PREPARING FOR THE ORAL DEFENSE OF YOUR DISSERTATION

Preparing for the Oral Defense of the Dissertation

This week I get to celebrate one more doctoral candidate who successfully defended her dissertation, congratulations Dr Priscilla Ndlovu! In the spirit of celebration and as several others run towards the finish line, I decided to revisit a topic I covered a year ago on (March 30, 2012) on getting to a successful defense. In that earlier post, I talked about creating a plan and working it, avoiding distractions and derailments, keeping a pace akin to coursework, learning from those who have gone before you, social support and accountability. In that post, Keith Keppley also posted his reflections as one who had successfully completed his defense.

First of all, at this point in the journey, you are an expert on your topic – including the context and content of your study. Act like one! Demonstrate your competence confidently. Own it!

Be prepared to answer questions about the content of your study. Expect questions about the conceptualization of your study, the theoretical framework, the methods employed (not only how suitable, but what you learned about research design by using the specific method), the findings and implications.

As far as implications go, at this point the committee or examiners want to know, ‘now that we know this (your study findings), so what?’ Demonstrate your expertise by linking your study findings to existing literature where you can be extending it and/or even critiquing it.

Further, expect questions related to the practical implications of your study. That is,  in what ways does your study inform the practice of [e.g. leadership development, organizational change, long term healthcare administration, college teaching…]whatever your topic is? Your examiners are interested in hearing you articulate the [potential] practical applications of your study. 

Finally, I have noticed in some of the committees that I have served in, that some of us are also interested in hearing how the dissertation process impacted you. Indeed, if the dissertation process is more than just an intellectual exercise, it might, for example, impact the choices you make about your future career goals, it might make you reflective about your social identity and the power associated with the researcher role. My dissertation process opened up a world of cultural explanations and depth of understanding about women’s status in my motherland in ways that came as a surprise. For some, the impact might be in getting them excited about scholarship to the point of deciding to become academics…

As usual comments and questions welcome. All the best as you prepare for your oral presentation.

Dr Faith