Preparing for your viva voce examination workshop University of - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Preparing for your viva voce examination workshop

University of Brighton Doctoral College PRDP Mark Erickson, Director of Postgraduate Studies Ursula O’Toole, Examinations Officer 24th May 2018

Workshop outline

• Introductions – how close to viva are you? What is your topic?
• What is the viva and why do we have them?
• Examination arrangements and thesis submission
• Viva examinations – roles and responsibilities
• Viva questions and format
• Viva outcomes and responding to examiners’ feedback
• How to prepare for and handle the viva examination – hints, tips and strategies
• Pair work – defend your thesis to your colleague
• Advice from graduates

What is a viva and why do we have them?

WHAT?

• A formal examination with formal outcomes
• An oral (viva voce = ‘live voice’) defence of your (written) thesis

Also

• An opportunity for you to discuss your project in depth with experts
• A chance to explain your innovative and original contribution

WHY?

• Amongst other reasons a viva is:
• an efficient mechanism for examiners to resolve doubts about your thesis,
• confirms that the thesis is an original contribution,
• confirms that the thesis is valid and useful work,
• shows that it comprises good quality data (where appropriate),
• confirms that the work is yours

Exam arrangements and thesis submission

Process and Stages

• Discuss with supervisors who would be suitable internal and external

examiners

• Supervisors initiate examination arrangements process on PhD

Manager

• Doctoral College confirms the arrangements
• Submit your thesis – check and stick to our regulations
• Doctoral College will arrange a viva date

Viva examinations – roles and responsibilities

• External examiner: (likely to be) a subject / topic specialist with a

proven research and publication track record in this area. Their role is to question your thesis to ensure it is of an appropriate standard.

• Often starts with questions that are about the original contribution to the

discipline / subject

• Internal examiner: an expert in at least one aspect of your thesis

(subject / topic, but could be methodological expert) who is part of your home institution.

• Often asks questions about the methodology and more general areas of the

research

Viva examinations – roles and responsibilities

• Independent chair: is precisely that, an independent observer who

ensures that you are given a fair hearing, that examiners have addressed all their initial concerns and questions, and that the rules and regulations of the Doctoral College and the University are adhered to.

• They are also responsible for your welfare
• Supervisor: your supporter and your note taker. They have guided you

through the research and are here to help you through the final stage through being an ally who is present.

• Supervisors are not allowed to participate in the viva proceedings unless

specifically asked to answer queries by the examiners or the chair.

• Attendance is optional and is your decision

Viva format and likely questions

• Viva examinations are preceded by a meeting where the two

examiners, helped by the chair, will decide on what questions need to be asked and who will ask them.

• Process: although a formal examination vivas are quite ‘relaxed’ in

their format and there is not set structure. You will be invited in, sit down and get comfortable, there are introductions and then either:

• The external examiner will ask you to ‘tell us about your project’ or
• In some disciplines you will be invited to make a presentation to the
• examiners. If this is the convention in your discipline (it is not common) you

will have been told well in advance and will have practiced this presentation.

• BUT – this may not happen! Be prepared for different initial questions

Openers…

• The following are all possible questions that can be used at the start
• f a viva – and you should (must?) be able to answer all of these:
• What is the original contribution that your thesis makes?
• What is the idea that binds your thesis together?
• What is the main methodological development in your thesis?
• What is the main theoretical influence on your thesis?
• What are the major debates and issues that your thesis addresses?
• Why did you choose this body of literature?
• Remember: if you haven’t read it, don’t cite it!
• Why is your thesis important?

Original Contribution?

• What is your original contribution?
• This can be difficult to identify until the very final stages of writing up.
• However, your Research Plans, Transfer / Secondary APR documents, and

Abstract will all provide useful materials that will help you to clarify, and then state your contribution

• Answering these questions can help to identify your original contribution;

they also provide a good template for your abstract.

• What did you do?
• Why did you do it?
• How did you do it?
• What did you find?
• Where does that take you and your academic community?

Methods and methodology

• Although the examiners are subject specialists, you are the person in the

room with the most expertise in the specific research topic / subject / set

• f experiments and results. For this reason, and because a PhD is a ‘training

/ apprenticeship’ model, viva questions often default to discussions of method and methodology.

• Possible questions:
• Research design decisions?
• Theoretical influence?
• Methodological orientation?
• Why this choice of investigative procedure and not others?
• What could be improved in your methodology? Strengths and weaknesses?
• Ethical considerations – how did you address these?

Findings

• So – what did you actually find and what makes this significant?
• Context your findings are located within and how far can you generalise?
• Why have you represented your findings in this way? What other methods

could you have used?

• Which are the most significant findings?
• How do your experimental results from your different studies link together?
• Have you published your findings – where? Or why not? Will you?
• What is your original contribution?

Conclusions and endings

• What is your original contribution?
• What are the limitations of your work?
• What are the next steps in your research – where does it lead us?
• What are the (policy?) implications of your work?
• What is the most important outcome from your work?
• Why should you be awarded a PhD?
• What should we have asked you?

Viva outcomes

a) that the candidate be awarded the degree for which they are registered; b) that the candidate be awarded the degree for which they are registered subject to minor amendments being made to the thesis. Minor amendments can either take the form of minor editorial corrections or minor deficiencies, for which the maximum time permitted is normally twelve weeks c) that the candidate be permitted to re-submit for the degree and be re-examined with or without an

• ral examination. The maximum time for re-submission for re-examination is normally 18 months for full-time

students and 24 months for part-time students; d) that the candidate be not awarded the degree and be not permitted to be re-examined; e) in the case of a PhD examination, that the candidate be awarded the Degree of MPhil subject to presentation of the thesis amended to the satisfaction of the examiners. The maximum time permitted for re- submission as MPhil is normally 12 months.

Responding to examiners

• 80% of viva outcomes are ‘minor amendments’.
• You will receive comprehensive instructions from examiners – follow

these very closely or have an exceptionally good reason for not following these very closely.

• Tell the examiners what you have done in the form of
• A revised thesis and
• A covering letter
• The same principles apply in the case of ‘revise and resubmit’.
• Do NOT contact the examiners directly if you have queries

Preparation for your viva

Preparation and planning

• About two weeks before your viva have a mock viva
• Your supervisors can arrange this
• The mock viva panel will read your thesis and ask viva-type questions
• This is a good chance to

1. Rehearse your performance for the real viva 2. Identify difficult areas in your thesis which may require stronger defence than others 3. Identify things that are likely to need correction: be prepared to address these

• The mock viva gives you a good insight into how your examiners are

likely to be thinking: predict what your real examiners’ responses to your thesis will be.

• This is important in all academic work, not just in vivas

Ten days before

• Read through your thesis, annotate it and write notes
• n it
• Have an index of your thesis in your head so you can

go straight to relevant sections during your viva

• Prepare your answers to the key questions

Day and night before your viva

• Do something with your friends / family / colleagues
• Go to the cinema?
• Take a long walk?
• Don’t look at your thesis or notes
• Eat well and get a good night’s sleep

Coping with your viva

Coping – hints and tips

• Viva examinations can be stressful and it is likely that everyone will be

nervous.

• You may be anxious about facing criticism, but this is part of the

process of this type of examination.

• Be confident and be committed – have faith in your good work.
• Defend strongly, but don’t be stubborn.
• Listen to questions carefully and think before answering
• Not just content of questions; think about form of the questions – are the

examiners asking me the same question repeatedly?

Coping – hints and tips

• The examiners may be anxious about making the correct decision, and also

about the validity of their own research.

• Put the examiners (at least the external) in the bibliography of your thesis

and make sure you have cited them appropriately, fairly sympathetically and fairly early on.

• Think about the examiners’ work and their academic community. Don’t

attack their ‘gang’ needlessly.

• Accept criticism, but try and show your perspective is still valid.
• Are they expecting too much, especially in terms of resources. It is OK to

remind them that this is only a PhD.

• Show how your work makes a contribution to the examiners’ knowledge

through extending it in new and exciting directions.

Equipment

• Your thesis – annotated and indexed and read in the previous week in

very great detail.

• Don’t allow your examiners to surprise you with your own words!
• Writing implements and paper
• Liquid refreshment

Exercise – defend your thesis

• In pairs read each others’ abstracts and then:
• Present thesis in 3 minutes
• Explain your original contribution: what, why, how, what you found, where it takes us
• Defend your thesis’ contribution in the light of your partner’s questions
• Group reflection on this

Advice and reflections from graduates

• ‘My viva was a fabulous experience but I think I had great examiners

and I (mostly) knew their work and how it related to mine’.

• ‘The best revision question for me was why should I be awarded a

PhD as this helped me to think about what I had learnt, my contribution to knowledge and clinical practice, my philosophical positioning and making operational my methodology’.

Advice and reflections from graduates

‘For myself, although preparation was key for my viva, one of the key factors was the becoming comfortable with the recognition that I knew what I was talking about; I knew my topic, I could probably recite my literature review verbatim, I understood my methodology and the reasons for each of the choices I had made at every step of my research

• project. I could break down each section of my results, explaining how

I had come to the realisations I had, and expand upon the key areas of my discussion section if necessary. This immense realisation though had to be countered with one minor, yet still weighty aspect, that the research was not finished.’

Advice and reflections from graduates

‘The Viva itself did not feel like an inquisition. Although challenging at times, and even though I sometimes felt under pressure to justify myself, I tried to remember what I had been told by my own supervisors; that a good viva should actually enhance and develop the

• research. This is what happened in my own experience; the viva result

was that I had passed with minor revisions. Yet, going through these revisions step by step I can see how they were a helpful, final part of the process of refining my research and my many ideas.’

Advice and reflections from graduates

‘My final piece of advice is simple. Go to your graduation. Professionally, and also personally, mine was one of the best days of my

• life. It is worth it if only for the sense of pride that comes out of the

personal achievement of finishing work on such a major undertaking as a doctoral project.’

This will be a good experience!

• Your chance to shine, and perhaps even show off a bit
• Your chance to discuss your work with real experts who will have read

it in great detail

• Your chance to identify future research, career, publication

possibilities

• Good luck!