Seminar 10: “Preparation for the PhD Viva”

While many students dread the oral defense, a PhD viva should be a celebration of all the hard work and the end of a difficult and long journey. The Seminar “Preparation for the PhD Viva” aims to guide students for the three stages of a PhD Viva – Preparation, Presentation, Defense. We will be looking at what is a viva voce to begin with and how to prepare for the PhD viva. This will include tips on Academic but also Psychological preparation. Students will also be offered some key Do’s and Don’ts of a PhD viva so that they can avoid common mistakes. Finally, with PhD vivas having various outcomes, the presentation will offer tactical advice on how to deal with each possible outcome.

Prof Yioula Melanthiou

Department of Management, School of Business

Yioula Melanthiou, a Professor at the University of Nicosia, holds a BA in Business Administration (Marketing Major), an MSc in Marketing (University of Salford, UK), and a PhD in Marketing (University of Manchester, UK). She joined the University of Nicosia in 2004 and is currently the Director of Doctoral Programs in the School of Business. Since joining the University, she has been teaching several marketing courses at an undergraduate and postgraduate level and has extensive experience in supervising students for theses at all levels including PhD and DBA level. Her primary research interests are in the areas of Social Media Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, and has presented her work at numerous conferences and published extensively on related topics. Dr Melanthiou is also a part time lecturer at the Cyprus University of Technology, and at the Police Academy (Cyprus). She is a Chartered Marketer, a certified trainer of the Human Resource Development Authority (Cyprus), as well as an Expert Evaluator for the European Commission (for KA1, KA2, and Horizon 2020 programs). Prior to joining Academia, she has worked in the industry as a Research Executive, Research Account Manager, and Marketing Consultant.