Prepping for comprehensive exam? Here are some tips.
One of the pleasures of doctoral studies is that exams and quizzes are not usually part of the assessment during coursework. Instead, you take classes, write research papers, build a knowledge base around your interests, and then take a comprehensive exam after completing all required coursework.
Sounds like pushing off the day of reckoning to a later time, right? That’s exactly how I felt about this exam!
The comprehensive exam was one of the most exhausting endeavors that I have completed in life, both mentally and physically.
Covid-19 joins the chat.
Before Covid-19, preparing for the exam was daunting; now imagine studying and writing the exams at the height of the pandemic. It was brutal. I have never cried for an exam until the comprehensive exam; and I don’t recall ever experiencing exhaustion and imposter syndrome the way that I did with this exam.
It was stressful. Yet, like many have, I got through it, and I am sure you can also.
Because I recently took my comprehensive exam, the experience is still fresh, and I have compiled a list of tips to help you effectively prepare and study for the comprehensive exam.
This list is divided into three sections: preparing and getting ready for the comprehensive exam, studying for the exam, and writing the exam.
Preparing for the comprehensive exam
Work with your chair/advisor
At this point, you already have a chair that you are working with, and hopefully you have a good relationship. This is important because this process will be smoother with your chair in your corner. Your chair should be your biggest cheerleader and critic. Understand that your chair wants the best for you on this journey. It is important to have regular meetings, share ideas, challenges, and map out the process together, if possible.
Your chair should be one with whom you can be honest about your challenges and breakthroughs. It was difficult for me to be completely open about my struggles with my chair, but I knew that I could, if I wanted to; and I was certain that my chair was in my corner every step of the way. It really made a lot of difference.
Track your readings
Since the comprehensive exam is aimed at testing your expertise in the niche area that your doctoral work is focused, it is likely that your coursework has been designed around this area of focus. If so, be sure to keep detailed notes about your readings. Essentially, keep track of the fundamental works in that area. This way, while you complete your coursework, you are already building your reading lists. This will be helpful and save you time when you are about to compile reading lists for your committee members.
In my case, the focus of my comprehensive exam shifted slightly just before I started preparing for my exams. If you were like me with a change in focus, a systematic scan of literature on what your exams will cover will help.
Meet and work with your committee members
Hopefully, you have carefully chosen committee members who will advance your work. Your committee members are interested in your success and are invested in providing the support that you need in their niche area. Work with them.
Go over the expectations of the exam with your committee members. They are experts in the topic area that they will oversee in your work, so ask them what you should be focusing on in your study of the scholarship in that domain. This gives you a sense of how to approach studying and helps you think through ideas and concepts as you study.
Having an idea of your committee members’ expectations helps you practice questions as you prepare to write your exams.
Have a plan and stick to it. As much as possible.
Completing doctoral work should be enough to confer on anyone the tag of a project manager, right? Like most things you have done on this journey, the comprehensive exam is another project. Treat it as such. Have a SMART schedule with specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based goals.
Decide how much time is appropriate for compiling your reading lists, getting the lists approved by your committee members, and studying each list. Plan some extra time for practice and reviewing what you’ve read so far.
Caveat: Having a plan is good, but be kind to yourself. Be flexible as necessary.
Now, your reading lists are compiled and approved by your committee, it is time to study for the exam.
Studying for the exam
Take a deep breath. You will feel scared and your imposter syndrome will come out to play, but know this: you CAN do this! You are the boss of this exam and you will do great.
Read and write every day
One of the challenges I had at the height of Covid-19 in the Spring was that I suffered anxiety and was depressed with no zeal to study or do anything for that matter. So, I lost about three weeks when I did little or no reading. It was hard getting out of that space to read, but I figured reading everyday was crucial to meeting my timeline. So, I decided on a read-at-least-two-articles-a-day plan. Regardless what was happening in the world or how I felt, I read at least that much every day before I call it a day. Sometimes, this meant I sleep at 2am.
***A quick tip: I figured that reading chronologically in the order of publication dates helped in making connections between ideas and mapping how the field has evolved, or not. This will likely reduce the time spent on later readings except if there’s a distinct change in the literature.
Taking notes is invaluable when studying for exams. Decide what writing pattern will work for you and stick by it. This process is all about you and you should do things that best serve you. For instance, I enjoy taking notes with a pen and paper and I designed a note taking by hand process that was convenient for me and efficient at the same time. Yet, because I had to practice writing on a computer for four hours uninterrupted, I did some writing on the computer. As I wrote down my learning from each text, I critiqued, connected and synthesized relevant texts. Also, I created mock questions as I read. These mock questions proved useful later.
Taking notes while studying helps you connect concepts and ideas from your reading. It helps you assimilate the information you are gathering from your reading while articulating your understanding of the materials. Also, taking notes keeps you focused and organized. In addition, taking detailed notes gives you synthesized materials that you can go back to and review.
Write outlines and practice questions
Remember the mock questions you developed while reading your texts? Practice answering them. Develop outlines for each question and practice how to answer them. Time yourself and simulate an exam environment. This will give you an insight on what you know well enough and where you need more work.
The goal here is not to memorize your answers but to familiarize yourself with key concepts.
Your questions will ideally be on conceptualization, operationalization, and application of the concepts to your work. Your examiners want to know that you understand key definitions and concepts, and how they’ve been operationalized in literature. In addition, they want to know that you can situate your work in this field and apply what you’ve learned to your research. Build outlines and practice questions around these main areas.
Writing the exam
Figure out the logistics for the exam. Where will you write? How long do you have to write? What items can you bring with you? My school allowed exam takers to bring a one-page word document, pens, water, and snacks to each exam.
My one-page document was an outline of my answers to the mock questions I developed from my reading and my committee member’s expectation. The one-page document included key definitions, key names, and synthesis from empirical studies about a topic.
Get to your exam venue with enough time to spare before the start of the exam. Give yourself extra time to settle in and be ready for the exam. This will relieve anxiety and help you stay calm.
Whatever you do, try to answer all questions to the best of your ability and give yourself extra time to review your responses when you are done writing. You can divide the time allocated for the exam by the number of questions that you have to write. I had four hours to write and I decided to write for three hours with one hour to review my work. This advice is courtesy of my chair.
Take bathroom breaks. Bring your self-care package. Stretch. If allowed, listen to music to calm your nerves while writing. The point here is to stay comfortable.
When you are done with each topic area, reward yourself. For personal documentation, I took snapchat selfies and short videos, ate ice cream, and took long naps after each exam session.
Extra tip: Build a network
Don’t walk this journey alone. It is tedious when completed alone. Find a community that encourages and supports you through the journey. Ask a friend or partner to act as your accountability and “rant” partner. Let them ask you questions on what you read and to encourage you to meet your daily goals.
Talk to colleagues and hear their experiences on the exam. A caution here though: you have to guard your mental health; you will have to discern and sift the experiences you dwell on. This process is hard but not unsurmountable; be careful that you do not fill your mind with only stories of doom.
It is easy to panic when you dwell on all the things that you could do wrong or that you do not know. But remember that you have studied hard, taken copious notes, and have come this far. Dwell on the bright side; I am rooting for you!
