Friday 15 May 2009

Viva - the last hurdle

In the post-viva euphoria phase, our successful PhD student points out this link to me. It starts by referring to the excitement of submitting the final draft, but then the dawning realisation that the viva formed another chapter. There is so much written and spoken about the viva, that it makes me nervous in anticipation, and I'm only half way through the process. There are web pages like "Nasty PhD Viva Questions", or PhD Viva or Tips for getting through; chapters in PhD books like Potter, 2006 or Marshal, 2004; whole books on just the viva, like Murray's, and a blogger .

How can what should be an academic discussion, become such a nightmare? I cannot imagine how I'll cope because the uncertainty of the months waiting beforehand mean I'll be a nervous wreck when I get to the room, so highly unlikely to be able to answer simple questions, let alone have a sensible discussion.

Fail at the last hurdle.


Potter, Stephen, 2006, Doing Postgraduate Research
Marshal, Green, 2004, Your PhD Companion
Murray, Rowena, 2001, How to survive your Viva: Defending a Thesis in an Oral Examination

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