Hey, just need to get this off my chest because I’ve been feeling pretty down since it happened. Went in feeling pretty confident - not overly so, but I felt like I submitted a really great piece of work that I worked really really hard on. My supervisor, who is great, felt the same way.

The assessors immediately and aggressively questioned the scope of my study, and I really tried my best to defend myself (as is the point of a viva!) but they were pretty relentless. The most frustrating thing was that they didn’t ask me focused questions concerning their specific problems! They’d give semi-rambling monologues, and then stare at me, at which point I’d lost the thread of the 'question'. Even worse, I kept getting interrupted!! I ended up speaking fast so I could make my points before getting interrupted again.

I had to try hard not to burst into tears because I knew how bad it would look. After this line of questioning was done, the rest was less stressful. After I left, however, I overheard one assessor say that I was trying to write my "life’s work!” which is *really* untrue! I know that a thesis is not meant to be 'discipline-changing'…but I guess that didn't come through in my work/defence.

Sorry, I know there are far worse viva stories out there. I just feel really on-edge now, after having spent years trying to tackle my PhD-related anxiety. I told my supervisor a 'cleaned-up' version of what happened (including the ‘life’s work’ comment). She told me not to worry, and that the worst case scenario was a ‘referral’, which wasn’t unusual in my uni. This actually made me worry more…so today, I’m wondering what work to do because the thought of working on my thesis right now is making feel a little physically sick…

Apologies for being a drama queen, thanks for letting me vent :)

You have done amazingly well to get this far, very few people do.

Have you tried your best? If yes, then that's all that matters. Thesis/dissertations are always open to interpretation. I had a semi similar experience on my MSc to this, all looked great, supervisor super happy etc etc got my score back and it was a good 10 points below what was expected, I was VERY disappointed.

I know this is easy to say but worrying about it will not change the mark you get from the examiners. Even if you do have to do some work on your thesis it will be worth it. So relax and restore your energy.

Sorry to hear you had a poor experience!

Is this your real viva? What was the outcome?

I'm sorry you had this experience, if it helps, I had a bit of a similar experience with my confirmation too! One of the examiners was fairly new to the university, and it was quite clear they wanted to grandstand. Yes, the asked challenging questions which I expected, and when I asked them to rephrase they looked at me like I was really stupid. They were also really patronising and kept asking me really detached questions in order to shift the focus on to their own published work. It knocked my confidence a lot so that, when the second examiner began asking me very straight forward questions, I felt so unsure of my answers that I came across as lacking confidence. I passed though, so try not to fret too much yet!

Hi everyone,

OP here. I just wanted to post an update in case someone in the future who is in the same situation finds this thread. Maybe it can be of some help.

So, despite my immense preparation with the help of my supervisor, the examiners decided not to pass me. I have been asked to submit a different chapter in three months and have another mini-viva roughly a month later. After the horrible viva, I had prepared myself for this outcome, but was still really upset to hear the result. After my supervisor told me in her office, she also let me in on the 'behind-the-scenes' story, which has also made me angry as well as sad.

One examiner, who is very well-known in my field and is in my dept, just did not 'get' my methodology. He thought my approach should be much more conservative, which in my (and my supervisor's) opinion is totally old-fashioned and really boring. The examiner's opinion really annoyed my supervisor and she implied that he is threatened by my approach (which other scholars have successfully adopted!). I get that the thesis is not one's 'life work' but that doesn't mean it should be a dull, paint-by-numbers paperweight...

My sup put a positive spin on it, saying that our 'fight' against his outdated views will make my thesis even stronger. She said that she'll help me submit a chapter that no-one in their right mind can criticise :-) Also, by the time I submit the final thesis, I will have had three mini-vivas and three chapters examined, which can only be an advantage. She urged me not to consider it a 'failure'. I agree in my brain but I still feel sad as I totally expected to sail through the confirmation. I don't think I'm a complacent person but I guess I should take anything for granted. However, the examiners even agreed that the work I submitted was 'excellent' (!?!?). Sigh.

Hi Nesrine

I'm sorry to hear you got that outcome. We don't have to go through a confirmation process at my university, but I have friends at other unis who have similarly been asked to re-submit at this stage (I get the impression that it really is something that happens a lot) and they have come out the other side feeling that their work was stronger. I hope this is your experience too, and I'm glad to hear you have such a good relationship with a supportive supervisor who already thinks your work is great.

Thanks chickpea! I hope so too. I feel a bit better about the whole situation now but it has shaken my confidence. Conversely, I also really just want to kick that examiner's butt in the next mini-viva! I daydream about going into the examination with a flame-coat, a la Katniss Everdeen :P