Abstract

The oral examination, or the viva voce, is the culmination of the doctoral examination process in many traditions. In these traditions, the chair or convenor facilitates the viva. The idea of convenors is one that has not been discussed at length within the literature of higher education. In this paper, we explore the findings of a qualitative survey that aimed to gain insights into the role of convenors in an oral examination and their views of the oral examination process at a research-intensive university in New Zealand. 55 convenors responded to the survey. The key findings of the survey indicate that convenors’ practices are embedded with ideas of pastoral care for the candidates through four key strategies: 1) preparing candidates by setting expectations, 2) making the candidate feel at ease, 3) inviting a support person to attend and 4) building the candidate’s confidence. These strategies have rarely been discussed in studies about vivas, and this study provides key insight for candidates, doctoral examiners, supervisors and policymakers.

摘要

在许多传统中，口试或口头考试是博士考试过程的高潮。在这些传统中，主席或召集人促进了生活。召集人的概念在高等教育文献中尚未详细讨论过。在本文中，我们探讨了一项定性调查的结果，该调查旨在深入了解召集人在口试中的作用以及他们对新西兰研究型大学口试过程的看法。55 位召集人回复了调查。调查的主要发现表明，召集人的做法通过四个关键策略嵌入了对候选人的牧灵关怀理念：1）通过设定期望来准备候选人，2）让候选人感到轻松，3) 邀请支持人员参加和 4) 建立候选人的信心。这些策略在关于 vivas 的研究中很少被讨论，而这项研究为候选人、博士审查员、主管和政策制定者提供了重要的见解。