Viva Preparation Checklist

Examiners are establishing one thing above all: that the thesis is yours and you can defend every decision in it. That means being able to explain not just what you did but why you chose it over the alternatives you rejected — sampling method, instrument, analytical technique, theoretical framework.

Re-read your thesis critically before the viva and list its weaknesses yourself. Knowing where the soft spots are and having a considered response ready is far stronger than being caught out. Acknowledging a genuine limitation and explaining how you would address it in future work is a good answer, not a concession.

Prepare the practical ground as well: be able to state your original contribution in two sentences, know the recent work of both examiners, prepare for the standard openers about why this topic and what you would do differently, and rehearse aloud with peers rather than only in your head. Take a clean tabbed copy of the thesis in and use it — looking something up is perfectly acceptable.