Comments on: Defense Advice 2

By: Rachel HC

Rachel HC — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 17:54:31 +0000

Um, also, I didn’t say it because for me it went without saying… you are going to kill!

By: Rachel HC

Rachel HC — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 17:52:33 +0000

Hi Liz! I hope I’m not too late with this comment… Basically, as I have already told the future Dr. Anderson, my biggest regret– the one that literally keeps me awake at night!– is my opening statement. I went with an outline, and rehearsed several times in my head. But when I got to the defense, all that came out was ungrammatical blather complete with huge pauses while I searched for the words and phrases that were so clear just hours before. Seriously awkward, and it took me the first half of the defense to recover. No, in my case, reading from a prepared statement would not have been the end of the world. It could instead have started me off from a point of confidence, knowing I covered what I wanted to, and how I wanted to. Best of luck!!! Can’t wait to celebrate with you next Sunday.

By: Susan SW

Susan SW — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 20:39:59 +0000

Break a leg, kiddo! Just remember: it’s a conversation. Talk about what’s interesting to you, and be honest that there might be a few things you might still be figuring out (but have some good leads).

I fully expect a full post-mortem post with all the details! Extra points if you describe the fashions!

By: becomingdoctorjones

becomingdoctorjones — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 16:50:59 +0000

Susan–it’s Wednesday AM. Yikes! Some friends are coming into town today and that will take the edge off . . . meanwhile, I’m off to practice my opening statement.

Josh just gave me a bunch of feedback, and you’re right–while some of his questions surprised me, nothing he said confused me or was un-answerable. I really *do* know this stuff!

By: Susan SW

Susan SW — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 17:39:36 +0000

“…for any question I might want to ask the committee, I should have a partial answer to the question myself. In the defense, you have to perform expertise, so you can’t just bring the committee some problem and say, ‘I hope you would solve this for me.’”

NOW you are talking like a Dr. Jones. And it’s not so much performing the expertise (though that’s part of it)…mostly it’s having the confidence that you are indeed the expert in the room, which you are, you know.

What’s the defense date?