21890 Chap.10 Defending Your Research in the Viva
Defending Your Research in the Viva
The format
Assessment task 2 is an individual viva worth 35%: up to five minutes presenting an update on your research, then a five-minute question-and-answer period led by staff.
Slides and a reflection are due by 11:59pm on 2 October.
How it is graded
Defending your choice of industry, issue and recommendations carries 40%, research 20% and quality of delivery 40%, and sessions are recorded.
The reflection
A reflection on changes since the proposal is unmarked but required: without it the task is failed.
Its length is given as 500 words on the reflection page and 300 words on the overview, and the assessor uses it during the questions.
Where marks are lost
The lower rubric bands describe responses that needed further thought and research, ideas that needed refinement and time management problems, so rehearsal to five minutes and prepared answers on every choice are the most direct protection.
What this chapter covers
- 01
Viva format and timing
- 02
Graded criteria and bands
- 03
Defending choices under questioning
- 04
Time management
- 05
The required reflection
- 06
Peer review before the viva
Worked example · free
Match assessor comments to the three viva criteria
- 1Comment (a) concerns defending the choice of industry, issue and recommendations, the 40% criterion.
- 1Comment (b) concerns research, thorough and authoritative sources with citations, the 20% criterion.
- 1Comment (c) concerns quality of delivery within the allocated time, the other 40% criterion.
Key terms
- Reflection of Progress
- An unmarked written account of how a project has changed since the previous assessment and why.
- Graduate Attribute
- A capability the Business School expects graduates to show, recorded in the viva rubric.
Defending Your Research in the Viva FAQ
How long is the viva presentation?
The presentation runs for a maximum of five minutes and is followed by a five-minute question-and-answer period led by a member of staff. The delivery criterion mentions time management in its lower bands, so rehearse to stay inside five minutes.
What happens if I do not submit the viva reflection?
The reflection carries no mark, but it must be submitted for you to be deemed to have completed Assessment 2, and non-submission results in a fail for the task. Submit it with your slides by the due date.
Which weeks are the vivas held in?
The brief says weeks 9 and 10, while the assessment overview, the schedule and the Week 1 lecture say weeks 10 and 11. A schedule with day and evening slots is released in Week 8, and you book from it, so check that release for your actual time.
What must be submitted before the viva?
Two documents: the PowerPoint slides you will present, submitted on the assignment page, and a written reflection on how you responded to feedback from the proposal, submitted through a separate link. Both are due at 11:59pm on 2 October.
Is the viva recorded?
Yes. The brief states that vivas and interviews are recorded for future reference, and that they may be used to verify that work was completed independently, with a mark of 0 possible if questions are not adequately answered.
What does a top viva defence look like?
The High Distinction description for the defence criterion asks for a highly justified defence, thoughtful, original and highly relevant answers, thorough knowledge of the industry choice and issue, and ideas organised in a highly logical, persuasively coherent structure.
How can I prepare for the viva questions?
Use the Week 9 peer review session, rehearse to five minutes, and treat your reflection as a briefing note, since the assessor uses it during questioning. For each claim on your slides, prepare the evidence behind it and the limit you know it has.
Assessment move
Rehearse the presentation to four and a half minutes, then have a classmate ask you the hardest question about each slide. Write your reflection as a briefing note for the assessor: what changed, why, and what you want to be asked. Use the Week 9 peer review session.
Prepare short answers to the questions an assessor is most likely to ask: why this industry, why this issue, why these sources, why this theory and why these recommendations. Practise each answer in under a minute with a classmate, and check your slides support the argument rather than repeat your script.
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