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Masters thesis viva advice

Hello my msc thesis viva is next week and I'm not sure where to start or how to go about it to get the best marks, my supervisor has been a nightmare and hasn't really helped me with my lab work, writing of the thesis and now viva advice. So anyone who's done a viva can you give me advice on what the internal and external examiner are looking for/might ask, should i read my thesis again or just summarise everything? I'm on a distinction and would like to graduate with one too!
Please use the format below if you find it helpful. I guess that you would be giving a 10/15 minute presentation, and my suggested content for it would be as follows if you were doing an engineering masters degree project:

1. Define or explain the problem you were looking at or trying to solve.
2. What has been done in that area of study and/or current trend.
3. How did you go about it solving it, eg. lab experiment including equipment, experimental method/s and technique/s used, etc.
3.1. The data collected including theoretical calculation.
3.2. Analytical method used.
4. Result including accounting for uncertainties such as the effect of parameters that may have influence the output of the data collected from your labwork or experiment.
5. Proposals for future work. Always remember that your work is only a part of a bigger picture.

The above are what I believe that you should be able to clearly explain in your viva because they are part of the work you have or should have done.

I wish you all the best and I pray for you that God grant you wisdom and all forms of strength to successfully complete your viva in Jesus's name, amen!
Be blessed and don't get stressed out.
Original post by Jesus-is-Real
Please use the format below if you find it helpful. I guess that you would be giving a 10/15 minute presentation, and my suggested content for it would be as follows if you were doing an engineering masters degree project:

1. Define or explain the problem you were looking at or trying to solve.
2. What has been done in that area of study and/or current trend.
3. How did you go about it solving it, eg. lab experiment including equipment, experimental method/s and technique/s used, etc.
3.1. The data collected including theoretical calculation.
3.2. Analytical method used.
4. Result including accounting for uncertainties such as the effect of parameters that may have influence the output of the data collected from your labwork or experiment.
5. Proposals for future work. Always remember that your work is only a part of a bigger picture.

The above are what I believe that you should be able to clearly explain in your viva because they are part of the work you have or should have done.

I wish you all the best and I pray for you that God grant you wisdom and all forms of strength to successfully complete your viva in Jesus's name, amen!
Be blessed and don't get stressed out.


may God bless you thank you so much 🥲
Original post by applesandalevels
Hello my msc thesis viva is next week and I'm not sure where to start or how to go about it to get the best marks, my supervisor has been a nightmare and hasn't really helped me with my lab work, writing of the thesis and now viva advice. So anyone who's done a viva can you give me advice on what the internal and external examiner are looking for/might ask, should i read my thesis again or just summarise everything? I'm on a distinction and would like to graduate with one too!

Hi @applesandalevels

I’m sorry to hear your supervisor hasn’t been supportive, it can be really frustrating and scary to not know what you are walking into.

The advice above is great, I would just add that you might be able to get a rubric from your university. This might be in your student handbook, or you can ask your supervisor, or another academic involved in the course (e.g. a course director, or an admissions tutor maybe?).

A rubric sets out the criteria for marking an assessment, and therefore will tell you what is expected for each grade band. It can be things like ‘thoroughly explained the problem being addressed and why it was worth addressing’ versus ‘briefly explained the problem being addressed’.
Knowing how much each aspect is worth (in terms of percentage of the score) can also show you which parts to spend the most time on.
You can also use it as a ‘checklist’ for your presentation.

Best of luck with your viva!

Ciara
3rd year Agrifood PhD student
Cranfield Student Ambassador

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