Dissertation Proposal Defense: How to Answer the Questions
Dissertation writers can really feel the pressure when the questions start flying their way. Some students make the mistake of taking their work a bit too personally, which can often create a wrong impression to the board of questioners. It’s important to remember that your board actually wants you to succeed.
So how should you answer your questions in a way that will satisfy your interrogators? More importantly, how can you win your question group over during the defense session?
Before the defense...
Have an imaginary defense session with yourself or a study group
Practice will create a great deal of confidence in you. Have your study group bombard you with questions the same way your board will. If you’re looking for inspiration, download a few free videos off the web of dissertation proposal defense sessions. Watch them as a group, then re-enact them.
Eliminate the element of surprise by making a list of questions as preparation
Best done a few days before the proposal defense, start thinking up some questions that may be asked. Write these down in a notebook and carry it around with you. If you think of other questions, add those too. Before you know it, you’ll be thinking of your dissertation proposal from all kinds of different angles. Answers will just come easier during your defense if your preparation is thorough.
During the defense...
Never veer off the subject of the question
Take note of the first word a board member asks you. That word will be the key to answering that question to the satisfaction of the person who answered it. For example, if someone asks you a ‘why’ question, don’t veer off and give them a ‘who’ answer.
Be open and forthcoming
Honesty will be your best friend at a dissertation defense. If you are asked a question that you don’t know the answer to, don’t attempt to come up with an adlib answer. Say that you don’t know if that’s the case. It’s better than trying to come up with something and ending up digging a deeper hole for yourself.
Learn to listen before you answer
People often only hear the first few words of a question and assume that they know what the rest will be. Don’t make this mistake at your defense. Listen until the very end of the question to get a full idea of what that person wants to know. You’ll be surprised how much insight you will gain just by waiting for people to finish, instead of using up your concentration to think up an answer in your head.
Search dissertation samples
How we work
We are not a custom writing service - we are a team of professional freelance and
editors, who have successfully completed their degrees. We know how hard it is to conduct research and actually write a solid dissertation - sometimes it takes years. Our goal is to ease your burden.