First Doctoral Examination (December 2024)
My first doctoral examination took place in December 2024. To be honest, getting to this stage was a journey full of drama. One of the main reasons was the graduation requirement of the doctoral program: publishing three international journal papers after officially enrolling as a doctoral student.
By November 2024, I was still overwhelmed by fear and uncertainty. I kept asking myself the same question over and over again: Would I really be able to register for my doctoral examination and graduate in March 2025? At that point, everything still depended heavily on the status of my journal publications.
Eventually, after my second paper as a doctoral student—my third paper overall—was officially published in November 2024, I was finally allowed to register for the examination. From there, the administrative process began, and I was eventually scheduled for my first doctoral examination.
Graduation Requirements That Were Never Clearly Defined
A brief note on the graduation requirements: the rule about having three journal publications was never something I could find clearly stated in any official document. At least, I never came across a written regulation that explicitly explained it. Instead, it felt more like an unwritten institutional rule—something enforced in practice rather than on paper.
What made this even more confusing was the fact that some students from the same doctoral program were able to graduate with only one published journal paper. This lack of clarity often created unnecessary confusion and pressure among students.
What saddened me the most was learning that a paper I published during my first year of the doctoral program—based on research conducted during my master’s studies—was not counted toward the doctoral graduation requirement. This was particularly frustrating because, during my master’s program, I had been told that this paper could be used to fulfill the PhD requirements. Even more shocking was the timing: I only received this information after entering my third year of doctoral studies. I was genuinely stunned. It meant I had to work even harder to publish an additional paper within a relatively short period of time.
Mental State Leading Up to the Examination
In the weeks leading up to the first doctoral examination, my mental state was under significant pressure. Although I was officially allowed to register for the examination, I still had one major goal left unfinished: publishing one more paper. This meant I couldn’t completely stop doing experiments. While preparing for the examination, I was still going back and forth to the lab, trying to obtain better results—both primary data and supplementary data to strengthen my arguments.
At this stage, time felt extremely limited. Sleep had to be sacrificed. In addition to preparing presentation slides for the examination, I also had to start writing the draft of my dissertation, which needed to be submitted to the examiners one week before the examination. This process was exhausting, as the number of pages required was not small. Structuring the research narrative, ensuring data consistency, and writing discussions in precise and appropriate language demanded a great deal of focus and energy. At that point, the exhaustion was not only physical but also mental.
Preparation and the Examination Itself
Many people say that the first doctoral examination is the hardest, mainly because it is private and attended only by the examining professors. In my case, there were four professors: my primary supervisor, two professors from NIMS, and one professor from the University of Tsukuba.
The preparation period for this examination was relatively short. I began focusing seriously about two to three weeks before the actual date. I had two rehearsal sessions with my supervisor, and beyond that, I practiced on my own. Most of this practice was aimed at refining the flow of the presentation, memorizing the key points I wanted to convey, and preparing additional figures or tables that might be needed to explain certain aspects more clearly during the Q&A session.
On the administrative side, I was fairly fortunate. Most of the registration and paperwork for the examination were handled by my supervisor, so I was not burdened too heavily with administrative tasks.
On the day of the examination itself, my responsibilities felt surprisingly simple. The only small task I had to do was buy drinks—mineral water and tea—to be provided for the examining professors in case they wanted something to drink during the session.
Duration of the Examination and Lasting Impressions
One particularly memorable aspect was the length of my first doctoral examination—it turned out to be quite long. If I remember correctly, the presentation lasted around 30 minutes, followed by a Q&A session that extended to nearly an hour. Many parts of the dissertation needed clarification, deeper discussion, and revision. The questions were detailed, ranging from methodology and data interpretation to future research directions.
Interestingly, I don’t remember many of the specific details of the examination itself. What remains most vividly is the overall impression that the atmosphere was relatively relaxed. I received a lot of constructive and positive feedback, especially regarding how to improve the quality of the dissertation.
After the First Examination
After the first examination was over, the dominant feelings were satisfaction and relief. In fact, from the moment I was officially allowed to register for the first doctoral examination, I already felt a sense of calm. For me, simply being able to register was a significant milestone—it was a clear sign that I was on the right track and had a strong chance of graduating in March 2025.