I never had to defend a thesis or a dissertation. When I got my MS, our graduation requirement was a paper accepted at a conference. As soon as we had our acceptance in hand, we were done. No panel, no defense. For my PhD, as it was a distance ed degree, my paper went through several rounds of revisions, but I never actually had to fly to the school to face the panel. (That would have been hard: One panelist was from Florida, my adviser was from Nevada, and my third panelist was from the Ateneo.) The distance-ness of the situation didn't mean my panelists let me off easily. They combed through my text, demanding me to interpret and reinterpret my data, something my adviser likened to squeezing blood from a stone. Towards the end, they were correcting the minute details like reference formats and extra spaces between words.
Despite all the rounds of revisions, I still feel as if not having to defend was one less hazing that I had to endure. That's exactly the kind of invitation that karma awaits, and karma is a bitch.
Over the last five years or so, I've gotten into the research game, which, among other htings, entails obtaining and executing grant proposals. DOST has been extremely generous, supportive and kind. However, this does not mean that they write you a check without asking you the hard questions. Each grant proposal goes through one to three presentations. Each presentation is a challenge that has to be taken seriously and treated with respect. You have to prepare to answer two questions: "Is your research worth a damn?" and "If we give you this money, what do we get in return?"
Yesterday, I presented my two research proposals. The panel was composed of people I consider to be my professional friends. As the CS community in this country is so small, everyone knows everyone and, provided you behave honorably and don't try to BS them, everyone is pretty much on your side (if you do try to BS them, they will be the first to rip you a new one).
Well, I left the presentation with my innards intact. I haven't received the decision yet, though. My own sense is that one project is safe, while the other is in peril, and this is not because the latter is without merit. It's because the winds of policy are changing about what the country deems important.
Am I worried? A little. But right now, the matter is out of my hands. We will know in a few months.
