Done!

I survived!

I was quite nervous at the beginning...but about 10 minutes into my presentation I calmed down and rocked it! I can't believe how well I did (sorry for the self-promotion!). Well actually I can believe how well I did, I spent a year and a half working on my thesis, and after hours and hours devoted to writing, research, experimenting, and perfecting.... I KNEW what I was talking about.

So despite the many horror stories I heard about people falling apart and getting grilled to the point of submission, I find that if you go into the defense with a thorough understanding of your statistics, theories, and "what it all means", you will be okay. Because you will surely be asked about all three of those points and will need to demonstrate that you have a grasp on them. In regards to the actual experiment/participants/procedure/etc., I think it should be a given that you would be able to discuss this stuff, I mean c'mon....you ran the experiment right? If not, you probably aren't ready to defend. And there is nothing wrong with waiting until you do fully understand....well unless you have to graduate or go on internship or something, but that is a whole other can of worms.

Sure, some of the questions my committee asked had me sweating for a hot second, but after taking a breath and telling myself "you know this, just think before you speak" I was able to put together a well thought out response that showed I was capable of doing and understanding research. And for the one question I didn't know how to respond to, I fed the committee member's egos, said I wasn't sure, and asked for guidance and an explanation on how I could better understand. Because, let's face it, graduate students aren't supposed to know everything. Despite what we all may think....just kidding. But, seriously :)

So for now, I celebrate!! Maybe some other day I will elaborate on the experience....but overall, I would say it was a big success!