Dissertation Defense: 4 Little-Known Tricks That Can Help You Succeed
The very thought of dissertation defense might send a chill down your spine and you may think that this is something which you cannot overcome. However, you should not be too worried about thesis defense as there are plenty of survival strategies for you to adopt. Here are four little-known tricks that you will help you during the presentation and Q&A session.
Have confidence in yourself
If you have already submitted your research paper, it simply means that a lot of effort went into it. You have spent sleepless nights, studied hard, visited hundreds of sources, derived information from some of them, have written about the topic, discussed about it in study groups and in class. In other words, you have lived with the topic for years. Therefore, try and believe that you are someone who knows the topic better than many others.
Do not bumble
There are many students who get so anxious on the interview day that they forget that some information they may not know and that they have every right to keep mum during an interview with the committee. As a result, they bumble during the session and end up getting poor scores. If you do not know something, it is quite natural on your part. Everybody should not know everything. Even if it’s your topic, do not get too tensed and give wrong answers to the examiners. Wait for the next question.
Deal with the question with some honesty
Do not try to divert from what has been asked. Be honest with your answer. If you know a little, there’s no problem. But if you pretend to be a know-all, your committee will soon discover your ignorance, and your pretence. They will not give you good marks for sure.
Remember the people on the other end want to see your success
Know that the committee members have already checked your dissertation and they have considered you as a potential candidate to send to a public defense. They already know what you know about the topic and chances are very thin that they will only try to trap you with tricky questions. Instead, you may expect easy questions and questions that you already know the answers for.
Be nice and courteous during the entire Q&A session. Your body language should send the clear message that you are confident, have studied and researched well and you are all set to answer the questions.