The viva voce, or defence, is an oral examination that follows the assessment of the doctorial thesis. A “rigorosum” (broader oral examination) or doctoral colloquium may be used as an alternative to the viva. However, these types of examination are less common.
Procedure
As a rule, doctoral candidates present their doctoral thesis at a viva voce. This is followed by questions from the examination board and any other interested parties. The purpose of this academic discourse is to allow the doctoral candidate to defend their own work.