HOW TO PREPARE FOR VIVA by Dr.Lee Khai Ern

27/8/2015
Pusat Siswazah UKM

What is viva?

Oral examination or thesis defense.

Why do you need viva?

\            -To validate your research/thesis

      - Examine your understanding

What to expect in a viva.

1.       Who is the panel

-The chairperson

-Internal examiner

-Your department representive

-The secretary

What do examiners do?

1.       Read your thesis

2.       Identify typo, formatting and grammer error

3.       Look for statement not clear

4.       Look key issues and prepare question

5.       They may verify with previous work.

How to prepare for a viva?

1.       Make sure your thesis is FIT for a viva.

                                 i.            Get peers and professionals to review and feedback on your thesis.

                               ii.            Present your work in conferences to discuss your work with others.

                              iii.            Send your work for publication

                             iv.            Get clear feedback from your SV

                               v.            Proof reading, format and language

Before viva what you need to prepare

1.       Make sure your thesis is thoroughly checked and approved by your SV

2.       Re-read and familiarize with your thesis.

3.       Background examiners,his like&dislike

4.       Practise mock viva

5.       Predict question

During viva

1.       1 – 2 min (Intro)

-          Slide 1: Research title

-          Slide 2: Introduction/Background

2.       3-8 min : Slide 3

3.       9 – 14 min : Methodology (Flowchart)

4.       15 – 22 min : Result and Finding

5.       23 – 30 min : Discussion, Conclusion n Implication + List of paper published

“DO’s”  during VIVA!

1.       Stay calm- when being asked tricky quest

2.       Impress your examiners- Showcase the strength and output of your research.

3.       Discuss- Justify your comments with examples or evidence

4.       Answer assertively, not defensively- the examiners are not there to fail you.

“DON’T” during VIVA!

1.       Don’t give lengthy presentation

2.       Don’t rush- think first. Don’t rush answer yes or no

3.       Don’t blame- Supervisors, University, Prof

4.       Don’t lie- If you are unsure or don’t know the answer, just admit it.

Key Evaluation Areas

1.       Is the prob of study clear and important?

2.       Are the method used sufficient?

3.       Are the result clear, sufficient and important?

4.       Can the result be explained clearly and sufficiently?

5.       Have the study’s objective been achieved?

6.       Is the level of work sufficient for the awarded degree?

7.       Are the presentation of work and writing in thesis adequate?

Some Possible Question in VIVA

1.       What is the contribution of thesis

2.       Summarize the basic theory behind this approach

3.       Why do you choose this approach?

4.       How does this relate to xxxx?

Some Tricky Quest

1.       Be prepared for question “Are you sure about that’?

2.       Examiners check your thinking and challenge you.

3.       Even negative feedback requires an answer from you.

4.       Think properly and respond constructively by :

-do not defensive or dogmatic

-rephrase your point.

How is your thesis judged?

1.       Original work?

2.       Adequate knowledge of the field

3.       Publication?

4.       Adherence to academic conventions

WELCOME TO RESEARCH FIELD ! ONCE YOU IN THERE, IS NO WAY OUT.

doakan lerh sang penulis dilancarkan lisan untuk viva nanti lepas almost 2 years tunggang terbalik.