The students (master, PhD and others), all of them are very thankfull if there is a professor who has a few encouraging words for them and offers to help them with relaxing words.

Peter

Everyone should repeat the most basic knowledge from his/her field - know the context. There are mistakes should not occur there.

This is a good question.   It very important both for candidates for an advanced degree and for supervisors, who have the perennial problem of guiding students in such a way that students are successful in their defense.

The answers given so far are excellent.   There is a bit more that one might want to add.

Three major sources of problems in both a thesis and its defense are the following:

Technical terms.   Every thesis will have technical terms that must be carefully defined and explained.   A common problem is the use of technical terms that are either inappropriate or poorly defined or both.    A good practice is  to keep technical terms to a minimum, giving, defining and explaining them.   At all costs, avoid technical terms that have no clear definition (from your perspective) and do not directly apply to the central topic of a thesis.

Claims.   Every claim made in a thesis or in a defense must be carefully thought out and, in some sense, provable or substantiated by the evidence presented in a thesis.  A common pitfall in theses is to claim too much.   The only claims that should be made are those can be proved or substantiated.   Think of a claim as short, demonstrative summary about the findings in a  thesis.

Related works and findings.   Every thesis should take into account the context of the research area that is the focus of the thesis.  That means that we not only need to present new findings but also to compare findings presented in a thesis and in a defense with what as been done by others.

My main supervisor used to tell me that for the PhD defense, the thesis must be well written.  The topic, problem statement, significance of study to address the GAP in knowledge, the big new 'picture' and the components of methodology, and the impact/ implications of the study must be seen to flow logically.  And if I have presented several portions about the 'big picture' at conferences, and published in journals, it would make it a lot easier to believe that I did the work honestly, ethically.  The student who did the work honestly has everything in the head, and has little to fear.  Thanks.

I think  the examiners themselves should avoid the critical points  and should encourage the students   

agree with krishnan

Dear Debra Sharon Ferdinand,

İ found  interesting articles and sent you.

https://www.elsevier.com/connect/10-tips-to-finishing-your-phd-faster

http://www.cumbria.ac.uk/Public/GraduateSchool/Documents/GraduateSchoolHandbook.pdf

Regards, Shafagat

Compose and concentrate on presentation and speak relevant to research only.

I would say the following are important for the scholar concerned before going for the viva voce:

1. Be very clear about the methodology adopted--Envisage any limitation of the methodology adopted, and be prepared to answer related questions--Also, be clear about why some other methodology was not adopted, which the examiner thinks to be more appropriate. .

2. Clearly know what is the principal argument of the thesis.

3. Foresee clearly what types of questions might be asked, and how s/he is going to reply them--many scholars are caught unaware as they do not foresee these questions and queries.

4. Clearly understand the gaps in the existing research literature, and how far the researcher has tried to fill them. Many researchers do the literature review poorly. They simply say what each individual  researcher has said; they must know how to compare the clusters  for  commonalities, contrasts,  context-specificities,  and for drawing various conclusions. 

5. Clearly know what contribution her/his research has made to theory.

Prepare some salient points for crispy presentation during viva / oral exam, better read once speedily and some current and future prospects of the topic be covered up. Strength and weakness must be well known.

Dear @Debra, you have got fine answers about hot spots at thesis defence. I would like to contribute with some related threads and many good answers with valuable resources about the issue that you have raised. Both sides are in game, students and professors. One of those contribution is yours dear @Debra.

https://www.researchgate.net/post/Can_anyone_give_me_some_general_guidelines_about_successful_dissertation_defense

https://www.researchgate.net/post/What_sort_of_questions_should_I_expect_during_defence_proposal

https://www.researchgate.net/post/What_circumstances_may_constitute_a_declaration_of_failure_at_a_PhD_thesis_defense

https://www.researchgate.net/post/How_prepared_are_graduate_students_for_presenting_their_research_proposals

https://www.researchgate.net/post/When_you_sit_as_evalutor_in_a_thesis_dissertation_defense_what_question_s_do_you_usually_ask

https://www.researchgate.net/post/Are_students_adequately_trained_to_defend_their_research

Article THE DISSERTATION DELIVERY DECALOGUE: 10 TIPS FOR A BETTER TH...

 Colleagues:

Thank you for sharing your insights and resources on my topic; your contributions will help me to better prepare students for their oral defenses.

Many thanks,

Debra

I generally give the following advice for preparation for the oral exam (that was indeed dear Debra's question!):

1- read the thesis and the most important references again

2- prepare a list of possible questions that the examiners might ask

3- prepare additional slides for answering the possible questions 

4- practice and practice your presentation and finish in/on time.

5- defend your point of views but respond politely and respectfully.

6- do not hesitate to say " I do not know" if you do not know the answer to a question!

7- relax and have fun the day before the defence.

what are some of the "hot" spots for students in the oral defense and how can they overcome these?

Some of the “hot” spots include the following whereby their remediation are stated within bracket:

Set out your research question(s) at the start

Show (defend) that you have converted them accurately into testable hypotheses

Layout (defend) your methodology for testing the hypotheses, including suitability of  statistical measures

Go through the work

Return to the hypetheses - review results of testing them

Return to research questions, show that you have answered them

Discuss / reflect on the consequences of answers.

Do all this in a bout 20 minutes at the start, then you should be able to deal with their scrutiny of the thesis

Remember, examiners are like small children, if you let them get bored they will be naughty.

Dear  I 1m  sharing  the same with  you Ivo Carneiro de Sousa

Thanks

Dear Debra

The soul of preparation for performance is in practice before the day. The presentation should be well prepared with proper positioning of each section. The important points to be discussed should be highlighted in each section, like introduction and rest of the sections. Practice presentations should be done with colleges and seniors and queries should be listened, answer and incorporated if appropriate with open heart. At the day of presentation should have proper dressing and should pray according to religion which ever you have. Results and discussion should be crystal clear and well prepared 

Regards

Good Luck

Querido Manuel Morales

I think every trick will be fall in the water and the true value will remain to conduct science.

Dear Ana, it is right - true spirit of dedication and sincerity towards science is needed and the best hot spot to be triggered, as if triggered once will make defense all exams including oral and others.

How can PhD students best prepare? A number of academics and recent survivors gave the important tips...

https://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/2015/jan/08/how-to-survive-a-phd-viva-17-top-tips

Just to add to the excellent suggestions listed here...review the literature that is published after the submission to the point of defending the thesis...it could help in answering some of the expected questions during the viva...

Dear Debra,

I would like to add just a minor point: the student should be prepared to defense his work with regard to the limitation section as this is the part of his work where weaknesses are clearly and frankly stated by the student himself.

Paul