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Tag: viva process

Nathan

Choosing Mistakes

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It’s likely there will be mistakes of some kind in your thesis.

Writing is hard. Proofreading is hard. Add to that hundreds of references and three or more years of research and it overwhelmingly likely that there are mistakes in your thesis.

It’s not your fault but you are responsible. Your examiners will most likely ask you to correct mistakes as a condition for you passing your viva and achieving your PhD. When they ask for this what they’re really doing is giving you an opportunity: would you like to make the best possible version of your thesis given the circumstances?

Given that you have spent years of work, a long time writing and a very long time thinking, here’s just a short time to make a final version. Finished, for good.

No-one wants mistakes or to have to correct them.

Which is better though: hoping and hoping for the small chance that you have no mistakes or trying your best and accepting that you’ll have some to amend?

Make your choice.

Nathan

Your Expectations

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What do you expect of yourself at your viva?

Viva expectations are often discussed in terms of length and first questions, format and examiner tone – but what do you expect from yourself? What should others expect of you?

  • A good thesis?
  • A capable candidate?
  • Lots of knowledge?
  • A little nervousness?
  • An understanding of the process?
  • At least a little confidence?

Together, you and your examiners can all reasonably expect that you’ll succeed at your viva.

Nathan

Making Vs Having

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I feel that many PhD candidates expect they will have to argue a lot in the viva.

Arguing can feel like a loaded term. There are lots of negative associations with the word argument so we need to be clear for viva expectations.

The viva is supposed to be a discussion. Maybe you need to make an argument – presenting ideas and evidence and reasoning – but there should never be a situation where you have an argument.

The idea of having an argument is persistent. Some candidates expect that they will be countering points and questions that their examiners put forward. They feel they will defend their thesis by protecting what they have done and what they have written.

At times you might need to make an argument in the viva: make a case, lay out your thoughts and reasons. Put your view across and listen for your examiners’ thoughts.

Don’t expect that you’ll have to have an argument to be heard.

Nathan

The Tempo

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Pause when your examiners ask a question or make a comment.

Use the time to think and get your thoughts in order.

Remember that you might not have an answer but you can always respond.

 

And also remember that pause, think and respond has a tempo that you can use for every question, not just the tough ones.

 

PS: want to find out more of what to expect at the viva? Then check out the latest issue of Viva Survivors Select, The Expectations Issue. Twenty posts from the Viva Survivors archive plus two new pages of viva help exploring what the viva is like.

Nathan

Yours & Theirs

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Everyone involved with your viva will have opinions.

There’s a lot of truth and certainty by the time you have finished your thesis but you could have plenty of unanswered questions too. Plenty of space for doubt. Plenty of space for wondering. Plenty of space for believing but not knowing for sure.

You will have opinions about some things. Your examiners will too. It’s possible that your opinions will collide or oppose. That’s not as big a problem as you might believe.

Whether you have to defend your view or unpick your examiner’s, start with why. If you need to convince with your opinion ask yourself why you think it is true to motivate your response. If you aren’t sure of your examiner’s point then ask yourself why or ask them why.

Once you know why someone holds their opinion you can understand more. You can figure out what you actually agree with and what you don’t. You can see the root of the problem or understand how to find common ground.

When defending or exploring opinions, start with why.

 

(this works very well outside of vivas too!)

Nathan

Extras/Essentials

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For your viva you need:

  1. Your thesis;
  2. A notebook and pen;
  3. Something to drink.

These are the absolute essentials that every PhD candidate needs to have with them.

After the essentials there are lots of other things that might be a good idea:

  • Something to eat, in a break or at the end;
  • A list of corrections you’ve spotted;
  • A prototype of something you made;
  • A screen to show a video or software;
  • The means to show, display or demonstrate a creative work;
  • A digital copy of your thesis;
  • Notes in some form;
  • Other materials or resources, as agreed.

These are extras: useful for some people and not appropriate or needed for others. You’ll need to check the regulations, check with your supervisors and decide for yourself perhaps if you really need them.

An item on the list above might not be what you expect – or one item could be exactly what you need.

For some people these really might be considered extras after a thesis, notebook and a water bottle, just something else helpful to have with you.

For some candidates one of the “extras” could be essential to a good viva.

What do you need? What’s an extra and what is absolutely essential for you?

 

PS: you might need a little more support to help you get ready and feel ready. If that thought resonates then please check out my upcoming 7 Reasons You’ll Pass Your Viva live webinars. They’re running on Wednesday 24th September and Thursday 30th October and you can find more details of what you’ll find via the link. If you use code DAILYBLOGFAN before midnight tonight then you get a special discount too.

Nathan

The Process of Surviving

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Survive can be defined as manage to keep going in difficult circumstances.

So we can understand surviving the viva as managing to keep going in the difficult circumstances of the viva.

And even more particularly we can understand surviving your viva as managing to keep going in the difficult circumstances of your viva.

 

There are challenges in every viva that make them difficult. There are parts of the process that could be uniquely difficult for a candidate. You prepare for the viva in part so that you manage to keep going, continuing on the journey that you’ve been on for a long time, but you also have to think about what makes the viva difficult for you.

Every candidate probably faces some difficult circumstances at the viva because of the nature of their work and particular situation. Some candidates face difficult circumstances because of how they feel, what they might need for the viva to be fair for them and personal situations that make the viva a greater challenge than it might be for others.

Surviving the viva doesn’t mean overcoming terrible situations. Surviving the viva means continuing to show up as your best self doing your best work. It means facing the situation and making sure in advance that it is as fair as it can be for you.

 

Manage, not struggle. Difficult circumstances rather than almost-impossible situations.

And keep going – because this isn’t the first time you’ve been challenged.

 

PS: you can learn more about the challenge and why you’ll survive at my upcoming 7 Reasons You’ll Pass Your Viva live webinars. I’m running the session on Wednesday 24th September and Thursday 30th October: come to find out why people succeed at the viva and why you will too! There are more details via the link and use code DAILYBLOGFAN before midnight tomorrow to get a special discount.

Nathan

Unscripted

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Your examiners have a plan for your viva.

They’ve prepared well. They have questions and prompts to help them ask good questions and get what they need from the process – but they don’t have a script. They don’t have a set list of twenty questions they’ll be working through. They don’t have a rigid plan that they will follow exactly. Their plan guides but allows them space to respond to what you say and how the discussion develops.

 

You will prepare well for your viva.

You’ll invest time in reading your thesis, making notes, creating summaries and hopefully finding ways to rehearse. You don’t need a script for your viva either. Your examiners are happy for you to refer to your thesis but they don’t want you to read from a script. Your responsibility is to respond in the moment, taking part in the discussion and making sure your examiners get what they need.

 

Everyone should be well-prepared for your viva but no-one should be reading from a script.

Nathan

In Case Of Emergency

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There’s a relatively small chance that a question at the viva could make you feel like you’re in an emergency.

  • A stressful question.
  • A complicated question.
  • An unclear question.
  • A never-before-considered question.

If your first thought is “I don’t know” or “Aaaaaargh!” it can be hard to figure out how to respond.

Here’s the best advice I can give for those moments: do exactly what you’ve been doing for the non-emergency and non-stressful questions.

 

Whatever the question or comment from your examiners: pause, think it through and then respond. Your response could be an answer, an opinion, sharing an idea or asking a question.

If the question is really simple: pause, think and respond.

If the question is complex: pause, think and respond.

If the question makes you think “Aaaargh!”: pause, think and respond.

 

You don’t need an answer for everything. You do need to engage with every question.

Having one process that you can follow for simple questions and stressful questions makes it easier for you to follow and engage with the discussion in the viva.

Questions can be complicated. Your process for responding to them doesn’t need to be.

Nathan

“What Does This Mean?”

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Four words that can feel very loaded in the viva.

If your examiners ask does that mean your thesis didn’t say it? Or was there a mistake? Or…?

In truth, “What does this mean?” could be a simple way to start a new topic. It could be a question that seeks clarity. Or a small question to start exploring something more deeply.

With the importance of the viva it’s easy to see how it can be received as a difficult and troubling question. Your examiners could just want to know more.

“What does this mean?” is a simple question, asked for many reasons.

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