Viva Voce (Oral Examination) as an Assessment Method: Insights From Marketing Students

Abstract

Viva voce (viva) or oral examinations are widely used in medical education, clinical examinations, and doctoral defenses, yet the assessment method is seldom adopted by university marketing departments. Correspondingly, the marketing education literature makes no reference to vivas as an alternative academic assessment technique. This research discusses the use of viva as a summative assessment method in university marketing education. Final-year marketing students undertaking an elective unit in services marketing were given an end-of-unit viva instead of a written examination. Fifty-four cartoon completion tests were analyzed to gain insight into student perceptions of the viva assessment task. Interpretive findings from this study suggest that viva is a valid and novel method of assessing learning outcomes such as application of deep learning, application of theory to practice, and problem-solving skills. The vivas enabled dialectic communication between the examiner and student and provided invaluable experience for career interviews. Although some students were anxious prior to the viva examination, on reflection they conceded that the process was user friendly. Based on these findings, implications for the adoption of vivas as an assessment method are discussed.