Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Preparation for viva

Personally I gave myself a few weeks grace and then got back into it.. do you know when your viva date is? I had almost a 2 month gap between submission and viva so I was able to have a little breather. The 2-4 weeks before the viva I did my most work, I looked online to find examples of the most commonly asked questions and then typed up all my responses to those, and also other questions that arose in the mini-viva I had with my supervisors. 
I wrote (in note form) a summary of the whole thesis, and also a summary of each chapter to refresh it all my mind, and also noted how I would address any methodological issues that came up. I also did a quick lit search to check on any new literature that had come up in the field that I should be aware of. I also made sure I knew the methods and findings of the key articles/theorists in my thesis that I referred to often. I also did a bit of reading of papers my examiners had done (slightly different fields) to make sure I was aware of their research background and recent research outputs.... I also went on a week holiday to spain the week before my viva (arrived back on the Friday and viva on the Monday!!) Took my thesis with me on holiday and read by the pool on 2 days of the 7 which was actually quite nice ... I also made sure I had a nice outfit for the viva. and knew exactly where it was, so I could plan ahead on the day. Good luck!!

http://www.postgraduateforum.com/thread-24247/

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