Well done Jojo, either way you have passed! I think a well earned rest with a celebratory drink this evening is in order. Hopefully your external is going to be specific in his extra requirements so you can get the corrections done asap. Once done the award is all yours :-)

Big Congrats jojo,

really glad you enjoyed the viva especially given your external sounds a bit of a trial - sounds almost like he was looking for to fail you - so you did doubly well.

wonder whether he wants to give you a job ? so you're like his apprentice now :-)

when you regain your ability to type be fab to hear the full story.. but for now.. a well earned rest and congrats again.

Chuff

Hi Jojo,

well done, good that you have passed, even though the corrections may be somewhat disappointing. However, reading your story of the external you must have done a good job, it is always very difficult if someone (the external) has very fixed ideas one what should go in the thesis (his / her work).

Take a break and before you know you have completed everything. Have a celebration tonight!!:-):-)(gift)

Well done jojo! I didn't even submit mine yet, and I cannot even dream about the viva. You have done extremely well, and your contribution to the forum has really helped me to keep motivated and positive. I hope that you will continue to post here!(gift)

======= Date Modified 05 Jan 2011 20:38:41 =======
Congratulations JoJo :)

I was thinking about you all day today! I'm hoping and praying for major corrections in my viva in feb so at the very least at least you passed!!!! (I'm fully expecting an MPhil, but I'm working on trying to stay positive and show why I deserve a resubmission rather than an MPhil)

I hope you're having a good rest I'm sure you will receive your PhD in no time at all!!

Thanks for your continued posts over the last few months. I'll be very interested to find out more about your viva!

All the best,

E x

Well done Jojo!!!!
I know how long and how hard you've worked for this, I'm so chuffed for you :-)
Don't worry about the egomaniac examiner, it's a PITA but you'll get your PhD all the same, Enjoy! xx

Congratulations Jojo! Well done. Get some deserved rest and time off, and start on your corrections with a fresh mind!

Congratuations Jojo - so well deserved. Enjoy your time off, and hopefully then with a fresh mind those corrections won't take too long.

Congratulations JoJo
I have just been for my pre-viva meeting with my supervisor who has at the same time made me feel better, and made me feel worse! I wish i was where you are today!
Well done, you will have the corrections done in no time Dr!

Congratulations Jojo!! As others have said, at least you have passed, and once you have received the corrections you'll know exactly what you have to do to finish totally. As frustrating as I'm sure it is having to go back over it all again, you are doing it form the other side now, you've got the viva done and you don't have to go through it all again!! Congratulations for passing with what seemed like a pretty tough external, sounds a bit like one of my supervisors who I'm so glad isn't my examiner so well done you!!

thanks guys! you all sound so positive. am in two minds as to whether i should bother with corrections or just take an MPhil and move on with life: career reasons, financial reasons etc. but anyway that will be the subject of another thread.

so here's how my viva went:

i arrived, my supervisor was there, he asked me if i'd prepared and i told him i'd done my best. he sat in the viva. i was not expecting him to be there but i allowed him to sit in anyway.

so i found my examiners had sat down and even prepared a glass of water for me. i went in and sat down and it began.

the first thirty minutes were on literature: have you come across the work of A, B, C, D etc. i managed 90% of those and where it was not included in my thesis i explained why. in most cases the examiner said he expected a few pages and footnotes on it. this included his own work and work on which he was currently researching. basically he did not acknowledge the literature i already had. he only asked about one author who he seemed not to be a fan of. at this point the viva was getting quite heated because what he was suggesting that i should do could form another phd in itself - which when i put to him, he acknowledged.

(note thus far all questions are very subject specific - not about my phd.)

after 30 mins my internal took over. he asked only two questions - fairly easy ones and said he'd misunderstood my work.

then back to my external for about 30 mins who was now telling me how he expected the thesis to be done. what concept i should have used and how i should have developed it.

(note i was not asked any real question about my thesis that was not factual. more oddly no one asked me about my argument. which my supervisor said suggested no one seemed to have a problem with it. my external kept saying he was 'sympathetic about my thesis' but .............. where is this literature and have you looked at my work where i have cited it.)

the external insisted that he needed to see footnotes on the papers he was mentioning and i should insert 3 pages here and there of them. he then said he enjoyed reading my thesis and my supervisor and i went out for a decision.

i asked my supervisor how i'd done and he said i'd done ok and the worst he was expecting was minor corrections because i did defend my decisions well and only conceded one.

anyhow, we went back in and my internal said that the best they could give me was major corrections. i said that was quite harsh since he didn't talk about my argument suggesting it was ok. he agreed that my argument was ok and said my thesis needed more detail to make the argument more strongly. he said if i didn't want the major corrections i could take the MPhil.

obviously i decided i'd take the major corrections.

none of the questions i prepared came up. i can't say i had a conventional viva. i was not asked about my argument, the weak/strong parts, the originality or any other question you can expect. in fact, i was never asked to open my thesis. so i wouldn't say my experience is what you should expect. it was quite odd.

J.

======= Date Modified 06 Jan 2011 16:18:12 =======
Just wanted to thank you Jojo for taking the time to inform us of your viva. Sounds very strange indeed!

I just wanted to congratulate you again for getting through the viva in one piece. I really would LOVE to be in your position now. I'm fully expecting them to say 'I'm sorry to say your thesis has not met the required standard and the best we can offer you is an MPhil'.  I'm in a horrible state of limbo as I'm still waiting on my viva date and therefore fearing the worst.

JoJo, you've worked so hard on your thesis to give up now. I hope you decide to continue with the revise and resubmit/major corrections rather than leaving with an MPhil.

I hope you're taking it easy and not being too hard on yourself there.

Also, as my supervisors are predicting major corrections (with a possibility of an MPhil if I'm not crystal clear on my thesis aims and areas of where to improve or fail to defend my thesis adequately in the viva), my main supervisor keeps telling me that she had major corrections and she had to resubmit her thesis and she keeps repeating that major corrections is not the end of the world. My supervisor is very well known within her field and is a very senior academic in my department so receiving major corrections has not affected her career at all.

I'm thinking of you!

You passed Jojo thats the main thing! It could have been A LOT worse- they could have refused major corrections and offered an MPhil only (which is what I'm fearing and expecting in my case) or they could have failed you outright. You also do not have to go through another viva again so thats another good thing! (unless you do a secondary doctorate like the doctorate in clinical psychology- which is what I'm hoping to do in September). In short, they think your work is worthy of a doctorate and they have agreed to award you with your doctorate after a revise and resubmit. You WILL receive your doctorate JoJo, just after a little more work.

All the best, E x

Pineapple is right. I was thinking about this myself. I am really scared to fail or to be given the MPhil without option, and even if there is an option...after five years (I had a baby in the middle of it and took time off), I don't feel I have the energy to deal with this any longer. Indeed I would like to have finished yesterday!
I am here correcting a pile of UG essays, and this is very time-consuming. Theoretically I am very close to the end (only the conclusion to write and then put all the chapters together, check the Appendixes etc.), but some days I feel that I am miles away.
Well done jojo, you have all my admiration.(up) Pineapple, you must be positive, you cannot go to your viva feeling defeated!
A big, virtual hug!

Congratulations, Jojo. And thank you for sharing your experience.

Jojo, a belated well done from me as well. I'm a bit dissapointed with your, what I think, arrogant external examiner. It just goes to show what a subject process the viva is. Imagine if it had been someone else who was not a fan of your external's work? Best wishes.