A dissertation defense preparation is essential when the dissertation document has been completed. The dissertation defense is normally carried out through different presentations and analyzed by the dissertation supervisor. Several approaches are there to present the dissertation defense, including the Keynote Impress and Microsoft PowerPoint. The presentation nature must be effective and story-telling. The story should be based on the research experience, which contains readings, conversations, motivations, results, conclusions, and recommendations. The focus on time management is also an important step while presenting the dissertation defense.

10 Things in Dissertation Defense Which Will Help to Impress Dissertation Supervisor

Here are ten things to consider in dissertation defense that will help you in impressing your supervisor;

1. Avoid trying to convey everything

One major mistake in the dissertation defense presentation is conveying everything which you have done in a long period of time. It will ruin all those struggles which you have done to make your research unique and accurate. The slides filled with unnecessary data and copied from the original dissertation cannot make any sense in a limited time period of presentation. You can also hire cheap dissertation writing services if you are unable to convey everything in your dissertation defense.

2. Keep your Laptop Aside

The most effective step through which you can impress your dissertation supervisor is keeping your laptop aside at the beginning stage of the dissertation defense. It is essential to make an attractive research story to tell your supervisor and other board members. In the beginning, if you start using a laptop to present the dissertation’s content, it will not have an impressive effect on the supervisor. Instead, try to make a story of struggle and passion based on your true struggle and motivation. It is necessary to visualize the background of the research, acquired results, key sources and references with scientific approaches behind the research.

3. Material Management

Another thing which can help to impress the dissertation supervisor is material management. The dissertation defense will be more impressive if you can use proper material, data, plots and wording. It is important because at the time of dissertation defense, no possibility usually arises in front of board members to take any outsourced help, except a presentation with no more details. Aligning material properly and arranging that data according to the prescribed format may provide confidence in front of the defense board. Mental contribution while aligning data is necessary and may help you to consider your strengths and weaknesses in different parts of the research.

4. Making a Simple Storyboard

A computer-generated presentation is a common approach to telling the research story to the committee members. Instead of using the same conventional approach, you must try a simple storyboard. The board members can easily understand the points you made in your research. A simple storyboard can also help to decide about the eliminated elements of the research. This will be beneficial during a dissertation defense, and you will not be confused with jargon and messy details.

5. Better Presentation Structure

As mentioned above, the presentation is just an outline of the dissertation to clarify the research points to the board members. Following are the main points to maintain a good presentation structure for dissertation defense with the following points:

• It is necessary to present a broader perspective or a big picture of the research so that the supervisor and other board members can understand the struggle, motivation behind and details of the research
• Conveying board members through a proper roadmap to maintain continuity and balance in the research
• Remain focused on the starting and end of the research as both points is highly important to clarify the research
• There should be implications only in conclusion, and you must avoid findings and recommendations in this part.

6. Avoid Excessive Bullet Points in Presentation Slides

At the time of dissertation defense, if your presentation contains heavy text material and many bullet points, it will create a mess. Try to use reasonable numbers of bullets in each slide. Every bullet point needs to deliver a proper message about the research. A sufficient number of bullet points are four to five, so the presentation may not seem overcrowded.

7. Avoid Mathematical Equations

Another major issue with the non-impressive presentations is displaying mathematical equations. Equations are the most important part of the content of the dissertation. However, placing mathematical equations on the slide during the presentation is unnecessary. At the presentation time, it is impossible for board members and research supervisors to understand the complicated mathematical equations, specifically within a very limited time frame.

8. Try Smooth Visualization

The more authentic way to impress your supervisor is by trying to visualize the slides with more videos, audio and animations. These elements of digital multimedia can boost the effectiveness of the presentation and let you describe and illustrate those details that are not even possible in large text and paragraphs. Videos may be generated under the 30 seconds format.

9. Delivery Rehearsal

When you prepare a slideshow, it is time to practice that presentation for a better dissertation defense. Rehearsals are usually considered as significantly important. When you repeat the delivery content, you are able to control the sequence and set up the time-framing. It is possible in rehearsals if you have to remove any unnecessary information. The initial rehearsal must be done alone. The next one will be in front of any friend or family member and finally, do it with the supervisor.

10. Time Management

It is necessary to present defense material within the time limit (approximately 45 minutes). However, within these 45 minutes, board members have to ask questions too. Secondly, it is supposed that all committee members are experts in their respective fields; however, the audience may have cognitive limitations. So, unnecessary details in slides can destroy your original efforts.

Conclusion

In the modern research paradigm, dissertation defense should also be modernized. You should not limit yourself to explaining only conventional hypotheses and research question approaches. Try to make an interesting story of your research. Also, avoid all unnecessary details and only add research experience, expectations and recommendations while making your dissertation defense.