Even a well-written thesis can leave a poor impression if mistakes are made during the presentation. 

Common mistakes.

One common mistake is reading the text verbatim from slides or paper. If a student monotonously reads everything, the committee may lose interest and it gives the impression the student doesn’t know their own work well. It’s better to speak freely, maintaining eye contact with the audience, and use the slides only as support. 

Another mistake is overloaded slides. If there’s too much information on screen (tiny font, dense text), the committee will try to read it all and will stop listening to the speaker. 

It’s also bad if slides contain inaccuracies or errors (for example, incorrect data or spelling mistakes), as this appears careless. 

Not managing time is a critical error. If you run over time, the committee might cut you off, creating a rushed atmosphere and leaving some points unaddressed. Conversely, finishing too early with a very short presentation (just skimming topics and ending a few minutes short). Signals you might not be well-prepared or deeply familiar with your work. A disorganized structure in your talk can also ruin the impression. For example, if you jump around between topics with no logical order, the committee can get confused. 

It’s also important not to ignore the committee. If you fail to maintain eye contact, speak only to the screen, or speak too quietly/unclearly, it hinders communication. Try to control nerves. Excessive nervousness might show up as speaking too fast to be understood, fidgeting or shaking, which distracts from your message. 

Summary.

Finally, a big mistake is failing to defend your work during Q&A. For instance, agreeing with all criticism without attempting to explain or justify your approach. It’s better if you politely but confidently justify your choices or acknowledge errors while still showing that you have a strong grasp of your research. By avoiding these mistakes – monotone reading, poor slides, bad timing, lack of structure. And weak engagement – you can significantly improve the impression you make during your defense.

More on our blog.

If you are a student and don’t have enough time to write and format your papers, we recommend that you read the detailed material on our blog. The articles discuss the main criteria for choosing a topic, typical student mistakes, and the requirements of Latvian universities. This will help you avoid mistakes and save time during the writing stage.

Read more here.

More information from universities.

As an additional guide, you can check out examples of student and graduation papers posted in the open archive of the Latvian university Ekonomikas un kultūras augstskola (EKA). The archive contains papers from different years and fields. Which can be useful for a general understanding of the structure and approaches to writing academic papers.

Read more here

Successful defense of your work confirms that you are ready to apply the knowledge you have gained in your professional activities. And solve problems in your chosen field. If you are interested in additional questions related to the preparation of academic work. We recommend that you familiarize yourself with other materials on our blog. They cover the most common difficulties students encounter, the structure of work, and practical recommendations.