======= Date Modified 11 Apr 2011 19:27:10 =======
Hi all, I submitted my thesis on April fools day (not sure what omen that is?!?) and really have not heard from the uni as yet. Fortunately I have taken the bambinos away for a two week break which does not include my thesis! When I return home at the end of this week I guess I need to check through my thesis and start preping for the viva. I have been reading a couple of viva books while away.

I have only evenings for prep work and one afternoon a week due to childcare, so will have to be focused when I start.

Is there anyone else who is in this limbo stage?

Has anyone advice on viva prep with a very young demanding family?

Thank you

I didn't hear anything from my uni post submission until 3 weeks before my viva. So that may happen to you.

My viva prep didn't involve a young family, but did involve having very few good hours at all in the week to study, so having to grab moments here and there. I don't think it is necessary to spend days and days viva prepping. You will be fine.

Here are my tips, in case you haven't seen them before:

My viva preparation involved reading a viva preparation book (Tinkler and Jackson) to demystify the process, rereading and summarising my thesis to familiarise myself with it and spot typos (I took a list into the viva on the day and handed it out - all examiners/convenor were very grateful), and thinking about and memorising my answers to 5 key questions: originality of my thesis, contribution to knowledge, methodology, weaknesses/gaps/mistakes, and what would I do differently if starting again.

- of those rereading and summarising the thesis was the most intensive and time-consuming, but still not that bad, since I had written it and did recognise some of it LOL!

Well done on submitting - I have no tips I'm afraid but hope to get some from you if I ever get to that stage! ;-)

Hi,

I just wrote up some advice here: http://scicommbobulate.blogspot.com/2011/04/viva-voce-veni-vidi-vici-recent.html It's pretty generic as a I don't have the added fun of having children, but I hope it helps!

Thanks everyone for your replies. Bilbo, I wondered if I would hear anything prior to a viva date but possibly not. However, I do need to pay the exam fee when they get around to sending me the invoice link, so I was expecting that communication at least lol. It is comforting to know that the prep can be done with limited time set aside. I am a little worried that I am forgetting my work during my break from it, but hopefully reading through with fresh eyes will refresh my memory!

Tulpesh, I am reading through your link and so far has been very informative! Thank you for sharing your experience aswell.

Timefortea, you will get there as you are obviously determined. It is very hard with a family to look after but, as several have demonstrated, it is possible. When I get through this I will happily empart my experiences!

======= Date Modified 21 Apr 2011 10:53:47 =======
Great advice and link.(up) I've just submitted and didn't know where to start. My tutor, who is a very experienced examiner, reads a chaper a day and makes notes and collates them for the viva. I was going to start there. I've already got my dear old Mam reading it and she's found some pretty bad typo's like "sole" instead of "soul" :$ So I'll be compiling a list of them to. I'm also arranging a mock viva with my tutor so I'll have some practice as well. Good luck!

Hi Fredsmith, glad to hear I am not alone.  Where to start, mmm I have taken Bilbos advice on reading the thesis first.  Hopefully the typos/corrections list will be formulated while I read, the post-its will evolve into my thesis, the key papers for reading will be noted and the omissions/potential questions will reveal themselves. I think this will take some time to do.  Then I plan to answer the five key questions and any others I have thought about. Oh, I will also have a few key papers to re-read.  Gosh that seems like loads of work and so little time! Not sure that my distance from the uni will help for a mock viva unless I can arrange a skype link.  Sounds like you sups comments for potential questions will be fab though!

No young family here either I'm afraid; but I submitted in Feb and today (first contact I've had since submission) was told the examiners are in discussion about 2 potential dates in June... both of which mean I miss the cut off for graduation - grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Post-submission has been the worst stage of the whole process so far!

Hi Gingerley, that is encouraging that dates are being discussed.  At least that way you have a deadline for your prep and that is definitely a motivator for me lol. It would be a shame missing the graduation deadline though, but I have always assumed I will get some corrections to do and therefore potentially graduate October 2012 (maybe!).  That said, if you submitted in Feb, a viva in June does seem a long time to viva. Our regs suggest a three month maximum period between submission and viva, so I shall see if they follow the regs or not.

I agree that this period is a struggle.  The write-up phase was full of 'will I or won't I submit' but at least I was motivated to work very hard to get there. Now it feels like I have done all I can do, so I need to find the motivation to pick this up again and work on it some more.  As with starting the PhD, there was bewilderment at the amount of work to do and now I am feeling the same again. So, I need go back to the beginning by breaking it down into manageable chunks and set a timetable of work to do. But for now, a nice cup of tea  :p

Hi Dunni

Tea makes everything better!

The dates, even though they aren't definite, do give a bit of assurance and much more a framework to schedule work. My supervisor and I had anticipated May (you're right about the usual 3 months), and he assured me that most corrections can be done in a week or two, so we were still hopeful to make graduation.

Hi everyone, well I am still chugging along with the viva prep.  Based on the advice here, I planned to review each chapter in depth with post-its and clarification notes along the way. I have formulated about 12-15 questions that I will then need to answer and practice.  As Bilbo has previously said, the thesis review takes some time and therefore I have some way to go yet lol. I am checking and reviewing the literature base at the same time too, noting any new or absent references. My corrections list is small but enough for me to be a little disappointed however they are all corrected now!  It is great how re-reading the thesis makes you procrastinate some more lol.

So as yet the uni has made no contact regarding a viva date, which feels disappointing as I submitted six weeks ago. We will be moving in august so I really need it to be prior to all of the upheaval.  I was also hoping (and asked for) for some extra notice for childcare arrangements as I will need at least an overnight stay..........oh well, I guess these things take time.

How long do you usually wait before a viva date is arranged?

Hi Dunni, is your sup in contact with your external? I knew my viva date before I submitted. Apparently my external is very organized and has already arranged for the hotel and return tickets! Still it will be a the end of July, so there is still a wee while to wait. Nonetheless, I agree that having a date set makes your life easier. I have a child too, and knowing that the viva is not going to be on the days when she is at home from nursery is already a big bonus.
I would definitely ask your supervisor, as Registry is usually the last to get back in touch with you.
Well done for being so organised! I am scared at the thought of going through the volume and find mountains of mistakes!

Hi Corinne, I was very scared about re-reading my thesis.  I knew of one 'page number quote' mistake after printing prior to submitting, so I knew it was not perfect lol. However, I recommend taking a few weeks out and then reviewing it.  I had four weeks absence (2-3 away) from my thesis and to be honest it is easier seeing the errors or ambiguities with fresh eyes. I have realised that critiquing your thesis is just another skill to learn as part of the whole PhD process, so is nothing to be worried about, but embraced.  I am trying to see the viva in a positive light, but have yet to find a way :$

Glad to see you have an advance date for your viva, I am envious. It is a worry with childcare to organise as well, particularly as my three only have a childminder for one afternoon a week.  It will not be easy to get my three into childminder for any other day as she has other children then. Likewise for a childminder to be able to take all three (being so young) takes special approval from ofsted.  I am really dependant on hubby or my family to look after them for my viva. So I shall take your advice and contact my two sups for any insider info (I am not panicking yet, really).

well getting a tea pot at work is a bit ott but the tea room there is a large i mean large water tea tank that could make at least 50 teas

Dunni you have done fantastically well! Your family and children must be very proud of you! I know how difficult it is to balance things with 1 child, I can only admire you for submitting while caring for 3 kids. So this is the last hard step before glory.

I don't know if the system is the same in every Uni. Here your supervisors fill in all the paperwork for the nomination of examiners, and this is then approved by 2 PG officers. If the relevant paperwork was completed before your submission, there is more than a good chance that your date - at least a provisional one - has already been agreed. But it also depend on how much work your Registry office has at the moment etc.

I will do as you said. I will leave it aside for a few weeks and then will start to read it with fresher eyes (I cannot bear to look at it at the moment anyway!).