I'm a graduate political science student who has fulfilled most of the requirements to get a master's, but I still have to take the comp. exam. I took it in the fall and failed it, but departmental policy is that you have two tries before you *must* write a thesis in order to get your degree. The exam itself is a take-home exam given on a Thurs morning and must be turned in on a Monday afternoon (this spring it's April 3-7th).
I think the reason for my failure was a combination of not enough writing preparation (I can read and reasonably comprehend theory, but writing is an arduous process), and failing to answer a question or two completely (the last question I did was a rush job and I know I could have written more if i had another day or two, plus I only wrote around 13 pages, when it's suggested that although quality > quantity, most passing exams are around 20-25 pages, close to the 25 page limit).
Having failed it, I decided to take it again, and was preparing at a reasonable pace I think, until work intervened. For reasons I won't go into, two assistant managers at work and one CSR left/no longer work, which means the store is shorthanded and I have to spend more days opening the store.
Adding to that is my being assigned to a health class on the day I first get the exam in early April and going to work the next day to be evaluated for a few hours. Tried to get out of it but apparently the owner wasn't aware of my 'unavailability' (the person or two above my boss, the general manager), and the manager *has* to evaluate me before April 7th or he's in trouble.
My dilemma is this: Should I take the exam and risk failing since I will neither have enough writing preparation nor be able to devote my full attention for the first two days, or push it back and take in November while taking the risk that I will still have distractions (might have a new job and an unforgiving boss, fear of inadequate preparation, etc)?
Cliffs:
- Take exam in April or wait until November?
- April: get it over with despite work first two days of exam and lack of writing prep
- Nov: more time to study but may still not be prepared nor distraction-free
I think the reason for my failure was a combination of not enough writing preparation (I can read and reasonably comprehend theory, but writing is an arduous process), and failing to answer a question or two completely (the last question I did was a rush job and I know I could have written more if i had another day or two, plus I only wrote around 13 pages, when it's suggested that although quality > quantity, most passing exams are around 20-25 pages, close to the 25 page limit).
Having failed it, I decided to take it again, and was preparing at a reasonable pace I think, until work intervened. For reasons I won't go into, two assistant managers at work and one CSR left/no longer work, which means the store is shorthanded and I have to spend more days opening the store.
Adding to that is my being assigned to a health class on the day I first get the exam in early April and going to work the next day to be evaluated for a few hours. Tried to get out of it but apparently the owner wasn't aware of my 'unavailability' (the person or two above my boss, the general manager), and the manager *has* to evaluate me before April 7th or he's in trouble.
My dilemma is this: Should I take the exam and risk failing since I will neither have enough writing preparation nor be able to devote my full attention for the first two days, or push it back and take in November while taking the risk that I will still have distractions (might have a new job and an unforgiving boss, fear of inadequate preparation, etc)?
Cliffs:
- Take exam in April or wait until November?
- April: get it over with despite work first two days of exam and lack of writing prep
- Nov: more time to study but may still not be prepared nor distraction-free
Facebook
Twitter