How to Prepare and Present Your Machine Design Thesis Defence

Per the reports of Statista, an aggregate of 32% of undergraduate students are awarded their degrees on time, but just some (around 25.5%) go on to achieve a master’s degree in their chosen field. You have made it so far, congratulations!

So now, the thing is, most students at the post-grad educational level are required to give a thesis defence presentation before the completion of their degree. Needless to say, it is a challenging stage of your studies and demands commitment, time, and effort to get it right. 

Here, we have developed the necessary steps to prepare a machine design thesis defence presentation, and we shall also provide you with some guidelines on how to carry them out. After reading the tips, you will be better able to create the best slides for your presentation. 

What else? If you need further help, ask for it from the best thesis writing services online. The Academic Papers UK holds a track record of being the best thesis help website in this regard. 

Preparing and Presenting a Machine Design Thesis Defence – Best Tips

Organising your key arguments, presenting a stunning product design, and practising well is the key to success. Establishing your ground first before you go on to defend your thesis on machine design, you must be truly clear about the basics of your work. Only then you will be able to get a result that is really positive and exactly as you expected it to be. 

Here are some helpful tips on how to successfully carry out your machine design thesis defence: 

1. Prepare for the Expected Questions

For your thesis defence presentation, you should prepare for the questions that you will be asked in your papers. Read through your thesis, and create a list of questions related to the following:

• Computer-aided design process
• Mechanical systems facilitating heat transfer
• Manufacturing processes of machine elements
• Manufacturing engineered of high-speed wind turbines and the engineering principles involved in the process

If possible, you should sit at the thesis defences of other committee members to have an idea about how to defend your thesis. 

2. Dressing for Success

While you may not be aware of its importance, dressing for the occasion of a machine design thesis defence matters a lot. It is a formal event, and often, your entire department will be invited to participate in the event. 

While most universities do not have specific rules on how mechanical engineering students should be dressed for the event, they do dress formally for this day. It will show the seriousness of your attitude towards the research work you have just completed. 

3. Choose the Ideas to Illustrate

Unless you have an hour to illustrate your dissertation, you will be unable to include each and every idea from your research work in the slide show of your presentation. Therefore, you must choose the most important ideas and the detailed drawings to show the highlights of your work to the audience of design engineers.

For instance, as a simple Word template, you can show the research findings in this manner: 

4. Design Simple and Focussed Slides

You might have a lot of information to present to your audience, but when it comes to the defence of your thesis presentation, consider that less is more. Keep in mind that each slide matters, and focus on the main points of your work. 

Keep your slides simple. Not even a dedicated academic panel is going to decipher your cluttered slides and dissect the content into many details. You must avoid presenting more than two ideas on a single slide. 

5. Insert Data Visualisations

You must know that the whole point of your machine design thesis defence presentation is to illustrate the main concepts of your work. Humans are visual creatures, and you might be aware that they react strongly to the imagery. 

So, for all the infographics you add to your work, make sure to keep them simple, colourful and engaging. Remember that you do not essentially have to be a graphic designer to be able to create such slides, either. 

6. Keep in Mind that You Might Not Know an Answer

Let’s face it: one of the horrible things while you are presenting your thesis is not being able to answer a question that you are asked. Despite all the preparation for the expected question, you will never exactly know what the committee will ask you. 

In his blog, James Hayton states that the examiners sometimes ask questions they do not answer themselves. Depending on the situation, there can be two best responses to a question that you do not know how to respond to: 

• I don’t know
• I don’t know, but I would think (….) because of a and b, but you will need to do (…) if you want to find out. 

The second answer makes you appear more confident and shows that you have the ability to think like an academic. 

9. Do not be Too Stressed!

One thing about your machine design thesis defence is that you will be nervous until it is all over. But keep in mind that your examiner is expecting you to be nervous, and that is okay. Being well-prepared for your presentation can help to minimise your stress, but if you still feel stressed, do not start worrying about it. 

Try to slow yourself down and keep taking deep breaths. Allow your brain to process each question, respond to it, and relax while you have answered the research question. We all make mistakes, and your thesis defence is not expected to be perfect. Just be prepared well, stay mindful during the presentation and be confident while delivering your presentation. 

How Long is a Thesis Defence Presentation?

Depending on the nature of machine design thesis topics, the length of the oral thesis defence will vary. Taking other aspects in view, it largely depends on the requirements of your degree. The best thing to do is to consult your institution or department about it. 

Generally, a thesis defence presentation can take only 20 mins, but it may also take two hours or more. The length also depends on how much time is allocated to the presentation and then the questioning part. 

Conclusion:

After your machine design thesis defence is over, you should definitely celebrate and congratulate yourself for all the hard work that you did. Summarising the discussion above, you must make sure that you have met all the institutional requirements for thesis defence. 

Further, you should rehearse your presentation by setting a timer and making a list of questions and answers about the design and analysis of your research. Lastly, eat well and get a good night’s rest before the day you will defend your thesis. 

If you are unable to craft the best machine design thesis defence, you must not hesitate to get help from the best of all thesis writing services online.