VivaCoach — quick start

A 2-minute guide to getting value from your defense practice. VivaCoach reads your thesis, reconstructs your examining committee, and lets you rehearse the questions each examiner is likely to ask.

1

Add your thesis — or try a demo

Upload your thesis as a PDF and VivaCoach pulls out your research questions, claims, and committee. Not ready to upload? Open a demo thesis first to see how everything works.

2

Work the grid

The grid maps your research questions against your examiners — each cell is "what would this examiner probe about this question." Open a cell and practice: type your answer (prep) or speak it aloud (delivery). You'll get coaching and a score, and can mark cells ready or flag them.

3

Run a mock viva

When you've worked through the grid, run a full mock viva — your whole committee, end to end, the way a real defense flows (opening "summarize your thesis," claim probes, big closing questions). Choose coached (scored as you go) or realistic (no scores until the end).

4

Read your debrief

After each session you get a debrief: your strongest and weakest moments, and the single thing to work on next. Come back, re-drill the weak cells, and watch your readiness climb.

A note on honesty. The questions and scores are AI-generated pattern matches — a study aid, not a prediction of what your real examiners will ask or how your defense will go. A high score doesn't guarantee a pass; treat it as one tool alongside your supervisor's advice.
Tell us what's working. There's a Feedback button at the bottom-left of every screen — please use it whenever something helps, misses, or breaks. Your feedback is the whole point of the beta. You can also just reply to your invite email.