Viva Voce Preparation
Presentation review, a question bank built from your thesis, and a mock viva before the real one.
When your viva-voce date is fixed, the hardest part of the PhD is already over. The thesis is submitted, examiners have read it, and their reports were good enough for the university to call you for the defence. Still, many scholars feel least ready at this stage only. You have to talk about years of work in an open session, and many times one examiner on the panel is someone you have never met.
Our service gets you ready for that discussion. We read your thesis like an examiner reads it. From what the chapters actually say, we make a bank of likely questions. Your slides also we check, then a reviewer runs a mock viva and gives detailed feedback. If your university shares the examiners’ reports or queries before the viva, we go through those with you first.
In a viva you defend your own work by speaking about it. Our preparation is all done before that day. On the day itself, whether in person or online, you give the answers on your own. When the questions come, every part of your thesis should feel known to you.
Quick answers
- What does viva preparation include?
If you have the examiners’ reports, we start by going through them. You also get a question bank linked to your own chapters, tables and figures, and we review your slides. The main part is a mock viva with a reviewer from your field. It is recorded, and written feedback comes after.
- How early should I start preparing?
Ideally you should start two to four weeks before the viva date. Reading your thesis takes the reviewer 5–7 working days. Then the question bank comes in 3–5 working days, and feedback on the mock reaches you within 2 working days of the session.
- How many mock vivas are included?
As many as your written scope says. The number of mock sessions and review rounds is fixed in the scope before you pay anything. A second mock some days after the first one is optional. If time permits, it is worth taking.
- Can your team help me during the viva itself?
No. During the defence any outside help is misconduct, and that includes someone sitting off-camera in an online viva. We finish all our work before the day. In the viva you answer by yourself.
- What should I tell you first?
In the free consultation, tell us your viva date, what the examiners have said till now, and which parts of the defence are worrying you. After that you get a written scope and a fixed price. When the viva is just a few days away, we quote only for the work that can still be useful.
Scope
What’s included
Each stage can be taken separately. A few scholars want the mock viva only. Others take the full preparation, starting from the examiner reports.
Examiner report walkthrough
Suppose you have got the examiners’ reports or queries. Then we discuss about each point with you. We look at what the examiner is really asking and what your thesis already says on it. Then we work out how to answer clearly, without sounding defensive.
Thesis-based question bank
These questions come from your own chapters. They cover your contribution, why you chose the method, limitations and results that conflict. Some come from your particular tables and figures. Each has notes on what a good answer covers.
Presentation review
We go through your viva slides and check the structure and the timing. We also see if the contribution statement is clear and figures are readable on a projector or shared screen.
Mock viva with feedback
A reviewer from your subject acts as the examiner in a recorded mock viva. After it you get written feedback on content, clarity and how composed you were. If you want, a second mock can be done.
Method and analysis refresher
This is one focused session on the method or statistics part where you feel least confident. The idea is that you can explain the choices you made, in your own words.
Quality
How quality is verified
These are the checks every piece of work goes through before it reaches you.
Mock examiner from your field
The person asking you questions has done research in your discipline. Before the mock viva, this reviewer reads the full thesis and not only the abstract.
Questions tied to your pages
Against every question in the bank we note the chapter, table or figure it comes from. So while preparing an answer you can go straight back to your own text.
Recording you can review
With your consent the mock viva is recorded so you can watch it later. Mostly scholars learn more by watching their own answers than by reading notes.
Written, specific feedback
The feedback mark which answers came out clear and which were vague. Answers that claimed more than the thesis supports are also pointed out, each with a suggestion.
Mock rounds stated in scope
We write the number of mock sessions and review rounds in your scope before you make payment. That way you know what preparation you are getting.
Time
Realistic timelines
If possible, begin two to four weeks before your viva date. Preparing in the last few days is still useful. But then there is hardly any time left for a second mock.
| Stage | Typical time | What it depends on |
|---|---|---|
| Reviewer reads your thesis | 5–7 working days | Thesis length and complexity |
| Examiner report walkthrough | 1–2 sessions | Number and depth of examiner queries |
| Question bank | 3–5 working days after reading | Number of chapters and results |
| Presentation review | 2–3 working days per round | How far along your slides are |
| First mock viva and feedback | 1 session, feedback within 2 working days | Scheduling around your availability |
| Second mock viva (optional) | A few days after the first | Time left before the real viva |
The defence
What to expect at a PhD viva in India
The broad pattern is from the UGC’s 2022 PhD regulations. Each university sets the details, like the panel, the format and the duration.
How you get there
Once you submit, the university sends your thesis to external examiners for evaluation. If those reports are satisfactory, then only the viva is held. The 2022 regulations say this. An examiner may ask for revisions. In that case you may need to do them and resubmit before any viva date gets fixed. You can see where this stage comes among the other milestones in our PhD timeline guide.
The format
Mostly the viva is a public defence. Faculty, other scholars and anybody interested can come, and some may ask questions. Normally your supervisor is on the panel, along with at least one of the external examiners. Most scholars present for around 30 to 45 minutes before the questions begin. The regulations also allow the viva to be held online. For the exact panel and procedure, check the ordinance of your university.
What examiners tend to ask
Mostly the questions are of a few types. Examiners want your contribution in one sentence. Some question will come on why you used this method and not another one, and on what your results mean next to the literature. Then come the limitations and how they affect your conclusions, and also what work you would do next. Examiners also pick up particular tables, figures and claims. For this reason a question bank made from your own thesis helps more than a general list taken from internet.
Where scholars most often need extra preparation
Usually the difficult moments in a viva have three sources. First is statistics or analysis that somebody else ran for you. Second is a conclusion that says more than your results can support. Third is a paper you published which says something different from the thesis. Suppose analysis is your weak area. Then a focused statistics review before the viva can help you understand your own results and explain them.
Pricing
How pricing works
We give a quote for viva preparation after seeing your thesis, along with the examiners’ reports if you have got them. The amount of work mainly depends on how long the thesis is, how many queries the examiners raised and how many mock sessions you want. Before any work begins, the quote is fixed and agreed with you in writing.
When the viva is just a few days away, mention it in the consultation. We will tell you honestly what can be done usefully in that time, and our quote will cover that work only.
What the quote depends on
- How long the thesis is and how technical it is
- How many examiner queries there are and how deep they go, if shared
- The stages you need, and the number of mock sessions
- Your subject area, and how specialised the mock examiner has to be
- How much time is left before the viva date
Every quote includes
- A written scope listing exactly what will be delivered
- A fixed price agreed before any payment
- Payment in stages, tied to delivery
- Revision rounds stated in the scope
Process
How it works
Free consultation
Share your viva date and whatever the examiners have said till now. Mention in the consultation itself which part of the defence is worrying you.
Written scope and quote
You get a written scope with the stages, the mock sessions and the timeline. The price is fixed and agreed before you pay anything.
Reading and question bank
A reviewer matched to your subject reads the thesis and prepares the question bank. After that the reviewer goes through your presentation.
Mock viva and feedback
We hold a recorded mock viva and give written feedback. If your scope has a second session, that follows.
Keep reading
Guides and related services
Common PhD viva questions
The questions examiners ask most often, grouped by theme, with how to prepare each answer.
PhD timeline and milestones in India
Coursework to viva under the UGC 2022 regulations, year by year, with the usual sticking points.
Thesis Chapter Review and Feedback
You write the chapters. A reviewer from your field reads each one and tells you what an examiner will question.
Statistics Training and Analysis Review (SPSS, R, AMOS, SmartPLS)
Learn the right tests on your own data, run them yourself, and get your output and interpretation checked.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Can someone from your team attend my viva or help me during it?
No. The viva is where you defend your own work orally, so we give all our help before it. Help from outside during the viva would be misconduct. That is true in person, off-camera in an online viva, or through messages. On the day you answer by yourself, and you go in well prepared.
Will you tell me exactly what the examiners will ask?
Nobody can know the exact questions in advance, because every examiner comes with their own interests. What we do is make a question bank from your thesis, and from the examiners’ reports when you have them. Usually it covers a good part of what gets asked. One or two questions you never thought of will mostly come, and handling those is part of the mock practice.
Will my supervisor know I’ve had viva preparation?
You decide that. Many guides conduct mock vivas on their own and are happy when a scholar gets more practice. Preparing like this for an examination is normal in academics.
Is this ethical?
Yes. Universities all over the world use mock vivas and question practice. An ethics problem comes only when someone helps you during the viva, or prepares you to defend work which is not yours. What we do is prepare you to defend your own thesis. The complete boundary is given in our ethics policy.
Can you guarantee I’ll pass the viva?
No, the result is decided by your examiners and your university only. Most scholars who reach the viva have already got positive evaluation reports. What preparation does is help you present your work well.
I got help with parts of my thesis and can’t explain them well. Can you help?
We can help you understand your own methods, analysis and results well enough that you can explain them correctly. Many times this is easier than scholars think. Our preparation is about work that you can understand and take ownership of. If some part of the thesis is something you cannot stand behind, we would suggest you talk to your supervisor about it.
What if the mock viva shows weak points?
That is the purpose of a mock. It catches the weak points before the real viva. From the feedback you know what to work on, and a second mock lets you see if you have improved. So start early enough to have time for both.
Is my thesis kept confidential?
Yes. Only your reviewer sees your thesis, the examiner reports and any recording. We use them for your project only and delete them on request once the viva is over. We are happy to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
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