Oral exam presentation

Start the presentation by saying who you are: your name, your employer, your company and possibly your field of work. Keep it short and precise — think of it like a stand-up comedian who steps onto the stage and introduces themselves and their theme for the evening.

Make it clear to the audience what your topic is and what the purpose of the presentation is. For example, the topic could be ventilation insulation behind the building envelope. The introduction does not need to be long, but it must be comprehensive and set the direction for the whole presentation.

Tell the audience why your topic is relevant and important — for example that correct insulation leads to significant energy savings. Even if you do not find the topic personally interesting, it is crucial to communicate its professional relevance convincingly.

Choose a catchy question, a concrete claim or a real-life example that immediately creates interest. An example that works is a documentable saving of 143,233 kr. tax-free a year. Avoid examples that are irrelevant or cannot be verified — such as a new doormat or an unseen accident on the motorway.

Ask rhetorical questions along the way that make the audience reason and look for answers within themselves. The questions do not need to be answered out loud, but they create an expectation that you will answer them during the presentation. You have about 30 seconds to capture the audience's interest.

Build your presentation around one single main theme rather than many loose sub-themes. Sub-themes such as heat loss, fire insulation, anti-condensation insulation and acoustic insulation can be included, but they must be subordinate to and support your overall theme — for example, ventilation insulation behind the building envelope.

Cover each sub-topic completely before moving on to the next. Avoid jumping back and forth, and do not leave the audience with unanswered rhetorical questions from a topic you have already moved away from. Only return to a topic if it adds real value to the presentation.

Refer to your sources as you speak — not all together at the end as in a written assignment. Use only verifiable and professionally credible sources. Be aware that not all standards cover all topics; for example, DS 452 does not cover marine insulation, and DS 1123 deals with space requirements specifically for ventilation systems.

You can either make a keyword outline with only the main points in order, or you can write a full script. If you choose the script, you must not read it aloud — instead you must know it so well that the speech sounds natural. Underlining key points in the script helps you quickly find your place if you look down.

Choose either a mock-up (physical model), a PowerPoint presentation or relevant printouts — for example from the calculation programme IsoDim. Make sure all illustrations are directly relevant to the material and that they explain complex matters in a simple, clear way without distracting the audience.

Speak clearly and vary your volume: raise your voice to highlight important points, and slow down when something needs emphasising. Move quickly over less important details. Avoid speaking quietly at the end of sentences. Use natural spoken language rather than a lecture in written style, and respect punctuation and grammar.

Keep up regular eye contact with your audience. Eye contact lets you read whether they are following and agree. Be careful, however, not to fixate on a single person, especially when covering problematic topics, as they may feel personally addressed.

Use emphasising gestures — such as tapping lightly with a clenched fist or drawing your hand horizontally through the air — to highlight important points. Use descriptive gestures to show sizes or directions. Let your body support the message naturally without it seeming exaggerated or distracting.

In the conclusion, return to your opening cliffhanger or your central message — for example the documented saving. Show that the conclusion rests on a solid professional foundation, and give a clear ending that ties the threads together. Do not include more material than you can go into in depth within the allotted time.