Viva

cruiserweight · 03-10-2007 5:03pm #1

Hi all, I have my viva next Monday (8th October). I was wondering is anybody had any viva stories or any knowledge to impart?

Esmereldina · 03-10-2007 5:47pm

cruiserweight wrote:

Hi all, I have my viva next Monday (8th October). I was wondering is anybody had any viva stories or any knowledge to impart?

I was actually planning to create a similar thread some time soon, as I'll be submitting my PhD thesis in the next few weeks...

So any viva stories/knowledge would be very welcome! OP, Let us know how you get on too...:)

Red Alert · 03-10-2007 5:54pm

Good luck everyone and keep us posted on how you get on!

NextSteps · 04-10-2007 12:08pm

I'm a long way off from that, more's the pity, but would love to hear how you get on. Best of luck!

fits · 04-10-2007 1:50pm

Esmereldina wrote:

... as I'll be submitting my PhD thesis in the next few weeks...

Me too... Although I still have a shedload of work to finish. Not looking forward to this viva one bit.

cruiserweight · 07-10-2007 10:46pm

It is at 10 am tomorrow and I have just finished re-reading my thesis. I will let you know how I get on, provided it goes well

07-10-2007 10:50pm

Best of luck with it!

cruiserweight · 08-10-2007 2:10pm

Well I passed. It was relatively painless, more of a discussion than anything else. Those really difficult technical questions that I feared would stump me never materialised. The only one that stumped me temporarily, was "What question would you not like to be asked about this work?"

But finished and now to go drinking?

NextSteps · 08-10-2007 2:11pm

Nice one. How long did it last?

cruiserweight · 08-10-2007 2:15pm

UB wrote:

Nice one. How long did it last?

It was really short, about 50 minutes of questions and discussion. The only nerve wracking bit was waiting to go in. Other than that it was fine. When they sent me out so they could make their decision I was certain I had nailed it

Tom Dunne · 08-10-2007 2:42pm

Congratulations. When do you get to officially call yourself Dr.?

cruiserweight · 08-10-2007 3:15pm

tom dunne wrote:

Congratulations. When do you get to officially call yourself Dr.?

I have been doing that unofficially for a while

Graduation is in December. A few corrections to do, well mainly just extend the conclusions and that is it

Esmereldina · 08-10-2007 6:23pm

cruiserweight wrote:

I have been doing that unofficially for a while Graduation is in December. A few corrections to do, well mainly just extend the conclusions and that is it

Congratulations Dr. Cruiserweight

It's nice to hear the success stories!! 50 minutes sounds like an ok amount of time to spend talking about one's thesis... it's also nice to hear that it was a discussion rather than a grilling. I managed to terrify myself by reading horror stories on the internet a few weeks ago!

Red Alert · 08-10-2007 7:09pm

Congrats & enjoy the night after that! When's yours coming up Esmereldina?

Incidentally, do they ever 'fail' anybody? My mom's a lecturer and said it pretty much never happens in her field.

H2G2 · 09-10-2007 9:42am

Red wrote:

Incidentally, do they ever 'fail' anybody? My mom's a lecturer and said it pretty much never happens in her field.

I am a little reluctant to post this, given that it will be read by ppl preparing for their viva’s, but the answer is a scary yes. In my department there has been 3 fails in last 2 years, with about 14 successes (clear yes or minor edits).
A fail at viva is rare, often you should have an indication of things not being good well beforehand. In my field, I always insist on my students presenting a conference paper before the viva, as it helps in many ways.
Whilst I personally know of many viva horror stories (my own included), I know of many many more success stories. A positive mental attitude, confidence in your knowledge and abilities will go a long way to prepare you for the big day.

H2G2 · 09-10-2007 9:52am

As a followup to my last post, below is a preparation sheet I give my students – it may help some of you (I have removed the domain specific stuff)

Preparation

Dress code – look smart
Get your ‘head straight’.
Drop all “uncertainty baggage” before the Viva day
Remember
- You cannot anticipate everything the examiners will ask
- They are not only testing your knowledge of the area but also of advancing it.
Think - are there any questions that have occurred frequently during the research, during discussions, during conferences?
Every ‘weakness’ has its own corrective measure. Limitations can be explained as sensible decisions within the research process.
Know your way through the pages of your thesis
Be able to find figures, graphics, sections without difficulty
Read thesis - All of it (again)
- Write prompt / reminder notes on separate sheet
- Label each chapter for easy access
Bring tissues, paracetemol, water, etc.

Essential materials

References
- List of most popular citations in thesis
- The five most influential authors in your area...
OHP slides for drawing essential diagrams / figures
OHP pens
Your copy of your thesis (with your prompts written in)
- Do you remember key points

Questions – ‘Usual Suspects’

What have you done that merits a PhD?
Summarise your thesis in 3 minutes?
Origin of work
- How did you choose this topic?
- How did you become involved in this research area? (evolution of the core idea)
New about work
- What's original about your work?
- What are the novel aspects of your work - or innovative aspects?
- What are the contributions (to knowledge) of your thesis?
Are there any drawbacks to your methods/work/findings?
Can you talk through the results as illustrated in network diagram(s)
What is the relevance of your contributions? - to other researchers? - to industry?
The future
- What are researchers in this area offered?
- Implications for future work?
- Where does it go from here? What are the plans for this work?

Other Questions

The examiners could also ask you about literature not in the thesis, to test whether you are widely-read in the area
What are the applications of this research in the ‘Real World’
What do you feel is the most important aspect for further work?
What are the novel aspects of your work and what have you contributed?
Explain what is happening in Table x.y or the meaning of Figure x.z?
Have you any questions to ask us (the examiners) before the examination concludes?
Methodology
- What are the advantages of your approach?
- What are the disadvantages of your approach?
- What is wrong with approach X?

Tips

Listen to the questions and take your time answering them
Try to make your answers initially inclusive (spot overlaps), analytical, and then if appropriate dismissive or point out the limitations - and the effects of these limits.
Prepare answer to generic viva questions
Handling difficult questions
- Keep your head - Don’t fight with them
- If you don't understand the question, ask for clarification.
- Paraphrase the question in your own words and say, ‘is this what you mean?’
- If they have a misconception about your work, try to pin it down and explain it.
- If you think the question is irrelevant, explain why you think it is irrelevant (it may be that you need to be more broad-minded).
- If you really can't answer a question:
  - Be honest.
  - If you have any idea at all, say it.
  - Say, ‘I can't answer this on the spot, but I c/should be able to work it out in my own time’
  - If it's about literature you haven't come across, thank the examiner and ask for a reference.

fits · 10-10-2007 8:57am

Great post! Thanks! (sticky candidate.)

Congrats to the OP...

I've heard of people failing vivas too. My own supervisor failed one a few months ago in the UK. I know of one guy who had to do four vivas... I think he got caught up in politics between departments which probably didnt help....

I'm hoping to have one paper published (it already is), two accepted (they've been submitted) and another submitted by the time my Viva comes round... so the majority of the work will already have been peer reviewed.

Red Alert · 10-10-2007 9:49am

Thread stickied! Thanks to H2G2 for all the info and best of luck to everyone nearing theirs

Esmereldina · 21-10-2007 1:34pm

Red Alert wrote: »

Congrats & enjoy the night after that! When's yours coming up Esmereldina?

Well , I just handed the thesis in last week

So hopefully I'll have the viva in the next couple of months... will let you all know how I get on.
Ps Thanks for all the advice H2G2!

cruiserweight · 29-11-2007 11:06pm

Quick update, I have my graduation next Thursday

A couple of other bits of advice. After your viva allow time for corrections and administration to process paperwork before you expect to graduate. My corrections only took a day or so, just took admin a while to deal with it

NextSteps · 11-12-2007 6:32pm

cruiserweight wrote: »

Quick update, I have my graduation next Thursday

Sometimes I close my eyes and picture my graduation, like little girls picture their wedding. I hate to admit that.

fits · 11-12-2007 7:09pm

me too!

Turbulent Bill · 11-01-2008 11:19am

I had mine recently (passed!), so I'll give my impressions while they're fresh in the mind. Firstly, I can't over-emphasise the importance of going through the entire thesis again, and looking for areas of possible discussion. This includes fundamental theory (if it's in eng/science/maths), which you might normally take for granted, as well as your own work. The idea is to probe your basic understanding and assumptions in the field as well as your novel stuff.

Secondly, you may be asked to apply your knowledge to something you haven't actually covered in the thesis, thinking on your feet. Again, this is to test your understanding and skill. It's fine if you're stumped (I was plenty of times!) as the examiners are more interested in your thought processes than getting the right answer.

I hope this doesn't sound too intimidating, it's not supposed to be. H2G2's guide above is an excellent starting point. Find out well in advance how the viva will be conducted and do plenty of preparation. You can't anticipate everything, but it makes life easier. Overall, try to enjoy it. The time flies, and it's great to see experts in your field genuinely impressed with your work.

Good luck!

Red Alert · 11-01-2008 11:20am

Congrats everyone

RE*AC*TOR · 29-01-2008 10:46am

Just passed mine last week. Was hugely apprehensive beforehand. However, it couldn't have went much better. The extern essentially said that it was a formality and that he was happy with the standard of the research.

Huge weight off now.

Dr Strange · 29-01-2008 10:53am

RE*AC*TOR wrote: »

Just passed mine last week. Was hugely apprehensive beforehand. However, it couldn't have went much better. The extern essentially said that it was a formality and that he was happy with the standard of the research.

Huge weight off now.

Congrats! Hope my extern will be as easy-going.

rummy · 09-02-2008 1:34am

fits wrote: »

Great post! Thanks! (sticky candidate.)

Congrats to the OP...

I've heard of people failing vivas too. My own supervisor failed one a few months ago in the UK. I know of one guy who had to do four vivas... I think he got caught up in politics between departments which probably didnt help....

I'm hoping to have one paper published (it already is), two accepted (they've been submitted) and another submitted by the time my Viva comes round... so the majority of the work will already have been peer reviewed.

Hi there...
For everyone in the throws of writing their PhD or getting ready to defend it I must say the book by Rowena Murray is excellent. Its called How to survive your viva.

RE: failing viva's. It is not uncommon to fail a viva, however if the supervisor has done his/her job properly it should not get to that stage. Once you get to viva stage it indicates that your supervisor is happy that it is of a PhD standard (though I was an internal examiner for a PhD where the student 'pressurised' the supervisor into sending it to the internal examinerand unfortunately she shouldn't have done that as even after the second resub\mit I would not put my name to it as an internal examiner).

When doing your viva - read your thesis (bring it in with you to the viva). Remember this might be the only time when someone has read your thesis (besides your supervisor) in its entirety so enjoy the discussion.

Wish you all the best of luck.

Max001 · 08-08-2009 10:10pm

Hiya

Not quite at Phd level yet

Is it fair to assume that a social sciences research masters
viva wouldn't be as demanding as a Phd viva?

Thanks for any advice. My supervisor has told me a viva
at this level is really just to make sure you've done the work
yourself........does that sound right?

Cheers

magneticimpulse · 25-10-2009 12:41pm

was just reading these posts today. i think if you get to viva stage, you have pretty much passed. i know of people who's phd was stopped after 1 year or even someone who had their phd extended 1 year and they did not have an opportunity to get to the viva stage. im in the motions of trying to get motivated writing. im motivated during the week, but still doing lab work so its difficult to focus.

thanks for the advance. it also helps starting to write...what are people really looking for, and therefore trying to answer these questions in the thesis.

im in france so ive to do a public presentation. i dont know which is more scary, in a room with 3 people or in front of everyone in your university, examiners and family. ill try not think about that bit yet

cruiserweight · 25-10-2009 1:34pm

magneticimpulse wrote: »

im in france so ive to do a public presentation. i dont know which is more scary, in a room with 3 people or in front of everyone in your university, examiners and family. ill try not think about that bit yet

I have heard unofficially that a public viva can be to your benefit, in that examiners are less likely to ask you any extremely probing or difficult questions that may cause embarassment

Dr Strange · 11-12-2009 7:03pm

Just passed my viva with minor corrections! It's finally over (almost)

Viva

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