phd comprehensive exam sample

Department of Educational Administration

• Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education
• M.A. in Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education
• M.A. in Student Affairs Administration

Ph.D. in Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education

• Ed.D. Leadership for Equity-Minded Change in Postsecondary Education
• All Graduate Programs
• Center for Higher & Adult Education
• HALE Graduate Research Colloquium
• HALE Faculty Research
• HALE Dissertation Abstracts
• K-12 Educational Administration
• Master of Arts in K-12 Educational Administration
• Ed.D. in Educational Leadership
• Ph.D. in K-12 Educational Administration
• Urban Education Graduate Certificate
• Certification Pathway
• K-12 Graduate Research Colloquium
• K-12 Admin Faculty Research
• K-12 Admin Dissertation Abstracts
• University Council for Educational Administration
• Education Policy Doctoral Program
• Economics of Education
• Education Policy Forum
• Education Policy Innovation Collaborative
• Green and Write Blog
• Faculty Research
• Dissertation Abstracts
• Graduate Student Conference Support
• Erickson Chair
• Raines Colloquium
• Focus on Urban Education
• International
• Featherstone Society
• Student Forms & Policies
• Funding & Scholarships
• Faculty Resources
• Requirements
• HALE MA MEDIA
• Handbook & Forms
• Funding Opportunities for SAA MA Students
• Our Students
• Experiences
• Teaching Opportunities
• What to Expect
• Certificate Completion Requirements
• State Authorization
• Additional Resources
• CENTER FOR HIGHER & ADULT EDUCATION

Doctoral Comprehensive Exam Sample Essays

Part One of the HALE Doctoral Comprehensive Exam is a written exam designed as an opportunity for students to demonstrate the integration of knowledge of topics, issues, and resources in postsecondary education reflecting successful completion of the HALE Core Curriculum.  For more information on the HALE Comprehensive Exam, please visit the  HALE Program Handbook , under the Program Requirements and Policies section. 

Two essay samples of Part One follow:  

Part One examples:

• PhD Comprehensive Exam, Part One, Sample One
• PhD Comprehensive Exam, Part One, Sample Two
• PhD Comprehensive Exam, Part One, Sample Three
• PhD Comprehensive Exam, Part One, Sample Four

Student Guide: Ph.D. Comprehensive Examination

The comprehensive examination is a critical part of the GPIS PhD program. You should not view it simply as a bureaucratic hurdle to pass over on your way to the dissertation. Instead, before embarking on narrowly focused dissertation work, the comprehensive examination establishes that you have the broad familiarity and expertise with the field that is the mark of a doctoral education. It is the checkpoint that confirms that you are ready to pass from being a student to a scholar. The process of preparing for the comprehensive exam should help you organize and reflect on the variety of things you have learned over the past few years. While to this point, each of your seminars has been a distinct learning experience, you now can think about how your interdisciplinary work in international studies fits together. Preparation for the comprehensive exam should help you become better able to integrate and utilize the knowledge you have gained in your graduate study. It is also critically important for embarking on the dissertation. The best dissertations are effectively connected to the central questions and literature of the field. Unless you have developed an integrated overview of the field you will not have the necessary foundation for dissertation work.

The Comprehensive Character of the PhD Examination

It is important to note that the comprehensive PhD examination is not simply a test of your cumulative knowledge of seminar materials. It is, rather, a test of your preparation to work as an independent scholar at the highest level. By now you should be functioning like a scholar, and not just like a student. You should be aware of the major journals in your field and should be paying attention to them. You should know what the most important books, articles, and debates are regardless of whether they were used in your classes. It may have been a few years since you took IR theory, but it is unlikely that the scholars who work in that area have stopped pushing the field forward to wait for you to get through the comprehensive exams.

The Written Comprehensive Examination Process

The written comprehensive exams are usually scheduled for a Friday and Monday the weekend before the start of the new semester. You will do your major field on one day and your minor field on the other. We will try to schedule your major field for Friday and your minor field for Monday, but the order will be determined by the scheduling needs of the full set of students taking the written comprehensives on a given day. You will have eight hours to complete each part of the exam. The exam is closed book and no notes or other aids of any kind are allowed. For each of your fields you will be given five questions from which you will choose two to answer.

The Written Exam Grading

The exam will be graded by the appointed Doctoral Candidacy Examination Committee. The committee will usually, but not always, include the Committee Chair, and directors of the relevant tracks. It will usually take about two weeks to get the written exams graded.

Passing the Written Comprehensive Exam

Different examiners may read the exams in different ways, and it is the student's responsibility to write answers that are generally accessible and appealing across the variety of GPIS faculty. Most readers will be looking for a clear and direct answer to the question, evidence of familiarity and facility with the important literature, and an ability to integrate theory and empirical cases.

To pass the comprehensive exam, students must not receive more than one failing evaluation from a committee member.

Failing the Written Comprehensive Exam

Our goal and expectations are that every student will pass the comprehensive examination. The exam is not designed to be a barrier. It is meant to be a straightforward assessment of the student's command of their declared fields and their preparation to move on to the challenges of writing the dissertation. Nonetheless, and precisely because the exam is conceptualized as an assessment of this preparedness to move on, it plays a very important role in your doctoral education. Students who do not demonstrate an effective grasp of the relevant literature and empirics or who do not effectively and explicitly answer the questions as asked will not pass.

Students who do not pass the written portion of the exam on the first attempt will have to retake the exam in a subsequent semester. Failure on the second attempt will prevent the student from going on to write a dissertation. At the discretion of the examination committee, the failing student may be awarded the MA degree if the performance and coursework so merit, and if they do not already have a GPIS MA.

The Oral Comprehensive Examination process

Doctoral candidates are expected to be able to communicate effectively and knowledgeably both in writing and orally. Thus, the comprehensive examinations have both a written and an oral component.

The oral portion of the comprehensive examination will take place about three weeks after the written. Three to five faculty members will administer the examination. The examiners will usually, but not necessarily, include the Director or Associate Director of GPIS and the track coordinators from the student's major and minor fields. The examination will last about one hour. Each examiner will have a chance to ask questions, but the format will often shift between relatively structured questioning and a more free-flowing discussion.

The discussion will center on the student's answers for the written exam (students may use their written exam). The scope of the exam is not, however, limited to that material. The examiners will be looking to fill in any perceived gaps in the written work, and to assess the student's facility more generally with the literature and empirical material.

Passing the Oral Comprehensive Exam

Passing the oral comprehensive exam is a matter of convincing the committee members that you have an appropriate mastery of the central material of the field and are prepared to go on to focused and independent work on a dissertation. To pass, you must not receive more than one negative vote from a member of the examining committee.

Failing the Oral Comprehensive Exam

Students who do not pass the oral exam will be asked to return in one month for a second oral exam. Students who do not pass on the second attempt will not be allowed to continue for the PhD.

Tips for Preparing for the PhD Comprehensive Exam

The most important preparation for the PhD comprehensive examination is the GPIS coursework you have completed. Reviewing the notes and materials from your seminars and trying to organize it around some integrative themes is essential preparation. The following pages offer some further suggestions for effective preparation for the comprehensive examination, and for ensuring a strong examination performance.

1. Take appropriate classes

In consultation with your adviser and other faculty, be sure to select a variety of classes that will give you the broad background you need for the comprehensive exam. It is particularly important that you choose classes that will help you gain both a breadth of field knowledge, and a depth of knowledge in a few critical areas. The seminar papers you write should particularly help you develop depth in a few critical areas.

2. Keep effective class notes and reading notes

You should be thinking about preparation for the comprehensive exams from the beginning of your program. Keeping your seminar and reading notes in an organized manner will allow for more effective comprehensive exam review. You will particularly want to be careful about the material in the core classes.

You may find it useful to develop reading notes at different levels of depth. There may be a set of books and articles for which you will have 2-3 page summaries. There may be a second, larger, group for which you have paragraph length descriptions. Finally you should have a third very large group for which you have a sentence for each reading that gives you the central thrust of the argument.

3. Work on exam preparation in groups

Working with others can help you share the labor of summarizing and reviewing material. You can work with others on identifying the critical literature and on developing answers to hypothetical test questions.

4. Pay particular attention to the broad literature of international relations theory that will help you in answering a wide variety of questions

Many of the questions across the different tracks will benefit from an effective understanding of the broad currents and debates of international relations theory. One of the things a graduate education should help you do is to apply general theory to a variety of specific situations. Displaying that ability on the comprehensive exam is a good idea.

5. Identify some historical periods and important episodes and issues around which you will develop a particular expertise

Alas, no one can know everything about everything. You will see in this collection of sample questions that it is relatively rare for a question to demand knowledge of a particular event or historical period. Nonetheless, you will also see that you are often called upon to identify a critical historical period or event. You will be expected to evince in-depth knowledge of some issues or areas. Effective in-depth knowledge of a few critical issue areas or historical episodes can help you generate appropriate material for a wide variety of questions.

6. Identify some important literature with which you will be particularly familiar

You need to have a good feel for a very broad range of literature. For a lot of books and articles, remembering the author and the central thrust of their argument and evidence will serve you adequately for the comprehensives. But, just as it is essential that you have a greater depth of knowledge about a few historical episodes are critical issues, you will want to have a set of books and articles that you know extremely well. You should have an identified set of readings that you are confident you can apply to a reasonable range of questions and that you know very well and can talk about with some depth and sophistication.

7. Practice for the exam

Using the material in this booklet, you should write some practice exams. At the beginning you may want to take several hours and write an answer with open book resources. By the end you should be practicing with closed notes and a two-hour clock to simulate exam conditions. Such practice will not only help you think about how you will engage in the actual task of taking the exam, but will give you collection of sample answers that may be easily adapted to the real test questions. Just be careful that you don't mistakenly provide the answer to a similar old question and miss the slightly changed terms or requirements that are likely to show up in the real test.

The process of preparing practice exams is another area where working in groups can be extremely helpful. Having a study group can give you a larger stock of practice answers and will allow you to get feedback and to discuss the appropriate sources and arguments for a given question.

Tips for Writing an Effective Comprehensive Exam

1. Make sure you answer the questions explicitly and clearly.

The most common comprehensive exam mistake is to not explicitly and clearly answer the question. Read the question very carefully and make sure that you offer an explicit answer to the question. Do not rely on the readers to draw out implicit answers.

2. Make appropriate reference to the literature and relevant scholarly debates.

You will not, of course, be expected to provide detailed citations. But, you should demonstrate familiarity and facility with a range of the literature. You should be able to appropriately reference the scholars whose arguments are relevant to a particular issue. You may occasionally include the name of a book or article and the date of its publication.

3. Make appropriate use of theory and of empirical and historical knowledge.

If appropriately done, it is particularly effective to use theory to inform answers on history questions and history to inform answers on theory questions.

4. Write full answers that are structured with an introduction and conclusion.

As in all writing, structure and organization are important to effective communication. Just because it is a time-limited exam is no excuse for jumbled, incoherent writing. Take the time to think through and outline your argument and its structure before you write. As in all writing, signposting, headings, and clear explicit language can help communicate your ideas. Provide a clear introduction and conclusion that can help you summarize your central point and will reassure the readers that you have, in fact, explicitly answered the question.

5. Make an argument

As a scholar prepared to embark on independent thesis work, it is important that you demonstrate an ability to effectively articulate your own views. The comprehensive exam is not just about knowing the literature. It is also about demonstrating that you can think about international issues critically and come to your own conclusions. Avoid wishy-washy answers that simply describe some of the ideas extant in the field and then conclude that they are all correct. Take a stand and defend it with appropriate theoretical, analytical, and empirical material.

6. Make choices

You will notice that most of the questions are a lot bigger than can be fully answered in the two-hours you will have on average during the written exam. You have to make choices on how you will answer so that you can display your breadth and depth of knowledge while satisfying the committee that you have effectively addressed the question. It usually helps if you can be explicit about how you are managing the question ("While there are, of course, idiosyncratic elements in the complex relationship of each President to his national security team, I will focus in this short essay on the difficult relationship between Jimmy Carter, Zbigniew Brzezinski and Cyrus Vance because it effectively illuminates the problems every foreign policy team must face"). It is rarely a good strategy to try to present a broad and superficial survey of too many things ("In this essay I will discuss the relationship of each Post-WWII American president with his respective Secretaries of State and Defense").

7. Don't make big mistakes

This, of course, is common sense, but I can't overemphasize how difficult it is to certify someone as ready to move onto writing a dissertation who fundamentally misunderstands some essential literature, or who demonstrates a wanton disregard for historical accuracy.

Tips for the Oral Examination

1. Attitude matters

Attitude is important in the oral examination, just as it will be for the remainder of your career as a scholar. As a doctoral candidate, you should be able to present your views with confidence, but without becoming defensive. The examiners are likely to push against your views and expect to see you defend them effectively, but not irrationally.

The best way to figure out the right attitude is to attend the presentations of others at research workshops, dissertation defenses, and conferences. Start paying attention to the style as well as the substance. Take note of how other scholars deal with difficult questions and criticisms. What works and what doesn't work? What makes them sound defensive? What makes them sound arrogant? What makes them sound indecisive?

2. Being nervous is inevitable

It is likely that you will be nervous. How you perform when nervous is not irrelevant to your career as a scholar. You need to demonstrate that despite being nervous you can engage in appropriate scholarly discussion.

3. We probably know more than you, but knowing everything isn't required

It is likely that all together, the three to five professors conducting the examination know some things that you don't. With some pushing, they will probably be able to find out what some of those things are. We don't expect you to know everything. We do expect you to communicate effective knowledge of a broad range of subjects, and explicit and deep knowledge of a few selected areas.

4. Practice

The best way to practice for the oral exam is to speak up and engage in discussion in your seminars, in research workshops, and at conferences. If you aren't prepared to express and defend your views in the seminar setting, it is unlikely that you will be prepared to do so in the oral exam.

5. Work with other students

Again, preparing for the comprehensive examinations with other students will help you both with the substance and with the process. Scholarly discussions of exam questions with other students will give you the chance to practice articulating and defending your views with appropriate references to the literature and empirical facts.

The ODU Honor Pledge will be strictly enforced, and you will be asked to sign off on this pledge on the date of the exam:

I pledge to support the Honor System of Old Dominion University. I will refrain from any form of academic dishonesty or deception, such as cheating or plagiarism. I am aware that as a member of the academic community it is my responsibility to turn in all suspected violations of the Honor Code. I will report to a hearing if summoned.

Technical Instructions

Guidelines to answering questions.

This examination will be conducted in a BAL Computer lab. In an emergency, you must inform the proctor immediately.

• You may take short breaks (5-10 minutes) as needed
• You are not permitted to leave the building under any circumstance
• Food and beverages should be consumed during the exam
• Save your work often on the flash drive provided
• If any problems occur, notify the proctor immediately
• The examination is closed book and no notes or other aids including cell phone are allowed
• You will be given a blue book, pen, and pencil for writing notes
• Once the exam begins the computer browsers will be locked down
• You must sign and return the honor pledge provided

On the day of the exam arrive 5-10 minutes early to log into the computer and be ready to start promptly at 8:30 a.m. when the exam questions are distributed.

You will receive the exam questions, a flash drive, a blue book for notes and the honor pledge to sign and return to the proctor. Use the flash drive to save your work and give to the proctor at the end of the exam.

The examination consists of two parts.

Part 1 - questions will be on your MAJOR concentration.  Part 2 - questions will be on your MINOR concentration

On both days you must answer TWO out of five questions. The questions are written broadly, but your essays must remain explicitly responsive to what is asked; simply referencing texts is not sufficient. Time is ample and running out of time is not an option. Ending early is also not advised. The examination will conclude at 4:30 p.m. and all answers must be saved on the flash drive and turned in.

1. There will be five questions. You must answer two.  

2. The exam lasts a total of eight hours. Allocate your time accordingly and make sure that each question has a concluding section.  

3. Also make sure that you:

• answer the questions as they are raised and not as you wish they had been raised
• illustrate your answer with appropriate empirical examples
• cite relevant sources
• make proper references to important interpretative debates, when appropriate  

4. Your answers will be reviewed in terms of:

• how effectively you address each of the questions
• how well you know and manage your facts
• how soundly you handle and cite the literature
• how well you have developed and organized your argument
• the quality of your writing

5. Failure to pass the exam may include, but is not limited to, the following shortcomings:

• errors of fact
• misattribution of arguments in text and/or citation
• spurious citation of literature
• presentation of answer in bullet point format
• failure to develop coherent argument

Past Field Questions

American foreign policy.

• According to Henry Kissinger, "It is an illusion to believe that leaders gain in profundity while they gain experience.... The connections that leaders have formed before reaching high office are the intellectual capital they will consume" during their time in office. Explain and discuss this assessment, which Kissinger made after he had served as National Security Advisor and Secretary of State, with explicit references to two high level foreign policy practitioners during the two decades that followed the US intervention in World War II (1941-1961).
• "Our security, our vitality, and our ability to lead," recently observed Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, "must be based on a marriage of principle and pragmatism, not rigid ideology, on facts and evidence, not conviction or prejudice." Explain and discuss in the context of two high level foreign policy practitioners during the immediate postwar decade (1945-1965).
• Identify TWO crises, events, or issues that best characterize the latter part of the Cold War and its immediate aftermath (from January 1981 to January 2001). Do NOT describe any of these crises, events or issues at length but single out the features and patterns that best explain why these are so closely identified, in your judgment, with this initial post-Cold War period.
• Describe and discuss the evolution of U.S. policies toward any country (except the USSR/Russia) or region of your choice during a 6-year period of your choice, extended from January 1981 to January 2001. To introduce your answer, explain your choice of the period you wish to discuss. To conclude, explain the relevance of that region or country to current U.S. interests and policies.
• Whatever might be said about the events of September 11, 2001 and the wars that followed, their consequences have been epochal - meaning, system changing. After a quick review of these events, examine the conditions of what has been called a new "post-American world." What do you think of this emerging world: first, from the narrow perspective of U.S. interests, capabilities and purpose; but also, next, from the broader perspective of power and order during the coming decade? 2. "The United States," it has been noted, "never experienced what other nations experienced in achieving a position of world power. It moved within a very brief period from a position of isolation to one of global leadership, it has never been a mere nation among other nations." Explain and discuss the influence of the nation's distinctive past on the US role in the world in the twentieth century.

TRANSNATIONALISM AND INTERDEPENDENCE

• Great speculation exists on the extent to which the United States is in decline. Drawing on the central concepts and knowledge of the track, and on your broader study in the program, to what extent do you believe America is in decline? What factors could hasten or reverse this decline at the global level, insofar as you see it in play?
• To what extent, if any, is the world safer in the post-Cold War era? In what measure have transnational threats (terrorism, migration, energy interdependence, etc) replaced the threats inherent in the Cold War?
• Drawing on your coursework in this program, and especially on your courses in this track, to what extent do you think that the effects of anarchy can be tempered or lessened in world politics?
• Realists tend to assume that world politics is cyclical; and that the basic elements of world politics do not change much over time (such as power, balance of power politics, the centrality of states, and conflict). To what extent do you agree with this key realist assumption?
• To what extent, if at all, does interdependence decrease inter-state conflict in world politics?

INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ECONOMY

• From World War II to the present, states have constructed regimes to manage some-but not all-aspects of the international economy. A once-strong regime to manage trade has weakened since the 1990s. Likewise, with the abandonment of dollar-gold convertibility in 1973, a robust regime to manage monetary relations collapsed. Conversely, states originally left finance unregulated but in 1988 created and progressively have strengthened rules to manage international banking. And in production, the proposed Multilateral Agreement on Investment collapsed in 1998 without ever securing necessary multilateral support. What explains these variations in institutions, both across issue areas and over the course of the last 65 years?
• The integration of gendered analyses of globalization has led to a substantive body of literature within the field of international studies. Imagine that an international studies department hires you to design and teach a graduate seminar on gender and globalization. What theoretical and empirical movements within the field would your seminar emphasize? How would you elucidate the central connections between gender and globalization? In your essay response, please explain how your choice of authors, themes and content provides an innovative approach to teaching graduate students about the complex interconnections between gender and global restructuring.
• After the May 2010 parliamentary elections in the United Kingdom, one observer wrote: The outcome in Britain underscores a problem roiling so many democracies. The economic change brought about by globalization and technological advances is not creating the happy, unified world of progress its promoters keep promising. Instead, it is splitting regions within nations that are fully part of the global market from those left behind. Does globalization foster or undermine democracy? Your answer should address at least one of the following dimensions of democracy: political behavior, democratic institutions, responsiveness, equality, and legitimacy. Please illustrate your argument using one democratic state of your choice.
• Numerous scholars argue that historical experiences condition a nation-state's contemporary political economy. That is, a state's past policies for economic development may profoundly affect its contemporary prospects for industrialization, the reduction of poverty, and the development of political institutions. To what degree are development and democratization path-dependent processes? Can states in the contemporary political economy escape the tyranny of their history? If so, how? If not, why not?
• Developing states face different economic, political and social challenges than do the wealthiest and most powerful states. Can international political economy offer us a coherent set of theoretical tools to explain such diverse problems in the global economy? Or must it rely upon ad-hoc, degenerative hypothesizing to accommodate such empirical challenges? To illustrate your theoretical argument, please compare at least one developing and one developed state.

CONFLICT AND COOPERATION

• For a region of your choice identify two instances of cooperation between states that advanced/improved the regional security environment. Explain your selections in detail. Choose your examples from the last decade.
• The spread of nuclear weapons is often cited as a major challenge to the international community. How might this threat best be countered? Your answer should critically review state policies and institutional responses.
• In an increasingly global security environment it is far from obvious how security should be organized. Reflecting on what you have learned, how would you conceptualize a 21st century security order? Why would you conceptualize it this way?
• To what extent does the transatlantic security community exist? Is it strong and if so, why? Is it weak and if so, why? What factors/developments are likely to determine its future?
• For a region of your choice, discuss two events or developments over the past decade that have significantly affected regional expectations about conflict and cooperation. In your answer, make sure to demonstrate familiarity with the scholarly literature and debates at the policy levels.
• Virtually absent from national policy agendas since the end of the Cold War, arms control is back. From a scholarly perspective and against the background of Cold War arms control, how do you evaluate the return of arms control, the emerging arms control agenda, and arms control's contribution to international peace and stability?
• How useful are policies of deterrence in a global security environment?
• From your understanding of the scholarly literature, single out two contributors whose work(s) you think have been critical in advancing the field of Security Studies. Carefully explain your choices.
• Critical theorists have issued a number of challenges to traditional understandings of peace and security. Identify three such challenges and discuss. Ultimately, do these challenges represent anomalies, in the Kuhnian sense, or are they the products of normal science?

COMPARATIVE AND REGIONAL STUDIES

• Both Rational-Choice and Political-Culture theories are prominent approaches in the field of comparative sociopolitical studies. What are the similarities and differences between these two approaches in terms of their intellectual geneses, theoretical assumptions, and major arguments (or hypotheses)? Discuss the major strengths and weaknesses of each approach.
• New Institutionalism is believed to have succeeded the so-called "Old" Institutionalism in comparative sociopolitical studies. Explain the intellectual genesis, theoretical assumptions and major arguments (or hypotheses) of the New Institutionalism. In what respects is the New Institutionalism similar to and different from the Old Institutionalism? Do you think that the New Institutionalism has helped advance comparative sociopolitical studies? Why or why not?
• Some analysts of comparative studies have advocated Statism, emphasizing the profound role of the state in shaping socioeconomic and sociopolitical developments in various countries. Explain theoretical assumptions and major arguments (or hypotheses) of Statism. Do you agree with Statism's arguments for the importance of the state (vs. society)? Why or why not?
• Social movement and revolution
• Democratization
• Social capital
• To study socioeconomic development in different regions or countries, scholars have developed two distinct approaches: Modernization Theory and Dependency Theory. Briefly explain these two approaches in terms of their fundamental assumptions and theoretical arguments. Which theory do you prefer when studying socioeconomic development in developing countries? Use evidence from any region(s) or country (countries) with which you are familiar to support your reference.

INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL STUDIES

• Explain the social construction of culture(s) and its significance to current political economic realities.
• Cite a case study of a post-colonial critique of nationalism. Explain the role of the imperial power and how that is legitimized or not.
• How is the concept of "nation" constructed in Modernity? How is this construction relevant to issues in international studies? Cite case studies where appropriate.
• Explain how cultural studies theories are important to the study and practice of international relations.
• Explain the importance of the media in the construction or reflection of the identity of immigrant, multicultural or diaspora communities.

Graduate Program in International Studies (GPIS)

• Future Students
• Careers & Alumni
• Tuition & Fees
• Financial Aid
• International Students
• The Graduate School

International Studies

7004 Batten Arts & Letters Norfolk, VA 23529

Enhance your college career by gaining relevant experience with the skills and knowledge needed for your future career. Discover our experiential learning opportunities.

Picture yourself in the classroom, speak with professors in your major, and meet current students.

From sports games to concerts and lectures, join the ODU community at a variety of campus events. 

A Note About Masters and Doctoral Comprehensive Exams

Passing Comps Is a Major Milestone

moodboard/Getty Images 

• Tips & Advice
• Choosing a Graduate Program
• Admissions Essays
• Recommendation Letters
• Medical School Admissions
• Homework Help
• Private School
• College Admissions
• College Life
• Business School
• Distance Learning
• Ph.D., Developmental Psychology, Fordham University
• M.A., Developmental Psychology, Fordham University

Graduate students take two sets of comprehensive exams, both master's and doctoral. Yes, it sounds scary. Comprehensive examinations, known as comps, are a source of anxiety for most graduate students.

What Is a Comprehensive Examination?

A comprehensive examination is just what it sounds like. It is a test that covers a broad base of material. It assesses the student's knowledge and capacities to earn a given graduate degree. The exact content varies by graduate program and by degree: master's and doctoral comprehensive exams have similarities but differ in detail, depth, and expectations. Depending on the graduate program and degree, comps could test course knowledge, knowledge of your proposed research area, and general knowledge in the field. This is especially true of doctoral students, who must be prepared to discuss the field at a professional level, citing material from coursework but also classic and current references.

When Do You Take Comps?

Comps are generally given toward the end of coursework or afterward as a way to determine how well a student is able to synthesize the material, solve problems, and think like a professional. Passing a comprehensive exam lets you move to the next level of study.

What Is the Format?

Master's and doctoral exams often are written exams, sometimes oral, and sometimes both written and oral. Exams are usually administered in one or more long test periods. For example, in one program written doctoral comprehensive exams are given in two blocks that are each eight hours long on consecutive days. Another program administers a written comp exam to master's students in one period that lasts five hours. Oral exams are more common in doctoral comps, but there are no hard and fast rules.

What Is the Master's Comp Exam?

Not all master's programs offer or require that students complete comprehensive exams. Some programs require a passing score on a comprehensive exam for entry to the thesis. Other programs use comprehensive exams in place of a thesis. Some programs give students a choice of completing either a comprehensive exam or a thesis. In most cases, master's students are given guidance on what to study. It might be specific lists of readings or sample questions from previous exams. Master's comprehensive exams are generally given to an entire class at once.

What Is the Doctoral Comp Exam?

Virtually all doctoral programs require that students complete doctoral comps. The exam is the gateway to the dissertation . After passing the comprehensive exam a student can use the title " doctoral candidate ," which is a label for students who have entered the dissertation phase of doctoral work, the final hurdle to the doctoral degree. Doctoral students often receive much less guidance on how to prepare for comps as compared with master's students. They might get long reading lists, some sample questions from previous exams, and instructions to be familiar with articles published over the past few years in the prominent journals in their field.

What If You Don't Pass Your Comps?

Graduate students who are unable to pass a program's comprehensive exam are weeded from the graduate program and cannot complete the degree. Graduate programs often allow a student who fails the comprehensive exam another chance to pass. However, most programs send students packing after two failing grades.

• 8 Tips to Prepare for Your Comprehensive Examination
• What is Grad School Like?
• Asking Faculty to Sit on Your Dissertation Committee
• 8 Tips for Taking Notes from Your Reading
• Graduate School Papers and You
• Time Management Tips for Graduate Students
• Avoid These Common Mistakes Students Make in Grad School
• You Missed Class: What Do You Do?
• Improve Your Reading Speed and Comprehension With the SQ3R Method
• Stop Procrastinating to Complete Your Dissertation
• Is Grad School Harder Than College?
• How to Start the Semester Right
• Organization Tips for Graduate Students
• What to Do When You Are Accepted to Grad School
• What to Do the Summer Before You Start Grad School
• How to Get Help from Your Professor

Let your curiosity lead the way:

Apply Today

• Arts & Sciences
• Graduate Studies in A&S

Comprehensive Examinations Guidelines

Guide to Comparative Literature Ph.D. Comprehensive Examination Milestone

Comprehensive Examinations (also known as "Comps" or "Comp Exams") serve three purposes: 1) to solidify your education as a comparatist, 2) to help you get a handle on a field of expertise generally pertinent to comparatist inquiry and to your work specifically, and 3) to help you lay the groundwork for your dissertation. All three comprehensives are designed with these goals in mind, and all three examinations will be tailored accordingly under the supervision of the examination committee chair and with the input of committee members.

We also want you to think about how these three examinations are related as you fashion them. The first exam explores the works, contexts, critical traditions, methodologies and theories that define the primary field in which you will position yourself as a comparatist and more specifically as related to your dissertation. The second exam defines, constructs, and develops your expertise in theories and methods, within which you will write, research, and likely also teach as a comparatist. The third comprehensive examination, i.e., the dissertation prospectus, proposes a project in the primary field, conceived of in comparatist terms and addressing certain comparatist debates. 

The examination committee must make a determination as to whether the performance is a pass or a fail.  In the case of a borderline performance, the committee may, at its discretion, give the student an opportunity to improve the performance, e.g. by rewriting the response to a question, before making the determination pass/fail.  A student who outright fails a portion of any of the comprehensives may retake the exam in question once within two to ten weeks after receiving the failing results.  The requirements for and timing of the retake depend on the student's particular performance, as evaluated in writing by the examination committee, and will be determined in consultation by the chair of the exam committee, the graduate advisor (DGS), and the program director.

The Student  is responsible for attending all meetings, responding to correspondences, and punctually completing all of the comprehensive examination directions, including answering and submitting responses in a timely manner to The Research Advisory Committee (RAC) and The Coordinator, as well as being in contact with The Primary Research Advisor for progressing through the Comprehensive Examination Milestone.

The Primary Research Advisor  is responsible for assisting the Student in assembling the three member Comprehensive Committee for the defense, for compiling and delivering written comprehensive examination questions to The Coordinator  in accordance to the Comparative Literature program Comprehensive Exam template, and for communicating pass/fail of all parts of each comprehensive examination to The Coordinator . 

The Research Advisory Committee (RAC)  should consist of at least three full-time Washington University faculty members who are authorized to supervise PhD students and who have appropriate expertise in the proposed field of study. The RAC is responsible for attending all meetings and examinations regarding the comprehensive examination process for The Student and communicating with The Coordinator regarding scheduling of all meetings involved in the comprehensive examination process.

The Coordinator ( Academic and Administrative Coordinator ) is responsible for coordinating dates, times, and locations of examinations with the Student and Comprehensive Committee, for emailing written examinations to the Student and RAC Committee, for recording pass/file according to The Primary Research Advisor on student milestone tracking, and for submitting appropriate Milestone Forms to the OGS via Portal including the Unsuccessful Qualifying Exam Form and the Successful Qualifying Exam Form.

The OGS provides information on the  Comprehensive Examination  (called the Qualifying Examination on OGS website).

Preliminaries

Before any Comprehensive Examinations can be scheduled, The Student will need to obtain a faculty member to lead their Research Advisory Committee: this member is The Primary Research Advisor. The Student, along with The Primary Research Advisor, will need to identify and secure two additional faculty members to add to their RAC.

Once this three member RAC is established, The Student will contact The Coordinator to arrange a date, time, and place to meet for a preliminary bibliography meeting. This meeting should be approximately 4 months before the first written exam is scheduled. See below for specific elements of the bibliography meeting and the comprehensives themselves. A timeline will be created at this meeting, which The Student and The Primary Research Advisor should share with The Coordinator for ease of scheduling. 

Comprehensive Exams 1 and 2

Comprehensive Exams 1 and 2 consist of both a written and oral portion, both of which are required to be passed before proceeding to the next exam. It is highly recommended to schedule both the written and oral portions of each exam together, in order to avoid both a long delay between written remarks and oral defense, and to avoid unnecessary extension of the overall scheduled time line. It is helpful to have an idea for when you would like your oral portion to occur, and work backwards to schedule the written portion to ensure your and your committee members’ schedules are open (for example, avoiding major holidays, major university and department events, and planned travel). 

The written portion of the first and second comprehensive exams will consist of three questions provided by the RAC, two of which you must answer within a one week period. These questions will be broad in nature and related to the general goals described above as well as to the goals specified below under each comprehensive.

The 1 hour oral examination will follow the written examination in approximately two weeks. Please note: proceeding to the oral does not in and of itself indicate a passing performance on the written. The oral examination may include follow-up questions having to do with your performance on the written examination and could include the question that you did not answer. Most importantly, the oral will include questions on works on your reading list that were not treated in your written answers.  

Upon completion of both parts of the examination, you will receive both an oral and brief written evaluation of your examination, including a passing or failing mark as well as next steps in the Comprehensive Examination process.

Comprehensive Exam 3

Unlike Comprehensive Exams 1 and 2, Comprehensive Exam 3's written portion is not in response to provided questions. Comprehensive Exam 3 explicitly prepares The Student to write a dissertation. It consists of a 20-25-page dissertation proposal, including detailed prospectus, primary texts, and critical sources, followed by an oral defense of the proposal. The Student will work with The Primary Research Adivsor to prepare the proposal. Once The Student and The Primary Research Advisor are satisfied with a draft, The Student will circulate it to the RAC. The 1 hour oral defense will follow approximately two weeks later.

In most cases, The Primary Research Advisor and RAC will continue and become three members of the five or six member Dissertation Defense Committee (including The Dissertation Director). Please see  Ph.D. Dissertation Guidelines  for further information. 

(After coursework is completed/4th year in program)

Approximately four months before you write your first comprehensive, with the help of The Coordinator and The Primary Research Advisor, you will arrange an hour-long meeting including The Student, all faculty members likely to serve on your RAC (3), the  Director of Comparative Literature , and the  DGS of Comparative Literature . During this meeting, faculty will review the expectations, goals and procedures of the examinations, discuss a time line for achieving these goals, and review your bibliography. The bibliography contains the content that The RAC will base their questions on for in the examinations.  This preliminary step is REQUIRED before the comprehensive examinations can commence. 

All those present will receive a brief summary of this meeting in writing, and the summary will be kept on file should you for any reason have to find different examiners over the course of the comprehensives.  

Comprehensive Examination #1

(Approximately 4 months after Preliminaries)

The first comprehensive is an examination in your primary comparatist field. It has four purposes: 1) to enable you to think about and become familiar with how a “field” of comparatist inquiry is defined and shaped; 2) to enable you to identify and familiarize yourself with the historical debates and recent criticism that has shaped comparatist inquiry in this field; 3) to provide you with the occasion to work closely on some of the most important works of criticism pertinent to this field; and 4) to re/familiarize yourself with some exemplary primary works in this field.

The definition of the “field” is flexible, but should have identifiable historical limits and specificity. Additional attributes of a field might include some of the following: important phases or modes of cultural contact; identifiable literary movements such as naturalism, realism, or modernism; transcultural, transnational, and/or translinguistic reach (drawing on your language training); technological developments (the invention of photography, cinema, digital technologies, etc); a set of questions, issues or concerns, etc. A field should be conceived broadly enough to be well populated with primary work and secondary literature. Your dissertation project should fall within the field broadly conceived. Examples of a field include, but are not limited to, comparative modernism, twentieth-century transnational poetics, early modern comparative theater and performance studies, medieval media theory (orality, manuscript culture, etc.), transnational feminist or queer literary studies, postcolonial literature, Sinophone literature, comparative ethnic literatures, etc. Such comparative fields might well be anchored in expertise in one or two areas (transnational poetics with an emphasis on Latin American poetry, comparative modernism with an emphasis in Chinese modernism, etc). You might also work in a “traditional field” such as Victorian British literature or German Romanticism, in which case we encourage you to think creatively about this field as a comparatist. 

Written Examination #1

Student Name: Comprehensive Examination No. 1   (Field) Committee Members:

This written examination consists of three questions that address the annotated bibliography that you submitted to your RAC for this examination. These questions will be made available to you at a specific  TIME  on  DATE . You will have exactly one week to complete your responses and return your completed work to all the members of your committee, as well as The Coordinator at the exact TIME one week from the DATE . Make sure that you answer all the parts of a given question unless the question gives you license to do otherwise. 

Oral Examination #1

The 1-hour oral examination #1 will follow the written examination #1 in approximately two weeks. Proceeding to the oral examination does NOT indicate a passing performance on the written.

Comprehensive Examination #2

(Approximately 2 months after Exam 1)

Your second comprehensive tests your familiarity with and ability to talk about methodologies and theories critical to comparatist analysis and asks you to position yourself within the broad discipline of Comparative Literature by specifying particularly methodologies/theories that will likely inform your future teaching and scholarship. For this examination, in consultation with your advisors, you will create a bibliography of key works from three methodologies/theories in which you wish to prove competence. These should pertain to at least two of the four areas of the core requirements and, where possible, be pertinent to your projected dissertation topic. You should be able to demonstrate knowledge of the origins of these methodologies and theories and key debates and practices and you should also be prepared to give examples of applications. Methodologies/theories might include postcolonial theory, performance theory, queer theory, affect theory, comparative performance study, cultural geography, theories of sound, media theory, philology, translation theory, etc. 

Written Examination #2

Student Name: Comprehensive Examination No. 2   (Theory/Methods) Committee Members:

This written examination consists of three questions that address the annotated bibliography that you submitted to your committee for this examination. These questions will be made available to you at a specific  TIME  on  DATE . You will have exactly one week to complete your responses and return your completed work to all the members of your RAC, as well as The Coordinator at the exact TIME one week from the DATE . Make sure that you answer all the parts of a given question unless the question gives you license to do otherwise. 

Oral Examination #2

The oral examination #2 will follow the written examination #2 in approximately two weeks. Proceeding to the oral does not indicate a passing performance on the written.

Comprehensive Examination #3 (aka "Proposal")

(Approximately 2 months after Exam 2)

Your third comprehensive explicitly prepares you to write your dissertation. It consists of a 20-25 page dissertation proposal, including detailed prospectus, primary texts, and critical sources, followed by a defense of the proposal. You will work with your Primary Research Advisor to prepare the proposal. Once you and your Primary Research Advisor are satisfied with your draft, you will circulate it to your RAC. The 1-hour oral defense will follow approximately two weeks later.

Written Examination #3/Proposal

A 20-25 page dissertation proposal challenges you to generate a blueprint of your project. It is usually composed of the following or most of the following elements:

• Abstract: a two to three sentence summary.
• Introduction: The introduction paints the "scholarly landscape." It addresses the following such questions: what is the issue or problem you mean to address, how does your inquiry relate to the (sub)field, and how does it fit into the current scholarly conversation?
• Review of scholarship (literature review): A review of scholarship addresses the following such questions: what have been the major developments relating to your topic, what are some questions that have been left open, and how do these lacunae bring you to your topic?
• The question: What is the problem or issue your dissertation will address, and what do you foresee as its contribution to the field?
• Methodology: This section outlines the conceptual/theoretical framework. Which theorists or school/s of thought do you expect to be using and why?  What is comparatist about your study?
• Research to date: Summarize what you have already done.
• Preliminary Outline: This section should include preliminary chapter divisions with brief explanations of what is in each (and even how one leads to the next).
• Timeline for Completion
• Selected Preliminary Bibliography

Oral Examination #3/Proposal Defense

In the 1-hour oral defense, your examiners will be trying to make the following judgments about your proposal: Is the topic viable? Is it original? Is the central question significant? Do you have the knowledge and skills needed to address the problem? Are the methods sound? Will the theory and methods enable you to make an argument? Are you likely to finish in a timely manner? The proposal generally serves as the basis for your introductory chapter and serves to guide you through the process of researching and writing your dissertation.

Title, Scope, and Procedure (TSP)

(Before starting 5th year of graduate study)

Although usually linked with the Dissertation Phase, the Student may want to bring work on their Title, Scope and Procedure (TSP) form as part of their prospectus. You must file your TSP form before starting your fifth year of graduate study.

Your project's "scope" defines its limits—what you intend to cover and what you intend not to cover. Your "procedure" describes the manner in which you intend to conduct your research. By defining the scope and procedure of your dissertation, you provide an initial outline or model for yourself as you research your topic.

You may file your  Title, Scope, and Procedure Form  as soon as your Research Advisory Committee (RAC) has signed it. The form also serves as a contract between you and your RAC. RACs normally consist of three tenured or tenure-track Washington University faculty members from within your degree program. These three members normally continue to become the core of the larger five-member Dissertation Defense Committee. 

Your dissertation's title, scope, and procedure may change in the course of your research. You are not required to file an amended form with the Graduate School, although getting your committee’s written approval of the changes may be advisable.

More information on the TSP can be found at  Dissertation Guidelines

Questions from students may be addressed to The Coordinator or [email protected] , including for a copy of the explicit examination procedures and regulations including time frame and approximate numbers of works included on each examination. The Coordinator will work with you and your committee to schedule all of the steps in the examination process.

Problems arising during the process that for whatever reason require intervention or mediation should be directed to the Director of Comparative Literature.

Best Practices for the Comprehensive Examination

• Download PDF

Penn State’s Graduate School requires that each Ph.D. student “pass a comprehensive examination to become a Ph.D. candidate” ( GCAC-606 ). The comprehensive examination is administered by the Philosophy Department.

The purpose of the comprehensive exam is to help students develop breadth and depth in areas relevant to their chosen areas of research. The historical and systematic reading lists contain resources that can aid students in developing a dissertation prospectus.

The comprehensive examination process is one that necessitates flexibility because every student is different, students work on a wide variety of topics, and students enter the comprehensive exam process with different levels of knowledge. The specifics of how the comprehensive examination preparation process takes place are, therefore, determined by the student and the dissertation advisor/committee in conversation with one another.

While holding a general principle of flexibility in mind, there are several areas where best practices regarding the comprehensive examination can be recommended:

Number of Questions

Faculty should consider providing students with five questions per exam session, one of which students will answer.

Length of Reading Lists

Because our program provides five years of funding, students are encouraged to defend their dissertation prospectuses by the end of their third year in the program, leaving two years in which they can write their dissertations. This means that students will have roughly half a year (the first half of their third year) in which to prepare to take their comprehensive examination. Accordingly, the preparation of each reading list should take no longer than three months. Lists that include a combination of texts students already have familiarity with and those that are new to them are more likely to be able to be completed within three months.

Thematic Identification

Students are encouraged to identify broad themes across readings that relate to their proposed areas of research and should share those with their dissertation advisor and committee in advance of the generation of questions for the comprehensive examination. In writing questions for the exam, committee members are encouraged to be sensitive to the philosophical themes the student intends to develop in their research.

Dates of Exam

The dates of the exam should be set by the supervisor and student in consultation with each other.

Length of Answers

Answers to each comprehensive exam question should fall in the range of 4000–6000 words.

Oral Examination

In posing questions during the oral portion of the examination, faculty are encouraged to focus exclusively on the written portion of the exam.

In beginning to draft their comprehensive examination reading lists and rationale, students should consult the comprehensive examination template available on the department website.

Policies and Procedures

Criteria of evaluation for the written and oral portions of the exam, as well as additional details regarding the comprehensive examination process, can be found in Graduate Program Policies and Procedures .

Quick links

• Directories
• Make a Gift

Ph.D. Comprehensive Exam

Overview .

The comprehensive exam gives you an opportunity to demonstrate mastery over relevant theory, methods, and empirical material in a subfield or set of related subfields, with an eye toward conducting related research. Exams can be taken in traditional or ‘synthetic’ areas. Exams that bridge areas may be useful for students whose emerging research agenda draws on multiple lines of scholarship. The topic and coverage of the exam should be substantially broader than a dissertation, and it should cover foundational readings and current scholarship in one or more subfields. Specific exam areas will be developed by you in collaboration with your committee.

The exam committee should include at least three faculty members selected by the student. A departmental representative (DR) is also randomly assigned to the committee. At least two of the student-selected faculty members should have at least a 25% appointments in the sociology department. The third should have, at a minimum, adjunct status in the department.

Format 

Exams typically consist of written responses to between three and six questions posed by an examining committee. In total, responses should not exceed 30-pages (double-spaced, standard margins, 12-point Times New Roman or similar font). Responses need not be of equal length. You will have 48 hours to complete the exam. This is an open book exam, allowing you to consult books, articles, notes, and online materials. However, you should not discuss the questions or responses with anyone. The exam instructions will specify whether citations and references are required and whether references count toward the 30-page limit.

In consultation with the student, the committees may choose to offer a shorter, closed-book exam, also conducted over a two-day period. Closed book exams include a maximum of 8 hours each day to complete the exam. The examining committee sets the final structure of the exam in terms of number of hours, and total number of questions.

Additional Time

You can request a 24-hour extension if you:

• are a non-native English writer.
• are pregnant.
• have a documented learning disability.
• have a health condition that requires additional time.

Request this extension when scheduling your exam and send the committee approval to the graduate program advisor.

Requesting an Exam

• Submit the Ph.D. Comprehensive Exam Request form , your narrative rationale, a reading list to the graduate program advisor ( [email protected] ).
• Wait for approval and the assignment of the DR.
• Schedule your exam with the committee

Narrative Rationale 

Prepare a short narrative rationale for the exam (one page or less). Describe why you are  proposing this particular exam, and outline the broad contours of the exam’s domain. If the exam covers more than one field or subfield in the discipline, the narrative should briefly discuss how this particular combination of fields will prepare you for future research and teaching.

Departmental Representative

After the proposed exam has been approved by the GPC, a Departmental Representative will be randomly assigned to your committee. The main role of the DR is to assure that exams do not become too closely aligned to a student’s (or faculty member’s) idiosyncratic interests. It also provides faculty with an opportunity to see what type of work is being done in the department. In practice, the DR provides coordination and oversight, as opposed to creating the exam and providing feedback. At a minimum, the DR should review exam questions to ensure that they are neither too broad nor too narrow and have an opportunity to read the completed exam.

Timing 

You should take the comprehensive exams within one year of completing the MA degree, and no later than the spring of the fourth year. A few guidelines:

• Schedule exams during the quarter (not during a break). 
• The exam is typically taken before the last week so it can be graded before the break.
• You must be registered in the quarter in which you take the exam.

Outcome 

You will learn the exam outcome within two weeks. Exam outcomes include:

Pass with Distinction Pass Conditional Pass Fail

A conditional pass means that the committee is asking for revisions. You have 60-days to revise and resubmit. If you do not resubmit, you will be placed on warning status with the graduate school. Students placed on warning must re-take the comprehensive exam within one quarter after the original exam date.

Students who fail the exam will be put on warning status and will have the opportunity to retake the exam the following quarter. Students who fail the exam a second time will be dismissed from the program. A third attempt is granted if two-thirds of the faculty approve.

•   Instagram
•   LinkedIn
•   Twitter
•   Newsletter

• Graduate School

Comprehensive Exam: Grad School’s Ultimate Test

Featured Expert: Dr. Benita Kapuku, PhD

A comprehensive exam is a type of cumulative evaluation used by many graduate programs in the US and Canada. It is a common requirement for how to get a PhD or graduate from some master’s programs, and even some undergraduate honors programs. However, a comprehensive exam encompasses many different types of final tests and even types of thesis defense, and the requirements and structure of a comprehensive exam are very program dependent. In this blog, we’ll take a look at what comprehensive exams are, what’s on them, which programs use them and how to prepare for this challenge.

>> Want us to help you get accepted? Schedule a free initial consultation here <<

Listen to the blog!

Article Contents 10 min read

What are comprehensive exams.

What exactly is a comprehensive exam? Comprehensive exams have many different names, from comps to cumulative exam, qualifying exams, candidacy exams or preliminary exams.

Comprehensive exam is a term applied to many final assessments used in higher education in both the US and Canada. Specifically, they are a common graduate program requirement to graduate. The purpose of a comprehensive exam is to evaluate a student's mastery of the foundational knowledge and key concepts within their field of study. So, if you want to get a master’s degree in Canada or the US, or you plan to get a PhD, it’s likely you’ll need to complete a comprehensive exam or something close to it.

Not all graduate programs require them, and there are only a few undergraduate programs in the US that use comprehensive exams as final evaluations. If you are required to take a comprehensive exam or similar assessment, it demands thorough preparation. Keep in mind that the format and content of a comprehensive exam can vary greatly from program to program, even within the same disciplines or fields.

The content of a comprehensive exam relies on your program of study, as does its format. For example, an MBA program might have a multiple-choice comprehensive exam, while a master’s in social work program may use an oral exam or presentation.

Comprehensive exams are often long—some may be several hours long—and may be administered over multiple days. Some comprehensive exams are completed in two parts, so you may have a written part and an oral part of your exam, depending on your program.

The content of your exam will cover the foundational concepts, principles and vital knowledge covered in your program’s coursework. So, an MBA program will evaluate your knowledge of core business principles, test your strategic thinking and your communication skills. Research-heavy programs will ask you to present a research proposal and defend your thesis. Political science programs will present you with multiple essay prompts and ask you to draft an argument in response.

How are Comprehensive Exams Scored?

Because of the variable nature of comprehensive exams, they may all use a different scoring system. Of course, passing your comprehensive exams or completing them with a satisfactory grade can determine whether you graduate or not from a particular program. Many programs allow you to retake comprehensive exams or re-attempt a thesis defense, but of course it’s ideal to pass on the first try!

Check out the grading system your program uses for comprehensive exams and what is required to pass. Here are a few examples of scoring systems you might be using:

• Pass/Fail System: In many programs, comprehensive exams are evaluated on a pass/fail basis. Students must demonstrate a sufficient level of mastery of the material to pass the exams and move on to the next stage of their academic journey, such as advancing to candidacy for a Ph.D.
• Graded System : Some programs may use a graded system for comprehensive exams, assigning numerical or letter grades based on the quality of a student's performance. The grading criteria may include the depth of understanding, clarity of communication, critical analysis, and other relevant factors.
• Rubrics and Evaluation Criteria: Faculty members often use rubrics or specific evaluation criteria to assess comprehensive exams consistently. These criteria may be shared with students beforehand to provide transparency about the expectations for successful performance.
• Weighting of Exam Components: If comprehensive exams consist of multiple components (e.g., written and oral exams, specific subject areas), programs may assign different weights to each component. For example, written exams might contribute a certain percentage to the overall score, and oral exams may have a separate weight.
• Oral Defense: In programs that include an oral component to the comprehensive exams, the performance during the oral defense may carry significant weight in the overall evaluation. Faculty members may assess a student's ability to articulate and defend their knowledge and perspectives. In programs with oral exams or comprehensive exams evaluated by a committee of faculty members, the final score may be determined through a consensus of the examining committee. This approach ensures that multiple perspectives contribute to the evaluation process.

Some programs provide detailed feedback to students on their performance in comprehensive exams, allowing them to understand their strengths and weaknesses. In some cases, students may be given an opportunity to revise and resubmit specific sections of the exam based on feedback.

Before you apply to graduate school, watch this!

Which Programs Use Comprehensive Exams?

There are many graduate programs that use comprehensive exams (and even some other university programs that do). Even online graduate programs may decide to use comprehensive exams in their curriculum.

In Canada, some of the most prestigious universities in Canada use comps, particularly for the PhD and doctoral programs. Online universities in Canada may also require comprehensive exams, depending on the type of program.

You can check whether a specific graduate program requires a comprehensive exam on their website by looking through their curriculum and graduation requirements. However, keep in mind that a majority of master’s programs and doctoral programs DO have some kind of evaluation or comp, even if you’re doing a PhD without dissertation .

PhD and Doctoral Programs

Doctoral programs in a wide range of disciplines, such as the sciences, humanities, social sciences, and engineering, often require comprehensive exams. These exams serve as a milestone in the progression toward candidacy for a Ph.D. and are typically taken after completing coursework.

Essentially, you will complete 1 to 2 years of PhD advanced coursework, the progress to preparing for your comprehensive or preliminary exams. Successfully passing these makes you a PhD candidate, and means you can begin conducting your own independent research and working on your dissertation or thesis. Which means you’ll begin preparing for thesis defense and brushing up on thesis defense questions you need to answer.

Of course, comps are very important to continuing in your PhD program and they can influence how long it takes to get a PhD . Since, if you don’t pass your comps, you won’t be able to progress to your dissertation stage.

Master’s Programs

Some Master's programs, especially those with a strong research focus, may include comprehensive exams as part of the degree requirements. However, this is more common in research-oriented Master's programs, such as a master’s degree in psychology , than in terminal, coursework-based Master's programs. Depending on the field of your master’s program, a comp may look different.

For example, your exam may be a lengthy multiple-choice test. Or a series of long essay prompts and responses. It may be a more traditional presentation of a research proposal. This usually involves either submission of your proposal for review and approval, or an oral presentation of your proposal and a defense in front of a panel of faculty members.

If your exam is a thesis proposal and defense, it’s important to learn how to write a master’s thesis proposal and review research proposal questions and answers you’ll be asked so you can prepare yourself.

Applying to graduate school? Here's how to write a graduate school statement of purpose :

Undergraduate Programs

There are a few colleges in the US which require undergraduate students to graduate with their degree. Again, these will be program dependent. Many honors programs at US colleges use comprehensive exams to evaluate graduating students in particular disciplines.

Here are some colleges that use comprehensive exams for select undergraduate programs:

• Bethany College
• Catholic University of America
• Earlham College
• Eckerd College
• Hanover College
• Kenyon College
• Maryville College
• Millsaps College
• Occidental College
• Reed College
• Rosemont College
• St. Anselm College
• Shimer College
• Texas A&M University
• University of Alabama
• University of Dallas
• University of Iowa
• University of the South
• University of Virginia
• Wabash College
• Whitman College

Other Programs which Use Comps

• Education Programs: Many graduate programs in education, including doctoral programs in education (Ed.D. or Ph.D.), may require comprehensive exams. These exams assess a student's knowledge of educational theory, research methods, and other relevant topics.
• Public Administration and Policy Programs: Master's and Ph.D. programs in public administration, public policy, and related fields may use comprehensive exams to evaluate students' understanding of governance, policy analysis, and other relevant areas.
• Psychology Programs: Doctoral programs in psychology often include comprehensive exams as part of the process of advancing to candidacy. These exams may cover various subfields of psychology, research methods, and theoretical perspectives.
• Social Work Programs: Some Master's and Ph.D. programs in social work may require comprehensive exams to assess students' understanding of social work theories, practice, and research methods.
• Business Administration Programs : Some Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs may have comprehensive exams, although the structure of these exams can vary. Additionally, Ph.D. programs in business administration or related fields often include comprehensive exams.
• Political Science Programs: Doctoral programs in political science commonly use comprehensive exams to evaluate students' knowledge of political theory, comparative politics, international relations, and research methods.

Preparing for comprehensive exams is a long process and, as we know, can be vital to your successful completion of your program. Below we’ve included some tips on how to properly prepare for this graduate school challenge!

1. Understand the Exam Structure and Requirements

First, review the requirements for your comprehensive exam with your program, or if you even have to complete one. Review the structure, content, format and scoring rubric associated with the comps for your program so you know just what to expect. You should also take a look at any guidelines your program provides that can give you a head start on test prep.

2. Create a Study Plan

Once you know what you need to prepare for, start creating a study plan and schedule. Most likely, you’ll be preparing for your comps at the same time you’re completing other coursework and fulfilling other obligations.

Having a solid study plan will keep you organized and make sure you’re preparing as efficiently as you can. Break down your study plan into manageable sections, by month, by week, even by day. Allocate concrete timeframes and study periods. Prepare for a long study period, since you may have to prepare for your exams months in advance.

3. Content Review

For your comprehensive exams, no matter their format, content review will be important. Go back and collect your coursework materials such as notes, textbooks and study notes. Identify the key concepts, theories, and methodologies that are fundamental to your field of study. Make sure you have a solid understanding of these foundational elements.

For students writing essay-based comprehensive exams, ask about previous years’ essay topics or the content covered on previous exams so you have a better idea of what content areas to review.

5. Practice, practice, practice

If the exams include written components, practice writing essays or responses to potential exam questions. Focus on clarity, coherence, and the ability to articulate your ideas effectively. Your program may be able to give you past essay prompts or practice prompts to work with. Write regular practice essays to get used to the process of brainstorming, outlining and drafting your ideas into a strong essay, as well as writing a full essay within the given time limit.

If your comps include an oral presentation, work on your presentation and verbal communication skills. Rehearse your oral presentation and ask for feedback on your delivery.

For more traditional exams, use practice questions or write regular practice tests if possible. If the exams have time constraints, practice answering questions within the allotted time. This helps improve your time management skills and ensures that you can complete the exam within the given timeframe.

6. Seek Guidance from Faculty

Consult with your faculty advisor or other professors who are familiar with the comprehensive exam process. Seek advice on key areas to focus on, potential exam topics, and any specific recommendations they may have. If you have questions about the exam format or content, seek clarification from your program coordinator or faculty members. Understanding the expectations can guide your preparation.

Faculty members may also have resources you can use to better practice and prepare for your tests, such as practice exams or past year’s essay topics.

7. Use External Resources

Consider forming or joining study groups with your peers who are also preparing for comps. Discussing concepts with others can provide different perspectives and help reinforce your understanding of the material. Explore external resources, such as additional textbooks, scholarly articles, and online resources, to supplement your understanding of key topics.

It’s important to read widely in your field, both scholarly articles and textbooks but also keeping up to date on current affairs. You never know where an exam question or essay prompt may be sourced from, and broad knowledge of your field will help you answer questions or write stronger essay responses.

8. Take Care of Your Mental Health

Balance your study efforts with adequate self-care. Ensure you get enough sleep, eat well, and take breaks to avoid burnout. Schedule regular study breaks in your study plan and don’t be afraid to take time away from studying.

Preparing for comprehensive exams can be stressful, considering the stakes are high and the tests can be long and grueling. Nonetheless, it’s key to take of yourself during this time as you approach the end of your program.

A comprehensive exam, often referred to as comps or qualifying exams, is an evaluative assessment designed to test a student's mastery of the fundamental concepts and knowledge within their academic discipline. These exams are common in graduate programs, especially at the master's and doctoral levels, and are intended to ensure that students have a solid foundation before advancing to the next stage of their academic journey.

The duration for comprehensive exam preparation can vary depending on the program, the complexity of the content, and the individual student's prior knowledge. Some students may dedicate several weeks to a few months for focused study. It's advisable to start early, create a study plan, and allocate sufficient time to review all relevant materials.

Comprehensive exams are commonly required in various graduate programs, particularly at the master's and doctoral levels. Programs such as Ph.D. programs in the sciences, humanities, and social sciences often include comprehensive exams. Additionally, some master's programs, especially those with a strong research focus, may also have comprehensive exam requirements. Specific programs can include education, psychology, business administration, public administration, and more.

The timing of comprehensive exams varies by program but is typically taken after the completion of coursework or at a designated point in a student's academic progression. In many cases, comprehensive exams are a prerequisite for advancing to candidacy in Ph.D. programs.

The content of a comprehensive exam depends on the academic discipline and the specific requirements of the program. However, it generally covers foundational concepts, key theories, methodologies, and relevant literature within the field of study. The exam may consist of written and/or oral components and may cover a range of topics specified by the program.

Passing a comprehensive exam requires thorough preparation. Develop a study plan, review course materials, textbooks, and additional readings. Practice with sample questions or exams, engage in discussions with faculty or peers, and seek guidance from advisors. During the exam, demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the material, and respond to questions or prompts with clarity and coherence.

If you don't pass your comprehensive exam, programs typically have procedures in place for remediation or reevaluation. It's important to consult with your program coordinator, faculty advisor, or relevant administrators to understand the specific policies and options available for retaking or addressing any deficiencies.

Many programs allow students to retake comprehensive exams if they do not pass on the first attempt. The specific retake policies vary by institution and program, so it's essential to consult with program administrators to understand the procedures, timelines, and any additional requirements for retaking the exam.

Want more free tips? Subscribe to our channels for more free and useful content!

Apple Podcasts

Like our blog? Write for us ! >>

Have a question ask our admissions experts below and we'll answer your questions, get started now.

Talk to one of our admissions experts

Our site uses cookies. By using our website, you agree with our cookie policy .

FREE Training Webinar:

How to make your grad school application stand out, (and avoid the top 5 mistakes that get most rejected).

This page has been archived and is no longer being updated regularly.

Degree In Sight

Preparing for your comprehensive exams

Study strategically and organize citations, say faculty and students who survived the trial themselves.

By SADIE F. DINGFELDER

gradPSYCH Staff

Like many graduate students, Meghan Duff faced her comprehensive exam-a hurdle doctoral students must jump before embarking on their dissertation projects-with trepidation. As a third-year applied psychology student at Antioch New England Graduate School in New Hampshire, Duff needed to pass a two-part exam consisting of an essay question and an oral presentation of a clinical case.

To quell her anxiety, Duff picked up some study habits that may have puzzled her pets.

"I walked around my kitchen and kept on talking about this case," she says. "No one was there, but I talked and talked and talked until I was nearly hoarse."

The essay question, which students get a week to write, worried Duff a little less.

"At Antioch, the idea is that as long as you have kept up with your class reading, you can pass the exam without much extra studying," she notes. "But you will have to review your notes and formulate your ideas."

However, no two universities have exactly identical comprehensive exams, says Dolores Albarracin, PhD, a psychology professor at the University of Florida. Still, one thing most do have in common is the nightmares they can provoke in graduate students.

For example, Albarracin's students take a seven-question exam in a computer lab, where they have eight hours to write essays with no outside resources. Other universities, such as Yale University, give students an entire semester to work on large literature review papers. And most universities, says Albarracin, allow students to retake the exam if they do not pass the first time around.

But regardless of the exam format, she notes, students who prepare rarely fail. Here's some advice from Albarracin, Duff and others to maximize your preparation time and tackle your comprehensive exam:

Read strategically While some departments disseminate a suggested reading list to graduate students, many require students to create their own. Students who write their own reading list, which typically includes journal articles and review papers, should make sure to organize it by topic and have a professor review it, says Jodi Gresack, a third-year graduate student in Yale University's behavioral neuroscience program. Students can more readily synthesize and recall information if they read journal articles in a logical order, organized chronologically and by topic, she says.

Keep abreast of your field Professors often get ideas for questions from reading the latest research and controversies, says Fiona Lee, PhD, an organizational psychology professor at the University of Michigan. When studying for the exams, graduate students should take time to peruse the latest journals in their field, she says.

Take detailed notes After reading an article, Amy Trahan, a fourth-year organizational psychology graduate student at the University of Michigan, writes down the main points of the article—a practice that forces her to think critically as she reads and provides material to study later. Gresack, who read over 100 papers while writing her qualifying exam paper, agrees.

"You need to really make sure that you try to find the importance of every paper that you read," she explains.

Get organized Though she didn't do much extra reading to prepare for her take-home written comprehensive exam, Duff spent the weeks before the test getting her filing cabinet in order.

"My way of prepping was to know where all my references were," says Duff.

This allowed her to inventory what information she had on hand and then easily find articles to support her exam responses, says Duff.

Additionally, Trahan recommends students use citation software, such as Endnote or Procite, to keep track of their notes. These programs allow students to download citations directly from PsycINFO and other databases, and create an index of articles organized by topic and author.

Seek advice from older students Students who have already passed their comprehensive exams make great resources, says Gresack. Don't shy away from asking them for advice, or even for copies of their graded essays, she explains. Some colleges even keep past exams on file, students say.

Ask questions When Trahan received her exam questions, she realized that she was not quite sure what one of them was asking. So she took a guess, and she guessed wrong, resulting in the faculty asking her to rewrite part of her answer.

"I should have asked the faculty for clarification," says Trahan. "I would have avoided doing a rewrite if I had sought clarification at the outset."

Trahan notes that some students may feel they are admitting ignorance if they ask a question, but it is better to risk looking uninformed than to write four pages on the wrong topic.

That's good advice, says Rodger Peterson, PhD, an applied psychology professor at Antioch New England Graduate School, who notes that professors know what kinds of clarifications they are permitted to offer.

Read the directions This advice may seem obvious, but even normally meticulous students might fail to notice formatting details while under pressure, says Duff. Test-takers should note the number of pages allotted to a question and the formatting requirements of the comprehensive exam, she explains. Most importantly, students need to double check that they have answered all the parts of each essay question, says Duff.

Be thorough, not encyclopedic Packing in too many citations is an all too common mistake, says Arran Caza, a fourth-year organizational psychology and business graduate student at the University of Michigan.

"You can spend a lot of [unnecessary] time in the library, finding every article remotely relevant to the question," says Caza. "You need to be aware of the major trends, but you don't have to write an anthology."

While the intensive preparation can be exhausting, it pays, says Duff: She passed both parts of her exam with flying colors. In fact, she even enjoyed the experience.

"I didn't get any of those curveball questions I was worried about," she says. "At the end of the oral, the professors ended up asking about my professional development. That part was wonderful—that felt validating."

Letters to the Editor

Preparing for the Comprehensive Examination and the Dissertation

The comprehensive examination and the dissertation are the final projects in your doctoral journey.  These projects allow learners to demonstrate their skills as independent scholars and researchers.  In a real sense, the entire range of academic preparation up to this point has been preparation for this.  Between the conclusion of Track 3 of the Colloquia and the start of the comprehensive examination, there is time for continuing development and strengthening of one’s scholarly and research knowledge and skills.

Preparing for the Comprehensive Examination

As you know, in the comprehensive examination (hereafter called “comps”) you will be asked to answer sophisticated questions in your specialization or field of study.  Although you have a generous time period in which to answer the questions, you should have brought your skills to their highest level for the greatest chance of success.  These are skills in (a) using the library to discover relevant research and theory on the questions, (b) critically thinking about and analyzing that research, (c) formulating a focused and thorough answer to the question, and (d) writing in a professional or scholarly voice.

Scholarly Skills Needed in the Comps

There is a set of interrelated skills needed to pass the comps.  They derive from the four competencies of the Colloquia (scholar-practitioner, critical thinker, researcher, and professional writer): 

• Can you deconstruct complex questions to identify what is actually being asked?  (The “Comprehensive Manual” in the “Learning Resources/Comprehensive and Dissertation Resources” section of iGuide has a chapter on how to deconstruct questions.)
• Can you appropriately identify the levels of critical analysis needed? (Remember Bloom’s famous taxonomy of critical thinking?)
• Can you organize a sophisticated literature search for existing work on the various elements of the question?
• Can you thoroughly analyze and critique that existing work in order to build a framework for your own answer to the question?
• Can you write your answer using all the elements of APA formatting, proper citation, good grammar, word usage, and mechanics (punctuation, spelling, formatting, etc.)?
• Can you present your answer using the correct paper and paragraph formatting—the introduction, main body, and conclusion model for the paper and the M.E.A.L. plan for paragraphs?
• Can you answer the question thoroughly—answering all elements that are asked—and concisely—answering no elements that are not asked?
• Can you use the analytic service provided by Capella (e.g., Turnitin.com, SafeAssign.com) to check your writing for originality and make all necessary corrections?
• Can you work in an organized and focused way within a carefully constructed timeline, ensuring timely delivery of the answers?

If you are weak or unready in any of these skills, develop a plan (which you will present to the Courseroom instructor) for improving your skills between now and the quarter when you will take comps.  This plan can be proactive—that is, a positive approach to developing or strengthening a particular skill.  It can also include reactive elements, such as deciding to take a quarter off to concentrate heavily on developing or improving your skills.  The comps and the dissertation are crucial to your success:  Only successfully completing both will achieve your dream of becoming doctoral.  Don’t mistake that: Careful and thorough preparation is the key.  The more ready you are going in, the greater your chances of success.

Some Ideas for Your Readiness-for-Comps Plan

• Identify the courses that you still need to complete.  How can each of them be used to enhance your skill set for independent scholarship?
• Make a list of the various skills you’ll need in the comps.  Make a plan to practice them intentionally in your remaining courses.
• Set goals for that practice and assess your progress weekly.
• Inform your instructors about your plans and ask them to help you with feedback focused on your needs.
• Figure out how you can use remaining courses to deepen your literature review for your dissertation.  For instance, if a course is a methodology course, use it to deepen your literature on your own methodology and design.  If it is a content course, figure out how that content relates to your dissertation topic and try to focus your course paper or product that way.  In whatever way, build your lit review.
• Decide if you want or need to take an additional residency.  Capella offers “Track 4,” a colloquia refresher.  The tuition is much less than that of the required tracks, and many learners find Track 4 to be helpful in solidifying their skills.
• Capella also offers the “Dissertation Writers’ Retreat,” concurrent with the PhD Colloquia, in which faculty from the Writing Program and methodologists from the schools are on site to assist learners who are working on a part of their dissertation.  Although this is not likely to be as productive prior to comps, you might consider using it after the comps to prepare more fully for starting the dissertation.
• Review your Research Plan carefully as you continue to discover existing research.  Do not let it go fallow, but add in new work, revise your plans, and continue to develop it as you approach the comps.  Some courseroom mentors (the leaders of the comps courseroom) allow a question or two based on the learners’ own dissertation topic.  Some do not.  But if your mentor does, then the depth of your lit review will be extremely important and useful.
• Review the “Comprehensive Examination Manual” thoroughly before starting the exam.  Learn the process, the timelines, the requirements, and how to handle (understand and deconstruct) the questions.  You cannot ask for help once the examination starts—it is an examination, after all—and you may not use an editor or librarian at any point.  Consequently, come as prepared as you can so that you don’t waste time trying to understand the “rules and regulations.”

Preparing for the Dissertation

When you meet your dissertation mentor, one of the first things you and the mentor will discuss is your research plan, developed through the Colloquia.  So it is important that it be as well-prepared as you can make it before you have that discussion.  You should have been updating your literature review in the research plan through all the quarters you’ve been taking courses and attending Colloquia.  Between now and the comps, continue that.  Once you have passed the comps and are on track to start dissertation, continue building that lit review and revising your research plan according to your latest findings.

Before you start the dissertation, become very familiar with the resources available to you in your school.  Go to Research at Capella , and then click on the link to "Research in [your school's name]" at the bottom of the page.  Open every document and discover what is there for you.  Prepare yourself for talking with a mentor so that you sound knowledgeable about the processes and the various elements of the dissertation—do not wait for a mentor to tell you what is needed or how to find something.  The dissertation is a demonstration of independent research.

Before you pass the comps, do not spend a lot of time preparing for dissertation (except to keep working on your research plan and building that lit review).  Instead, devote the time to preparing for the comps—when you pass the exam, there will be plenty of time for gearing up for the dissertation.

Keep one thing in the forefront of your vision:  The comps and the dissertation demonstrate your independence , as a scholar (comps) and as a researcher (dissertation).  You will be asked to demonstrate not only that you have knowledge, not only that you can present that knowledge in a manner appropriate to a PhD, but that you can use that knowledge to generate new knowledge on your own initiative, independently.  Consequently, evaluate honestly the level of your scholarship skills, the breadth of your knowledge, and the degree of true independence in your work.

Independence does not mean isolation, though.  Scholars form a community, and they talk together, recognizing their limitations and asking for help when they need it.

Knowing when one needs help is a genuine dimension of independent scholarship.  Can you ask for help when you need it?  Can you tell when you need it?

Another thing to look at as you prepare for the dissertation (and the comps, for that matter), is to assess your comfort with difficult feedback.  Particularly in the dissertation, you will receive a lot of difficult feedback—about your ideas, about your writing, about details of your research design, about any and every aspect of the project.  You may even get differing feedback from different evaluators, and you’ll have to negotiate with them if the differences are extreme.  Are you ready to not take tough feedback personally, but to use it to strengthen your work?  Don’t pass over that point lightly—self-assess carefully on this point.

Finally, evaluate your time management skills.  Perhaps the hardest problem to solve with the dissertation is how to ensure that you get done in a reasonable period of time.  There are no real deadlines—although there are milestones—like there are in courses.  The work is relentless, but there is no one expecting a document on a certain day.  It is far too easy to get lost.  This is another aspect of the independence you must demonstrate: the ability to get the job done on your own.  If procrastination and time management have been problems during your coursework, they will be magnified enormously during the dissertation.  If you have all the other necessary skills but allow yourself to procrastinate, your chances of success drop.  So if that has been a problem, take time to investigate it and develop a plan to overcome it.  You can do it, with a plan.

Doc. reference: phd_t3_u06s1_h01_prepcomp.html

LET US HELP

Welcome to Capella

Select your program and we'll help guide you through important information as you prepare for the application process.

FIND YOUR PROGRAM

Connect with us

A team of dedicated enrollment counselors is standing by, ready to answer your questions and help you get started.

• Capella University Blog
• PhD/Doctorate

What is a comprehensive exam?

August 13, 2024

Estimated reading time:  4 minutes

If you’re thinking about pursuing a doctoral degree , you might be wondering about different exam components that may be expected as part of the program.

Some PhD programs require students to take comprehensive exams – which are also known as preliminary exams, general exams or major field exams – as part of their program. The purpose of the comprehensive exam is to ensure the student has knowledge in their area of research to make an original contribution.

The comprehensive exam is designed to challenge students to step back from the specific deliverables expected in courses and reflect critically on their discipline through synthesis and integration of their knowledge, skills and experiences across significant topics in their academic discipline.

Passing a comprehensive exam, which may be in written, verbal or some other format, indicates that a student is prepared to move into the dissertation phase of the degree.

What should you expect from comprehensive exams? The nature of the exams – or comps, as they’re commonly called – could vary depending on your school or program, but here are a few of the most common formats, requirements and expectations.

Comprehensive exam formats

The format for comps can vary widely depending on the program.

• Submission of an academic paper
• Formal oral exam
• Review of your academic portfolio
• A series of proctored, or supervised, exams

Your school and program will dictate the required format, and in some cases, may include multiple types.

Eligibility requirements

Again, these will vary across schools and programs, with some requiring all and others requiring only certain ones.

• Minimum GPA (at Capella University, a 3.0 GPA is required before taking the comprehensive exam)
• Completion of all coursework
• Completion of doctoral residency, if relevant to the program
• Paperwork, such as a comprehensive exam request form
• Possible additional requirements for students in licensure or practicum programs

What do comprehensive exams involve?

Comps help faculty verify that students grasp the key elements of research, theories and concepts within their field of study to position their findings and add to the collection of knowledge in the field. To that end, exam questions are usually focused around:

• Knowledge of the research methodologies and how to apply them in the student’s areas of specialization
• Theories and concepts that contribute to the body of knowledge in the student’s area of specialization
• Theory and research that can solve problems in the field

Your coursework prior to the comps should prepare you to discuss these points thoroughly and knowledgeably. Completing your comprehensive examination successfully indicates you are ready to transition to the research phase of your doctoral program and continue your journey as an independent researcher.

Many schools (including Capella) will allow you to retake the comps if you don’t pass the first time, though there may be a limit on how many times you can retake the exam or the length of time that must pass before you can try again. Research your program thoroughly and start preparing for your comps as early as you can.

If at any time you’re in doubt about your level of preparation for the comps, be sure to work with your academic coach and faculty to address those concerns before scheduling them.

Want to learn more about earning a doctoral degree? Check out these other blogs:

• What is a professional doctorate?
• What are the steps in getting a PhD?
• 5 ways a doctoral degree may strengthen your career

See how comps are integrated into the PhD in Education , PhD in Business Management and PhD in Behavior Analysis programs from Capella University.

You may also like

Can I transfer credits into a doctoral program?

January 8, 2020

What are the steps in writing a dissertation?

December 11, 2019

The difference between a dissertation and doctoral capstone

November 25, 2019

Start learning today

Get started on your journey now by connecting with an enrollment counselor. See how Capella may be a good fit for you, and start the application process.

Please Exit Private Browsing Mode

Your internet browser is in private browsing mode. Please turn off private browsing mode if you wish to use this site.

Are you sure you want to cancel?

Let your curiosity lead the way:

Apply Today

• Arts & Sciences
• Graduate Studies in A&S

PhD Comprehensive Exam & Reading List

Phd comprehensive exam.

The PhD Comprehensive Exam is normally taken one year after successful completion of the Reading List Exams. Although it requires mastery of an extended Greek and Latin Reading List (see below), the Comprehensive Exam is a different kind of exam from the Reading List Exams required for the MA. It includes both a written and an oral component and is designed to establish students’ knowledge of the field of Classics and their ability to synthesize and analyze various types of evidence. On the exam, the well-prepared student will exhibit not only solid knowledge of names, historical dates and facts, texts in the original, and the history of scholarship, but also the skills needed to analyze, compare, and synthesize sources in order to address important questions about Greek and Roman literature and culture.

The written exam consists of essays on pairs of passages from ancient texts. Some pairs will be accompanied by specific thematic prompts (“in an essay of ca. 1000 words, discuss, contextualize, and compare the representation of X theme in the two texts, drawing on modern scholarship on the works as well as your own close reading”). Others will be accompanied by an open-ended prompt, inviting students to compare and contextualize the material on their own.

The combined MA-PhD Reading Lists in Greek and Latin contain the core material to learn and will be the source of most exam questions. At the same time, a student should understand these texts in their larger contexts, as well as the various relationships between the texts, well enough to be able to discuss additional relevant sources. To this end, some questions may present passages from off the lists. Some questions will require accompanying translations; any questions that ask for translation of off-list sources will be carefully chosen, kept within reasonable limits, and juxtaposed with familiar texts. In each essay, with or without a translation component, the student is expected to make close use of the texts, demonstrating linguistic competence and understanding of style. 

The faculty-authored study guide will be an essential starting point, but students should also generate their own guides (to authors, genres, periods, etc.), terms lists, and annotated bibliographies, as they read, and to consult individual faculty – who all remember the experience of preparing for Comps – for recommendations. They should also make use of their experience in courses, AI positions, and all other forms of exposure to the field (lectures, conferences, etc.) during and before their time in the program. Substantial self-directed individual study is required, especially during summers and independent studies. Group study is also highly recommended. Students will be provided with sample and/or old exam questions and are encouraged to practice with those. At the same time, they should not tailor their studying to the questions or study solely with potential passage pairings in mind. The essays on the written exam will need to be built on a solid foundation of knowledge.

After a student has completed the written exam, an oral exam will be scheduled with the exam committee. The student will answer questions about the essays from the written exam and about other topics not covered in the written exam. Some questions may ask for clarification of ideas expressed in written essays; others will be aimed at assessing the student’s grasp of literary history, history, and scholarship more widely, using the written exam as a jumping-off point. Ideally, the oral exam will serve to fill in areas that, for one reason or another, were left underrepresented or unexplored on the written exam.

There are several possible outcomes after a student has completed the written and oral exams for the first time. The Exam Committee may pass the student unconditionally to the next stage of the program, recommend that part of the exam be retaken, or require that the entire exam be retaken.  See the departmental policy on probation and dismissal for PhD students.

Greek & Latin PhD Reading list

Greek phd reading list (in addition to works on the ma list).

See also Graduate Handbook Appendix I

• Aeschylus: Eumenides , Prometheus Bound
• Antiphon: Tetralogies
• Apollonius Rhodius: Argonautica Book 3
• Aristophanes: Frogs
• Aristotle: Politics Book 2
• Callimachus: Aetia Books I-II fr. Pfeiffer, Hymn to Apollo , Hymn to Artemis
• Demosthenes: Olynthiacs (1-3), Against Androtion (22)
• Dio Chrystostom: Euboean Oration (no. 7)
• Euripides: Bacchae
• Gorgias: Helen
• Herodotos: Histories Books 8-9
• Hesiod: Theogony
• Homer:       Iliad Books 11, 18, 23       Odyssey Books 3-6, 19, 21, 23
• Homeric Hymn to Apollo
• Isokrates: Plataikos (14)
• Lucian: Peregrinus , Somnium
• Lyric poetry (from  Campbell’s edition):      Alkaios 42, 129, 357      Alkman 1      Anakreon 348, 356-57, 359      Arkhilokhos all frs. + appendix no. 1      Bakkhylides 17      Ibykos 282a, 287      Mimnermos all frs.      Sappho 2, 44, 102-Fr. Adesp. 976      Semonides 7      Simonides 543      Solon all frs.      Theognis ll. 87-92, 173-82, 341-50, 503-10, 667-82       Tyrtaios 9      Xenophanes 2
• Lysias:  Against Eratosthenes  (12)
• Menander:  Dyskolos
• Pindar:  Olympia  1,  Nemea  4,  Isthmia  4
• Plato:  Symposium ,  Republic  Book 2
• Plutarch:  Demosthenes  and  Cicero  +  synkrisis
• Sophokles:  Ajax ,  Antigone
• Theokritos:  Idylls  7, 11, 15, 22 
• Thucydides:  History  Book 2

Latin PhD Reading List (in addition to works on MA list)

• Ammianus Marcellinus: Histories Book 21
• Apuleius: Metamorphoses Book 1
• Augustine: Confessions 8.1-24
• Augustus: Res Gestae
• Caesar: Bellum Civile Book 1
• Catullus: all poems not on MA list
• Cicero: In Catilinam 1, De Imperio Pompeii , De Amicitia , all letters in Shackleton Bailey’s edition
• Early Latin Prose: all selections in Courtney's Archaic Latin Prose (1999)
• Ennius fragments: Annales : O. Skutsch, The Annals of Q. Ennius (Oxford, 1985): 1-50, 72-91, 164-90, 268-86, 391-8; Satires: fragments in S.M. Goldberg and G. Manuwald, Fragmentary Republican Latin
• Horace: Odes 2, 3, 4; Satires 1.1, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 2.1; Ars Poetica , Epistles 1.1, 1.19
• Jerome: Vita Pauli , Epistulae 22 Entire
• Juvenal: Satires 1, 4, 10
• Livy: History 2.1-33, Book 21
• Lucan: Pharsalia 1.1-227, Book 2
• Lucilius fragments (In Warmington, Remains of Old Latin ): 1-46, 1061-1092, 1145-1151, 1196-1208 
• Lucretius: De Rerum Natura 5.925-1457
• Martial: Epigrams Book 1, Book 12 preface and 12.2(3), 6, 18
• Ovid: Amores Book 1, Ars Amatoria Book 1, Metamorphoses Book 6, Tristia Book 1
• Passio Perpetuae
• Persius: Prologue, Satire 1
• Petronius: Satyricon 1-5, 85-86, 111-112
• Plautus: Pseudolus
• Pliny the Younger: all letters in Sherwin-White’s Fifty Letters of Pliny (1969)
• Propertius: Elegies Book 1, 3.1
• Prudentius: Peristephanon 2, 12 
• Quintilian: Institutio Oratoria Book 10
• Sallust: Bellum Catilinae
• Seneca: Letters 24, 57, 78, 79, 83, 88, 90, 92, 104, 110, 114, 122; Consolatio ad Marciam , Thyestes , Octavia
• Statius: Silvae Book 2
• Suetonius: De Grammaticis et Rhetoricis , Nero
• Tacitus: Annales Book 4, Agricola
• Tertullian: De Spectaculis
• Tibullus: Elegies Book 1 
• Vergil: remainder of Aeneid , Eclogues , Georgics

• Information for: Future Student Current Student Graduate Student Faculty/Staff Alumni and Donors
• Life at WOU

Graduate Programs

Home » Graduate Programs » Policies and Resources » Sample Comprehensive Exam Questions

Sample Comprehensive Exam Questions

Comprehensive exam questions, session one examples:.

• Professional Ed Core
• Master of Science in Education: Information Technology Core

Session Two Examples:

• Master of Science in Education: Information Technology Content
• ESOL Bilingual
• C & I Early Childhood
• C & I ESOL Bilingual
• C & I Language Arts
• C & I Literacy
• C & I Mathematics
• C & I Science    

WESTERN OREGON UNIVERSITY 345 Monmouth Ave. N. Monmouth OR 97361

503-838-8000 | 1-877-877-1593

Campus maps Canvas Find people Portal WOU email Technical support

A-Z index Accessibility Academic calendar Class schedule Jobs at WOU Partnerships Student services

Accessibility      Public Records      Privacy      Student Consumer Information

WOU prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national or ethnic origin, age, religion, marital status, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in all programs, activities and employment practices as required by Title IX, other applicable laws, and policies. Retaliation is prohibited by WOU.

• Architecture
• Urban Technology
• Real Estate Development Minor
• Urban and Regional Planning
• Dual Degrees
• Certificates
• Digital & Material Technologies
• Urban Design
• Ph.D. in Architecture
• Ph.D. in Urban & Regional Planning
• Request Information
• Pay for your Degree
• University of Michigan
• Student Groups
• Travel Opportunities
• Dimensions Journal
• Agora Journal
• Academic Policies
• Clusters and Labs
• Initiatives
• Faculty Projects
• Faculty Publications
• Faculty News
• Career & Professional Development
• Taubman College Career Network
• Portico Magazine
• Taubman College
• Our Shared Values
• Diversity, Equity, Inclusion
• Gradient Journal
• Spirit Store
• Maps and Directions
• Faculty Directory
• Staff Directory
• Fellowships
• Art and Architecture Building
• Digital Fabrication and Robotics Lab
• Taubman Visualization Lab
• Wood Shop, Metals Lab, Computer Lab
• Liberty Research Annex
• Course List

Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning Degree Information

The doctoral curriculum integrates analytical methods, research design, a rigorous understanding of urbanization dynamics, and an examination of broader social theories, processes and policies.

Students address complex systems that typically encompass an array of spatial, environmental, social, political, technical, and economic factors. The emphasis is on theory, analysis, and action.

Each student is also expected to demonstrate an understanding of the literature, theory, and research in a specialization area within the larger discipline of urban and regional planning.

Required Courses

Four courses are required of all Ph.D. students: two doctoral-level planning theory courses and a two-course research seminar sequence.

• Advanced Urban Theory (URP 700)
• Epistemology and Reasoning for Planning Research (URP 701)
• Research Design (URP 801)
• Ph.D. Research Seminar (URP 802)

Recent students have engaged in subjects as diverse as:

• The political economy of public transit, inner-city revitalization
• Global city urbanization
• Information technology and cyberspace
• The crisis of modernist urbanism
• Suburbanization in developing countries
• Regional planning institutions
• The effects of environmental contamination on patterns of urban and regional development
• The culture of suburban commuting
• The impact of tourism on historical Mediterranean cities
• The application of complex systems analysis to sustainable development

Pre-Candidacy Requirements

Doctoral students specialize in a wide range of possible topics.

• Planning theory
• Analytic methods
• Research design
• Primary area of specialization

Students meet these requirements through coursework and exams over a two-year period. During this time, a student’s cumulative grade point average may not fall below a B without academic discipline or probation.

Analytic Methods Courses

Students are expected to be skilled in statistics, in at least two analytic research techniques, and reasonably knowledgeable about several others. Students qualify in analytic techniques by completing the following:

Satisfactory performance (B or higher) in two cumulative graduate-level statistics courses.

Students entering with previous statistics experience may wish to enter directly into a second semester statistics course. In the past, students have typically selected one of the following sequences:

• Statistics 402 (Introduction to Statistics & Data Analysis), Statistics 403 (Statistics & Data Analysis II)
• Sociology 510 (Statistics); Sociology 610 (Statistical Methods)
• Natural Resources 438 (Natural Resources Biometrics), Natural Resources 538 (Natural Resources Data Analysis)
• Biostatistics 503 (Introductory Biostatistics), Biostatistics 523 (Biostatistical Analysis for Health-Related Fields)
• The sequence in political science

NOTE:  Students wishing to study statistics during the spring or summer terms may want to investigate the Summer Program in Quantitative Methods of Social Research sponsored by the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) and/or the Summer Institute in Survey Research Techniques conducted by the research staff of the Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research. Choice of courses to meet requirements should be discussed with your advisor.

Competence in at least two analytic/research methods satisfied through six credit hours of total coursework.

These are methods used in planning research and should prepare the student for their likely area of dissertation work. The requirement is met through completion of nine credits of course work in two analytic/research methods (in addition to statistics), to be defined by the student in conjunction with his or her advisor. (The two methods may be interrelated.) Depending on the research method and the student’s background, more courses may be needed. Courses in these two areas must be completed with a grade of B or higher in order to fulfill this requirement. Graduate level courses that are audited can count for this requirement, as long as the student completes all the work of the course and the instructor provides a letter indicating the grade the student would have received had he or she been enrolled. All plans for satisfying this requirement are the joint responsibility of the student and his or her advisor.

The methods a student selects should relate to their dissertation area. Below are several analytic/research methods in which students have been examined in recent years. Numerous analytic/research methods are appropriate, and students need not be restricted to choices on the list:

• Anthropological methods
• Case study methods
• Complex systems analysis
• Cost benefit & cost effectiveness analysis
• Decision theory & general risk analysis
• Demographic analysis
• Discrete choice analysis
• Differential equations
• Diffusion models
• Economic & other forecasting models
• Evaluation research
• Graph theory
• Historical analysis
• Institutional analysis
• Interview techniques
• Linear programming and general analysis using linear models
• Network & flow methods
• Population growth models
• Probability, both theoretical & heuristic
• Simulation/gaming & game theory
• Spatial analysis
• Survey research
• Time series

Annual Review of Progress

At the end of each year of study, students are required to complete an Annual Review.  The advisor and the Director of Doctoral Studies may make recommendations for any modifications deemed necessary prior to the start of the following academic year. Note: financial support for the subsequent year, if applicable, depends on timely completion of a satisfactory annual review.

Annual Review Steps

By April 15, the student submits:

• A draft annual review form to their advisor, including a concise narrative of and goals for the upcoming summer and academic year.
• An up-to-date CV

The student and advisor meet; the advisor provides comments to the student and, where necessary, recommends changes in the academic plan in the annual review form.

Once the advisor has approved the plan of study for the coming year, they send the Director of Doctoral Studies a short narrative of student progress.

The URP Ph.D. Advisory Committee reviews the materials, and sends a letter to the student, either confirming their good standing in the program or specifying additional requirements to be in good standing.

Comprehensive Exam

The comprehensive exam tests a student’s knowledge of both their primary and secondary areas of specialization. The exam consists of a take-home, written examination followed by an oral exam. The examination normally occurs at the end of the student’s second year, after completion of all relevant coursework.

The Committee

The student convenes an examination committee of three faculty members, choosing faculty who have expertise in the areas of specialization. At least one member of the committee should be a member of the urban and regional planning faculty. The chair or co-chair of the committee must be a regular member of the planning faculty and cannot be an affiliate faculty member. At least one committee member should represent the student’s secondary area of specialization. (If the student has identified a secondary area of specialization that is traditionally housed in another department on campus, then the student is encouraged to select a faculty member from that outside department as their third committee member.) On occasion, examiners from outside the university have served on students’ examining committees. While this practice is generally not encouraged, written requests for an outside examiner by students are treated on an individual basis by the director of doctoral studies.

The Field Statement

The student meets with the committee chair to plan for the exam and agree on expectations prior to the construction of the exam. In consultation with the chair and committee members, the student identifies appropriate readings and prepares a detailed “field statement” that defines the primary and secondary fields, contains a detailed bibliography of readings, organizes the readings into subfields, and outlines a set of major questions for the fields. The field statement is normally designed principally with the chair and is sometimes analogous to a detailed syllabus that one would prepare for a year-long graduate-level course on the selected specializations. The student often writes possible exam questions that he/she feels are appropriate for the area the exam will cover. The questions are not the questions the committee asks the student; their major function is to help the committee and the student to agree on the scope of the exam.

Scheduling the Exam

The exam must be completed by the end of May, at the end of a student’s second year in the program, and is scheduled on the student’s initiative. Prior to the exam, the student should have completed all coursework (including all incompletes). A student may delay the exam for exceptional circumstances with approval of the faculty adviser and the Director of Doctoral Studies. Students must notify the Director of Doctoral Studies of their intent to take the exam, with a date and time, location, and names of committee members at least one month prior to the exam.

The written part of the exam is in the form of a take-home essay. The committee chair typically solicits exam questions from the committee, selects questions to be used, and composes the final examination. The allotted time period to write the exam is determined by the chair, and typically is over three days. The student must submit the exam in the form as directed by the chair (usually as a Word document submitted by email), plus one copy to the program administrator to be placed in the student’s records. The written exam is followed by a two-hour oral exam, generally scheduled to take place within about one week after the written exam. The exam is evaluated on a “Pass/Fail” or “Conditional Pass” basis. If the student does not achieve a passing evaluation, he/she may take the exam one additional time to achieve a “Pass” or “Conditional Pass” status. A “Conditional Pass” indicates that additional requirements must be met, but the exam need not be retaken. Upon completion of the oral portion of the exam, please refer to the Applying for Candidacy section for next steps.

Applying for Candidacy

A student advances to candidacy when all program requirements except the dissertation proposal and dissertation have been satisfied. The normal and expected time to achieve candidacy is two years from the date of first enrollment in the doctoral program. In addition to urban and regional planning program requirements, a student must also meet  Rackham Candidacy Requirements . Any incomplete courses that are critical to satisfying requirements must be completed before applying for candidacy.

Once all required coursework and the comprehensive exam are successfully completed, a student applies for Candidacy by sending a request by email to the URP Director of Doctoral Studies, along with a signed Comprehensive Exam Certification Form.

The Director of Doctoral Studies will recommend a doctoral student for candidacy by submitting a recommendation to the Rackham Graduate School. When candidacy is approved, a student is ready to begin work on the dissertation and is eligible for URP 995 candidacy registration.

Sample Schedule

Sample First Year

Sample Second Year

Spring – Summer
(scheduled by student; typically taken by the end of May)
(by the start of the third year of study) Sample Years Three – Four Dissertation Proposal Presentation (reviewed and approved by the student’s dissertation committee and the URP Doctoral Committee) Dissertation research and writing Informal “Full Draft Review” (at least 6-8 weeks before the formal defense) Dissertation Defense Submittal of the final version of the dissertation Dissertation Forming dissertation committee. After completing the comprehensive exam and advancing to candidacy, the student must form a dissertation committee, in accordance with the Rackham Graduate School’s  “Guidelines for Dissertation Committee Service.” The Dissertation Committee should be formed prior to defending the dissertation proposal, which should be formed several months before the student expects to defend their proposal URP. When prepared to do so, the student should send the Director of Doctoral Studies and Lisa Hauser the completed “Dissertation Committee Worksheet for Students to submit to Program”, which can be obtained from the link above. The Director of Doctoral Studies and Lisa Hauser will then submit the formal request to the Rackham Graduate School. Dissertation Proposal Dissertation proposals can be defended anytime after taking the Comprehensive Exam, but no later than the end of the fifth semester (i.e. December). It is the student’s responsibility to schedule the proposal defense attended by the dissertation committee. The student must notify Lisa Hauser by email of the proposal defense date at least three weeks prior to the meeting, including the location of the defense meeting, a title, and an abstract. After gaining approval from the dissertation committee, the dissertation chair must send an email to the Director of Doctoral Studies that includes (a) the date of the proposal defense, (b) a list of all committee members present at the defense, (c) a title of the proposal, (d) an abstract of the proposal (250 – 350 words), and (e) a copy of the final dissertation proposal to be filed with URP records. Receipt of the email from the dissertation chair will constitute formal approval of the proposal by the committee and readiness to proceed with dissertation work. Dissertation Process The dissertation is prepared in accordance with the  Rackham Graduate School’s Doctoral Dissertation Requirements , and as outlined in the URP Ph.D. Program Overview Schedule and Policies document. The student is responsible for several steps: (a) scheduling and reserving rooms (and/or a Zoom link if virtual or hybrid) for the URP pre-defense hearing (which ordinarily should occur at least six weeks and no less than three weeks prior to the dissertation defense) and the defense meeting, both in a timely manner; (b) notifying Lisa Hauser by email of the defense date at least three weeks prior to the meeting, including the location of the defense meeting, (and Zoom link, if relevant), a title, and an abstract; (c) providing a complete dissertation draft, including an abstract and bibliography, to committee members at least two weeks (longer is advised) before the defense date; and (d) registering for an eight-hour candidacy enrollment (995 Dissertation Research) for the term in which the defense is held. A dissertation defense typically consists of two parts: the first is a formal, public presentation of the dissertation research, followed by questions and answers from both the dissertation committee and the audience. Defenses are advertised and open to the public, and other students and faculty are frequently in attendance. The second part is a closed session for the candidate and the dissertation committee. During the defense, the student may be asked to reconsider certain aspects of the work and to make changes or corrections in the dissertation. At the end of the session, the chair will discuss the oral defense with other members of the committee and inform the student of the outcome. The duration of a defense can vary, but the candidate should reserve the room for a three-hour period. Formal approval of the dissertation (e.g., formatting of the final document) and applying for graduation are governed by the Rackham Graduate School. 396 IMAGES Phd Comprehensive Examination Process () Complex Analysis PhD Comprehensive Exam Comprehensive Exam Example Download Sample How To Prepare For PhD Comprehensive Exams Preparing for the Ph.D. comprehensive exam VIDEO PhD EPA, Transactions for the Comprehensive Exam🤞😱 I SoTrue_ph phd course work exam PhD Entrance Exam Update #shorts #ugcnet #phd #entranceexam #university #notification #ytshorts PhD Tips for PhD Clinical Research and enterance exam preparation PhD exam EASIEST question. Can YOU solve it??? #maths #phd #education COMMENTS Doctoral Comprehensive Exam Sample Essays Part One of the HALE Doctoral Comprehensive Exam is a written exam designed as an opportunity for students to demonstrate the integration of knowledge of topics, issues, and resources in postsecondary education reflecting successful completion of the HALE Core Curriculum. For more information on the HALE Comprehensive Exam, please visit the HALE Program Handbook, under the Program Student Guide: Ph.D. Comprehensive Examination The comprehensive examination is a critical part of the GPIS PhD program. You should not view it simply as a bureaucratic hurdle to pass over on your way to the dissertation. Instead, before embarking on narrowly focused dissertation work, the comprehensive examination establishes that you have the broad familiarity and expertise with the field ... PDF Comprehensive Exam Practice Test--April 22-2011 oral exam. In this "practice test," we provide sample questions for the written portion of the exam. For further information regarding the entire comprehensive exam process, please refer to the document "Research and Evaluation Methods Program Comprehensive Exam," PDF Written Comprehensive Examination Guidelines and Grading Rubric for PhD The written comprehensive examination for PhD students is designed to support the academic goals of the Sue & Bill Gross school of Nursing: to establish a sustainable PhD program infrastructure that fosters intellectual growth and development and promote excellence in student scholarship. PDF PHD COMPREHENSIVE EXAM: PART ONE SECTION A (Assigned code) !1 PHD COMPREHENSIVE EXAM: PART ONE SECTION A (Assigned code) !2 Since the 1990s many leaders of higher education have embraced what is often called the "learning (or learner-centered) paradigm," the focus to be given to the experience, cognitive abilities, curricular interests, and instructional preferences of students rather than to the authority A Guide to Masters and Doctoral Comprehensive Exams Master's and doctoral exams often are written exams, sometimes oral, and sometimes both written and oral. Exams are usually administered in one or more long test periods. For example, in one program written doctoral comprehensive exams are given in two blocks that are each eight hours long on consecutive days. PDF HALE Comprehensive Exam: Part One PhDSS17 10 omprehensive Exam: Part OnePhDSS17 - 10 There has been considerable attention across postsecondary education in recent decades. o the improvement of teaching and learning. Write an essay that (1) describes two key reforms for the improvement of teaching in U.S. higher education and (2) the specific ways such reforms suggest teaching. Ph.D. Comprehensive Exams Unlike Comprehensive Exams 1 and 2, Comprehensive Exam 3's written portion is not in response to provided questions. Comprehensive Exam 3 explicitly prepares The Student to write a dissertation. It consists of a 20-25-page dissertation proposal, including detailed prospectus, primary texts, and critical sources, followed by an oral defense of ... PDF HALE PhD Comprehensive Exam: Part One PhDSS17 14 D Comprehensive Exam: Part OnePhDSS17 - 143. In recent years, higher education has bee. challenged to help students make m. re effectiveconnections with the world of work. Some. the needs of society, as well as individuals andemployer. , and to reforming the undergra. Best Practices for the Comprehensive Examination Download PDF Penn State's Graduate School requires that each Ph.D. student "pass a comprehensive examination to become a Ph.D. candidate" (GCAC-606). The comprehensive examination is administered by the Philosophy Department. The purpose of the comprehensive exam is to help students develop breadth and depth in areas relevant to their chosen areas of research. The historical […] Ph.D. Comprehensive Exam Overview. The comprehensive exam gives you an opportunity to demonstrate mastery over relevant theory, methods, and empirical material in a subfield or set of related subfields, with an eye toward conducting related research. Exams can be taken in traditional or 'synthetic' areas. Exams that bridge areas may be useful for students whose ... PDF University of New Hampshire Department of Education Model Exams and Sample Exam Questions: PhD Qualifying Examinations . 1 This Guide In this guide, there are a number of models of different qualifying exams and samples of some more questions from the different areas of specialization. This is meant as a reference for some of the different ways the ... works cited as part of the comprehensive exam. Comprehensive Exam: Grad School's Ultimate Test A comprehensive exam is a type of cumulative evaluation used by many graduate programs in the US and Canada. It is a common requirement for how to get a PhD or graduate from some master's programs, and even some undergraduate honors programs. However, a comprehensive exam encompasses many different types of final tests and even types of thesis defense, and the requirements and structure of a ... Preparing for your comprehensive exams But regardless of the exam format, she notes, students who prepare rarely fail. Here's some advice from Albarracin, Duff and others to maximize your preparation time and tackle your comprehensive exam: Read strategically. While some departments disseminate a suggested reading list to graduate students, many require students to create their own. Preparing for the Ph.D. comprehensive exam One question Ph.D. students ask is how best to prepare for the comprehensive exam. In this video, I look at the objective of the comprehensive exam and how y... PDF Nursing PhD Comprehensive Exam Questions Nursing PhD Comprehensive Exam Questions . Instructions: The Ph.D. Program Director or delegate will approve the comprehensive exam questions. If the questions are not approved, then the Ph.D Program Director will work with the committee to refine the questions. Once the questions are approve d then the timeline for comprehensive exam will begin. Preparing for the Comprehensive Examination and the Dissertation The comprehensive examination and the dissertation are the final projects in your doctoral journey. These projects allow learners to demonstrate their skills as independent scholars and researchers. In a real sense, the entire range of academic preparation up to this point has been preparation for this. Between the conclusion of Track 3 of the ... What is a comprehensive exam? The comprehensive exam is designed to challenge students to step back from the specific deliverables expected in courses and reflect critically on their discipline through synthesis and integration of their knowledge, skills and experiences across significant topics in their academic discipline. Passing a comprehensive exam, which may be in ... PDF Written Comprehensive Examination Guidelines and Grading Rubric for PhD The written comprehensive examination for PhD students is designed to support the academic goals of the Sue & Bill Gross school of Nursing: to establish a sustainable PhD program infrastructure that fosters intellectual growth and development and promote excellence in student scholarship. PDF HALE Comprehensive Exam: Part One Section A (Assigned code) E Comprehensive Exam: Part One Section A(Assigned code)A. The study of organization and leadership in higher education m. kes initiating and responding to change an essential theme. Write an essay in which you offer an account of how one sector of postsecondary education (e.g., research universities, comprehensive universities, community ... PhD Comprehensive Exam & Reading List The PhD Comprehensive Exam is normally taken one year after successful completion of the Reading List Exams. Although it requires mastery of an extended Greek and Latin Reading List (see below), the Comprehensive Exam is a different kind of exam from the Reading List Exams required for the MA. It includes both a written and an oral component ... PDF PhD Comprehensive Examination The Comprehensive Examination primarily serves as a means to ensure that students have the necessary foundational knowledge to do a dissertation. Specifically, the examination seeks to assess whether students have general knowledge about the field of Information Studies, about research methodologies, and about their specific research area. Sample Comprehensive Exam Questions Session Two Examples: WOU prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national or ethnic origin, age, religion, marital status, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in all programs, activities and employment practices as required by Title IX, other applicable laws, and policies. Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning Degree Information Comprehensive Exam. The comprehensive exam tests a student's knowledge of both their primary and secondary areas of specialization. The exam consists of a take-home, written examination followed by an oral exam. The examination normally occurs before the start of the third year in the Ph.D. program, after completion of all relevant coursework. assignment essay homework paper phd report resume review speech thesis