Oral defence is recognised as an important part of doctoral examination and candidate development. Unlike the UK and New Zealand, the Australian examination process does not normally include an end-of-process viva. This paper appraises the views of 20 supervisors and 13 Deans or Directors of Graduate Research from 11 Australian universities as they contemplate the advantages and disadvantages of adding an oral defence component to the Australian process. The majority preferred a ‘pre-completion seminar’ prior to thesis submission, rather than a viva after thesis submission. Such a seminar is believed to offer the candidate greater opportunity to reflect on their findings and integrate feedback into the final product. The findings are discussed in light of formative assessment and learner agency.

口头答辩被公认为博士考试和候选人发展的重要组成部分。与英国和新西兰不同，澳大利亚的考试过程通常不包括过程结束 viva。本文评估了来自 11 所澳大利亚大学的 20 位主管和 13 位院长或研究生研究主任的观点，因为他们考虑了在澳大利亚程序中添加口头辩护部分的利弊。大多数人更喜欢在提交论文之前参加“完成前研讨会”，而不是在提交论文之后参加 viva。这样的研讨会被认为为候选人提供了更多的机会来反思他们的发现并将反馈整合到最终产品中。根据形成性评估和学习者能动性来讨论这些发现。