.

If you try to solve the whole of your prep, all of your worries or how you feel about the discussion as it starts, you’re going to dump a huge pile of problems in your path.

Instead, break things up, whatever stage you’re at.

Viva prep is a series of tasks and activities, not one great monster undertaking. There’s work to do but you can do it one piece at a time.

Viva worries can feel persistent, but you can tackle each concern one-by-one. Get help, ask for support and when you have an answer to your problem set it out clearly for yourself that you’ve got past that.

As you get to the viva, remember that while it’s a discussion you only have to respond to one question or comment at a time. You can pause, think and respond. You don’t have to have an answer for everything.

As with everything else, you can take your time to do what you need to do.

Nathan

Under It

Daily Post

Viva prep doesn’t take much, space it out, don’t overstress yourself by trying to do too much in too short a time-

Good advice but if you are really under time pressure, if you just feel stress because of your work or your life, and if the thought of adding more to that feels terrible, the words above won’t help.

If you are overwhelmed you still need to prepare. If you are overwhelmed it might be difficult to think straight. Very simply then:

  • Ask for help.
  • Find a little time each day and do something small.
  • Read your thesis.
  • Make notes.
  • Talk about your work – respond to questions if you can.
  • Seriously: ask for help!

You’re the only person who can respond in the viva, but until then you have a lot of people around you who would support you practically if they knew you needed it. You have work to do to get ready for your viva – but you are not alone.

Little things add up. Your supporters will help. And it will get better.

Nathan

Clear Your Head

Daily Post

Begin viva prep by writing down everything you think you might need to do.

Write down any upcoming work – projects, tasks, employment, responsibilities – that you also have to complete.

Sketch a plan of how much time you have to get ready.

And finally decide on your priorities for your viva prep. Which tasks have to be done? Which ones do you have to complete first? Are there any which are good ideas but less crucial?

Don’t start your viva prep by wondering where to begin, or juggling everything in your mind. Clear your head by getting everything out: make sense of what you could do, how much time you have and when you really need to get started.

Nathan

The Unread Notes

Daily Post

Ahead of my viva I wrote in my thesis margins to simplify jargon. I checked my maths to convince myself I was right. I found an unclear explanation and rewrote it so it made more sense to me. I wrote notes on my external’s research interests to understand why my work was incompatible.

I made a lot of notes before my viva – and I read none of them in my viva, even the margin notes.

I was asked by my examiners to prepare a presentation to start the exam and I don’t think I read those notes either!

The notes were to help me get ready and they did.

All of my notes helped me to feel that I was doing or had done everything I could to be ready.

Nathan

Under The Surface

Daily Post

There’s a lot in your thesis.

You created a record of what you did, how you did it and why that matters. Whatever the format or discipline, your thesis describes problems that you’ve solved or addressed.

You might share hints about obstacles that got in the way or ideas that you weren’t able to develop fully. There will be good stuff, tough stuff, simple stuff and difficult-to-talk-about stuff.

There’s a lot going on under the surface of the many pages of your thesis. Reading it carefully ahead of your viva is essential for being ready to talk about your research with your examiners.

Nathan

Invisible Work

Daily Post

An audience doesn’t see the preparation and planning that goes into a talk. They might appreciate that work because of the effect it creates in the talk, but they don’t see it. They might not fully understand just how much work has been invested or even know some of the steps that have lead to the successful talk.

Reflecting on the invisible work of a PhD and a thesis is a useful activity for viva preparation. Even though you wrote your thesis, by the time you see the final collection of chapters – and given just how much time has been spent – you can forget what efforts you’ve put in.

You can forget the personal development. The setbacks and successes. The dedication you’ve invested.

To build your confidence for the viva and review what you did, reflect on the invisible work. Remind yourself of all you’ve done to produce your impressive thesis.

 

(sometimes this even extends to blog writing, when you can write a post and only realise when you come to share it that you have written on the topic with the same title two years earlier!)

Nathan

7 Starts To Viva Prep

Daily Post

1. Read a handful of posts from a blog!

2. Sketch out a plan of the weeks leading up to your viva, noting busy days and quiet times.

3. Read the introduction to your thesis.

4. Search for and download the last two papers by each of your examiners.

5. Page through your thesis and insert sticky notes at the start of each chapter.

6. Ask your supervisor when they might be free for a mock viva.

7. Download the regulations for thesis examination for your university.

 

Viva prep takes a fair amount of work, but small tasks help. Little things get you moving if you’re not sure what to do. The smallest of steps can help energise you to the next thing you need to do.

If you’re procrastinating or unsure of what to do, or even worried about what’s still to come with your viva, remember that getting started puts you on the path to being done.

So start!

Nathan

Persuade Yourself

Daily Post

In your thesis, whatever the topic, whatever the structure, you’re trying to persuade your audience of something.

In your viva you are adding to the work of your research and the words in your thesis to persuade your examiners. You want them to believe the truth: you did the work and it has the value they’ve understood when they read your thesis.

Whatever their questions, you’re working to persuade them that you have ability and knowledge and your thesis is good enough.

 

Between submitting your thesis and succeeding in the viva you have to persuade yourself that you have ability, knowledge and a good thesis. Depending on your journey, your background and your circumstances when getting ready, persuading yourself that you really are good enough could be the hardest task of your PhD.

But that’s what you have to do.

And hard as it might be, given your experience so far, it’s a challenge you will rise to. Given everything else you’ve done, you can do this too.

Nathan

Too Much

Daily Post

You can’t be overprepared for your viva, but you can be overinvested. You can do too much by doing more than is needed.

Through uncertainty or worry you could easily spend more hours, do more tasks or obsess more than is required.

Keep it simple. Plan ahead. Don’t fill your days. Figure out the core tasks required and do them when the time comes.

Not too much, just enough – just like your thesis, your research and you.

Nathan

Peaks & Valleys

Daily Post

Viva confidence can come from reflecting on the years you’ve invested into your research and thesis. The journey has to show progress, personal growth and development and times that you’ve succeeded in your goals.

Looking back could also show you times when things didn’t work out, or when you faced setbacks. Particularly given the last few years you might remember the impact of the pandemic, both personally and professionally.

When you reflect it’s good to consider both the high points and the low. Use specific questions to unpick how a situation had an impact and what it’s lead to now.

  • A High Point: What happened? How did you come to succeed/develop/grow? Why has that contributed to your confidence now?
  • A Low Point: Why was this a difficult moment? How did you get through this? What have you done to learn from this time?

Highs and lows, peaks and valleys, whatever we call them, every journey of growth and progress has them. No plan goes unchallenged, there are always obstacles to overcome. But if you’re looking back on your PhD and getting ready for your viva, remember that you have overcome your challenges. You have done enough.

Don’t dig too deep into anything painful, but also remember that you have made it through your low points of your PhD. Keep going now and you will succeed at your viva.

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