The Viva Voce and Working with Your Supervisor

The reflective process concludes with the viva voce, a short conversation between you and your supervisor after the essay is complete. Alongside it, your relationship with your supervisor across the whole project shapes both the essay and the reflection. This lesson explains the viva voce, its purpose, and how to work effectively with a supervisor throughout.

What the viva voce is

The viva voce is a brief concluding interview, usually lasting only a short time, in which your supervisor discusses the finished essay and your experience of producing it. It is not a formal oral exam that you can pass or fail, and it does not carry a separate mark of its own. Rather, it is the final reflection session, prompting the conversation that feeds your final RPPF reflection and giving your supervisor e