Hi everyone,
I passed my Viva (with minor corrections) earlier this week. Just wanted to come back here and say thanks to you all. This forum helped me a great deal especially in the last year or so of my PhD. I struggled quite a bit and there were so many times when I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. Coming on here and knowing I wasn't alone, and having good advices from you really helped.
To be honest it hasn't quite sunk in yet that I've passed. I still don't feel proud or overly pleased or that I'm a Dr. In fact I still keep thinking about the questions I was asked and kicking myself for not answering as well as I could have. But I guess overall it wasn't overly bad, as I did pass, and my examiners have given very positive feedback. I'm glad it's over though.
For people who're preparing for Viva, I would suggest not to overlook what your internal examiner might ask. I made the mistake on focusing on re-reading my external examiner's work and trying to figure out what he might ask, because my internal examiner doesn't work in the same area as my thesis. However what I neglected was my internal has done some work in a area that is actually related to one of the things I've discussed (but NOT part of my major themes/aims) in my thesis. But as I didn't re-read the literature and refresh my memory the questions he asked about that particular area of work threw me. I suppose I didn't do too badly but I could have done so much better - after all it's something that I'd read and learnt, I just couldn't remember the details at the time!
Again thanks everyone and good luck with your thesis/Viva/job!
Monte xxx