THE WRITTEN COMPREHENSIVE EXAM FOR THE MASTER'S DEGREE IN ENGLISH
NEW COMPREHENSIVE EXAM (takes effect Spring 2012)
***Students in the comprehensive exam track of the M.A. or M.S. program will continue
to take the old exam through Fall 2011, but students planning to take the exam in
Spring 2012 or later will be taking the new model of the exam. Both exams are described
here, the new model first, followed by the old model.***
M.A. and M.S. students who select the comprehensive exam option complete 36 semester
hours of coursework and take the written comprehensive exam.
ELIGIBILITY: Applicants for the examination must be matriculated students who have
completed or are currently enrolled in courses that will enable them to complete thirty
credits with a 3.0 average. M.A. candidates must have completed the language requirement.
REGISTERING FOR THE EXAM: Students register for the exam by completing a Comprehensive
Exam Registration form in the first three weeks of the semester before the semester
in which they plan to take the exam (ie. if you plan to take the exam in May, you
register for it the previous September; if you plan to take it in December, you register
for it in January or February).
If a student registers for but does not take the exam in a given semester, s/he may
register ONCE more, and only once more. Students must notify the Graduate Coordinator
in advance of the scheduled exam from which they plan to withdraw in order to be eligible
to reregister.
STRUCTURE OF THE EXAMINATION: The examination is based on a reading list that includes
ten primary texts; one is always theoretical and one is always a collection of lyric
poems. Each primary text on the list is accompanied by one required and three recommended
secondary texts (generally essays or book chapters, not books).
On-Campus Component
For each part of this three-hour component of the examination, two questions will
be given. The student selects one question from each part to answer. The English
Department Comprehensive Exam Committee, in consultation with the English graduate
faculty, is responsible for making up questions for the examination.
Part 1: an applied theory question (answer one of two questions-one hour)
Part 2: a close reading of a poem (answer one of two questions-one hour)
Part 3: a comparative question, addressing three texts from the list. The focus
of this question might be formal, historical, thematic, ideological, or a combination
of the above (answer one of two questions-one hour). None of the three texts discussed
in this question may be the one students selected for their literature review (see
below), to ensure discussion of more texts on the list.
Take-Home Component-Literature Review
Each student taking the exam in a given semester selects one of the primary texts
on the list and reads both the required and the supplementary secondary sources, using
these sources as a starting point to prepare an overview of the critical conversations
about that primary text. The secondary sources that accompany each primary text serve
as a starting point for the literature review, but students are responsible for reading
an additional six sources (for a total of ten sources) as they prepare this exam question.
It is due four weeks before the day of the exam (see below for deadlines).
EVALUATION OF THE EXAMINATION: Exams are read by the English Department Comprehensive
Exam Committee. Exams may be awarded grades of distinction, high pass, low pass, or
failing.
In evaluating examinations, the committee will be guided by the following
considerations: the essays must respond to the specific demands of the exam questions
and must reflect sound knowledge of the works and ideas being examined. The entire
exam should demonstrate the mastery of standard essay-writing practices. The Committee
transmits two copies of the Graduate Program Comprehensive Report to the Dean of the
Graduate School, who then sends one to the student and one to the Records Office.
If a student fails the exam once, s/he may ask the English Department Comprehensive
Exam committee for the opportunity to retake the exam by writing a letter of petition.
Barring extraordinary circumstances (for instance, plagiarism), such petitions will
be granted. Students who fail the exam a second time will be dismissed from the program.
IMPORTANT DATES FOR THE EXAMINATION:
Spring 2012
•Register to take the exam by Monday September 19, 2011
•Turn in two hard copies of the Literature Review by Friday March 30, 2012
•Take Exam on Saturday April 28, 2012
Fall 2012
•Register to take the exam by Wednesday February 8, 2012
•Turn in two hard copies of the Literature Review by Friday November 2, 2012
•Take Exam on Saturday December 1, 2012
OLD MODEL (in effect through Fall 2011)
M.A. and M.S. students who select the comprehensive exam option complete 36 semester
hours of coursework and take the written comprehensive exam.
ELIGIBILITY: Applicants for the examination must be matriculated students who have
completed or are currently enrolled in courses which will complete thirty credits
with a 3.0 average. M.A. candidates must have completed the language requirement. If
the applicant's record is not filed in the English office, the applicant should request
that the registrar's office send a transcript to the chairperson.
APPLICATION FOR COMPREHENSIVE EXAMINATION: After consulting with the member of the
English Graduate Faculty he/she wishes to have as his/her comprehensive advisor, the
student should make a formal request for the advisor by filing with the chairperson
of the department an advisor assignment form, available in the English office. The
student provides the advisor with a list of courses he/she has taken in his/her area
of concentration as well as a list of professors he/she has worked with. Working with
those lists, the advisor chooses the member of the examining committee responsible
for making up Part II of the comprehensive while the chairperson selects the member
responsible for Part III. The chairperson adds the names of the second and third examiners
to the advisor assignment form, retaining the original and sending copies to the applicant,
comprehensive advisor, second and third examiners, course advisor, graduate coordinator
and the English office file. If a comprehensive advisor or a second or third examiner
is unable to continue to serve, the chairperson appoints a replacement.
SUBJECT FOR SPECIFIC STUDY: In consultation with the advisor, the student selects
a subject for specific study and research on which he/she will be examined in one
section of the examination. He/she chooses a subject from the literary period or periods
in which he/she has developed an area of concentration in his/her graduate work either
through the planned program or through electives. The advisor and student make up
a reading list which the student uses in the examination--a reading list containing
no more than 15 primary titles and five secondary titles. When his/her specific study
and research have been completed, the student prepares a summary statement and an
annotated bibliography of the project completed. Three copies of the statement and
bibliography--one for each member of the examining committee--are submitted to the
advisor a month before the date of the examination.
THE WRITTEN COMPREHENSIVE EXAMINATION: The examination is designed as a three-hour
examination although the student may take somewhat longer if he/she so desires. It
will be divided into three parts:
1. one hour is devoted to the subject chosen for specific study (see above);
2. one hour is devoted to general questions on the literary period from which the
subject for specific study was chosen. The chronological boundaries of the literary
period are determined in consultation with the member of the examining committee responsible
for preparing questions for this part of the examination. The student is expected
to be familiar with representative works by the major authors of the literary period.
There may be a relationship between the questions in Part I and Part II: i.e., the
subject in Part I may be applied in another context in Part II;
3. one hour is devoted to general questions relating to the work done in the student's area
of concentration, the student choosing three specific courses from the area of concentration
he/she wishes to be examined upon. Again, the student is responsible for representative
works by the major authors in three courses. The questions in Part III are not related
to questions in Part I and Part II; i.e., questions will exclude any reference to
the subject in Part I or its implications in Part II.
The advisor, after consulting with the student, will set the time and place for the
examination. A copy of a typical examination is kept on file in the office of the
English Department for the student to consult.
The student is asked to make an appointment with the other members of the examining
committee to establish general guidelines for the student to follow in preparing for
Part II and Part III of the comprehensive examination. The student may also be asked
to become familiar with additional bibliographical sources not necessarily those which
appeared in the annotated bibiliography submitted for Part I.
FORMAT OF THE EXAMINATION: For each part of the three-hour examination, three questions
will be given. The student selects one question from each part. The advisor is responsible
for making up questions for the first part of the examination; the other members of
the examining committee make up the remaining questions.
EVALUATION OF THE EXAMINATION: A grade of distinction is awarded when all the examiners
agree that the scholarship and writing on the examination reflect unusual merit. A
grade of passing will be awarded when all the examiners agree that the three parts
are of at least low passing quality. At the discretion of the committee, an applicant
may be permitted to retake one failed section of the examination (with new questions)
within a month if the other two sections of the examination are satisfactory. A final
grade of failing is given when the examiners agree that the three parts are not of
at least low passing quality. After failing, an applicant must wait one semester before
reapplying to take the comprehensive.
In evaluating the examination, the committee will be guided by the following considerations:
the essays must respond to the specific demands of the exam questions and must reflect
sound knowledge of the works and ideas being examined. The entire exam should demonstrate
the mastery of standard essay-writing practices. The advisor transmits two copies
of the Graduate Program Comprehensive Report to the Dean of the Graduate School who
then sends one to the student and one to the Records Office.
DEADLINE DATES FOR THE EXAMINATION: (scheduled approximately two and a half months
following the initial conference):
January Graduation--Initial conference with advisor: September 15; Submission of statement and Bibliography:
October 30; Last date for examination: November 30
May Graduation--Initial conference with advisor: January 30; Submission of statement and Bibliography: March 15; Last date for examination: April 15.