Thanks guys!
So basic run down of the day was go t into my dept about an hour before I was due to go in. Hid in my mates office as my desk had already been re-assigned. Had a cup of coffee and some flapjack, tried not to panic. My supervisor went to lunch with the examiners beforehand, then came and got me when they were ready to start. Told me my external examiner had already started on the wine at lunchtime - which I took as a good thing if the examiner is willing to drink before the exam.

Got in, was introduced to the external who I knew from a conference sort of. Then he started off by just asking what my first degree was in, who I'd done my industrial experience with, who was my supervisor then, why did I continue on to a phd. Then got onto my subject area why I had chosen it, then tested my on my physiology ( i'm in interdisciplinary sciences), checked that I had a good understanding of the organ. Had to draw bits out and label up cells. Then moved onto clinical issues and diseases that weren't in my thesis and the current treatments. Then I was asked where I thought my field was going in the next 20-30 years and the ideal treatments I'd hope would be developed. Then he jumped onto asking for specific papers that I'd read in the last 3 years, best ones, most innovative etc. What I thought of certain groups work - which was a paper I'd scan read the abstract then ignored.:$. Then he jumped to my chemistry bit of the lit review linking the earliest paper to how my work relates.
Then after finishing with the lit review bit they went through each experimental chapter. Literally asked me to summarise what I'd done in each chapter and the key results. He then focused on specific figures which we wanted to discuss and how I'd done various techniques like; describe how you curve fit XPS peaks? So there was some basics that were covered. At some points I was deliberately challenged - i.e. I don't agree that your cells are X I think they are an X cell line.

We had a break after 1.5 hours, so I nipped out to the toilet then got myself a coffee. When I got back in - the external was like we'll only be another 15 minutes. With still 3 chapters to go!!! So I got the same treatment for my final experimental chapter, was asked to summarise the key conclusions from my thesis. All along they pointed out bits that they didn't like - such as figure legends must stand alone independent of the text - please fix this. but mostly formatting.

They then asked me to leave the room for 10 mins so they could discuss the result. So I went next door to my supervisors office to wait. Talked through what I'd been asked. Which seemed to fly by. Then was called in and told the result, after which I was given my thesis copies back from my examiners so that I could go through their corrections. Myexternal made his exit to go catch a train and I was left with the aftermath that was telling my supervisor and breaking the news to my office mates.

Hope that helps, everyones experience is different. But do expect to be totally emotionally drained once you have finished, in need of alcohol and want to crash out by 10 pm.
Hope this helps and best of luck for tomorrow. :-)

Hi guys,
Sorry I haven't been back on the forum since Tuesday! You will be all glad to hear that I passed with minor corrections on Tuesday, mostly typo's and clarification of a few paragrapghs. My internal thinks i should be able to go out in july graduation.
I was in the viva just under 2 hours. It went so quickly, and to me the examiners seemed to skip over huge lumps of my data. Only had to really defend my point about 3 times but the rest was formatting critism which you have to just take on the chin. Even better when I got out my co-sup had sent a bottle of bubbles down for me - which was promptly consumed.
So chin up everyone - read the thesis, you know what you wrote so thats the best preparation advice I can give to those having their vivas this week.
Big thank you to everyone on the forum who has helped me through the process. Need to crack on with the corrections. :-)

My viva is tomorrow, so I'm finding your thread useful for some of the prep work. I'm trying to have a chilled day today, but have found myself trying to plug gaps in my technical knowledge in the run up to tomorrow. Most of which I may not even be asked.
I hope your viva goes well on Friday. I'll check back in later in the day to see if anyone has any last minute tips for either of us.
Please let me have some finger nails left to chew by tomorrow.

I have my viva in exactly a week from today. I'm starting to get a little nervous. I'm trying to take it slowly and go through my thesis. Only to find to my horror that during printing and assembling my thesis my computer must have had a hissy fit and lost a paragraph of my work. The paragraph is there on the electronic version, but somehow didn't make it onto the page that is in the bound up copy I handed in. What should I do? Tell my internal now, and explain what the missing lines are, to make sure they don't think I deliberately missed and made up a totally disjointed sentence? Or do I keep quiet, hope they don't notice but take a proper copy of the page that should be there in with me? Everything else I've found so far is only very minor typing errors. What should I do?

I'm attempting to reference my paper I'm writing using the royal society of chemistry (RSC) templates, as its meant to be going to one of their journals. BUT my copy of Endnote, the latest one X3 doesn't not have the RSC style output - no idea why not. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to fix this or can suggest a similar style the comes with the X3 version that matches or can be modified to the RSC guidelines?
Any help would be gratefully received.

I'm slightly bored and everyone seems to need a perk up, especially those of us writing up, that I thought we should have a bad jokes thread. The kind of jokes that make you go that is terrible but then have to go and tell someone else, just for amusement.

So in best bad joke fashion I'll start us off, feel free to add others.

What is God's Favourite planet?

Saturn .....because he put a ring on it. :p

I'd pick the style that works for you best, after all its your work and you will be defending it in the viva, not your supervisors. I wrote my thesis with 2 supervisors, and ended up deciding to listen predominantly to one supervisor who had been the most consistent throughout my phd even though he wasn't my main supervisor. My main supervisor only really got involved in the last 2 months of my writing up- she didn't want to see anything until I had a full draft then tried to wreck all the hard work me and my co-sup had done.
I always cc all my e-mails of drafts by both supervisors, made both of them read the version and comment, then go back to each of them and explain what the other supervisor thought. This helped when moving certain paragraphs about, but in the end its down to you and where you feel the paragraph belongs whether its in the intro or another section.
Hope that helps.

Keep going....will all be over soon. You can sit in the pub once you hand in and relax.

Hope the last few bits go well. :-)

I submitted at the start of March and I'm waiting my viva. With regards to referencing figures and tables that you are using/slightly modifying in your thesis from other people make sure you reference the original source; adapted from Alberts et al 1993. I don't think you have to ask the authors about copyright as technically your thesis is examination material prior to the viva, so as long as you reference you should be fine. I'm still trying to clarify about post viva with the electronic submission people at my university.

Mostly the other bits I'd advise you do are:
1) Use spell check even if you have to teach it all the technical words in your thesis.
2) Make sure any page breaks are right and have added or lost pages/page numbers mine did this several times
3) Take at least 2 days to reference and do it at the end, as the last thing with lots of coffee. If Endnote falls over you don't want to have to re-format your document first.
4)Write in your references as you go along and highlight them i.e. (yong et al 2002), then when you come to insert all the Endnote references its easy to find where you want to put things in and which reference
5) Learn to use formatting style so that Word will automatically do your table of contents, figures and tables and will auto-update if things shift about.
6) Back -up everything and be mega paranoid! Put it on multiple computers/laptops and CD's / USB sticks.
7) Make sure you've put all the university regulation pages in ; i.e. the copyright statement and the declaration otherwise the submission office will just send you straight back to Go. Like monopoly.
8) Get someone to proof read you thesis. Not your supervisor, get someone who will read it for the sake of the quality of the English,  such as your other half, parent, best mate (bribe with beer/choccy), another phd student at a similar point. There is nothing wrong with using your supervisor but they are normally sick of seeing chapter drafts from you so tend to skim over any english mistakes.

I'm sure I could come up with loads more but those are the main things that spring to mind. Happy writing guys.

:-)

I'm also awaiting my viva, I've got another 2 months to wait and I'm a little nervous I'll forget everything I've written in my thesis. The guys in my office - who have all survived the viva process and gone onto postdoc's have given me the how to survive your viva book by Murray. That has helped de-mystify stuff a little bit.
I'm not going to have a mock viva - mostly because I think I'll just start seeing holes in what I've written that may not even come up in the real thing. Also I'm due to start a new job away from my university so I doubt I'll have time to run things through with my supervisors. Little nervous but I'm sure when it comes to it I'll just go for it and defend my work. fingers crossed. :-)

Congratulations!! I only hope mine is that short!

Hope you are feeling a bit better now you are on the drugs. It is more than possible that thesis stress is getting to you. I've been suffering from gum recession over the last 2 years - my teeth are perfectly fine and I've always seen my dentist regularly. There was no trigger for it at all, but when referred to the NHS dental hospital I was informed by the helpful dentist that stress adversely affects the oral mucosa in the mouth. He even had done a PhD on it! Personally I think it was more to do with my wisdom teeth coming through randomly.
Either way I hope you are feeling better soon - I'm slowly coming down with flu post hand in. my poor head.

Hi guys,
I just wanted to share with you all that I finally submitted my thesis to the GRAD office yesterday.
It feels odd, but I'm so happy. Now for viva prep and paper writing.
For everyone else still writing up - keep going it will be in one day soon!

Thank you!! That has helped a lot!

Hi Guys,
I've been referencing up my thesis to submit on Monday and I've found I'm missing the page numbers of an essential reference!!! I can't get to the book in question as I'm no longer living near my uni.

So, if anyone has a copy of the 3rd edition (1994) version of Alberts The cell could you please get in touch. I need the page numbers and chapter number/authors for the section containing a liver sinusoid picture. It only appears in the 3rd edition, and I only have a copy of the 4th edition. stupid mistake to make I know. please please postgrad forum get me out of this hole!!