Coming Attractions: Comps

Hello Juniors,

I’m writing to you because I remember that last year, Comps was a big, terrifying event looming in April, and what was most scary about it was how very vague it all was. I had no idea what to expect, mainly in terms of the weeks leading up to comps and the three days of the tests themselves. I don’t know if it would have made me less nervous to be able to picture vividly what those days would be like, but it’s worth a shot. So, I’m going to give you as concise a rundown as I can manage.
A disclaimer: please, please, please do NOT start stressing out about Comps now. It is way too early in the year, and we don’t need any ulcers come springtime. This description is meant to quell fears, not encourage them.

OK. You probably know the basics already: upon returning from winter break (or thereabouts), your class will most likely split into several study groups. The groups will decide how they want to go about reviewing the material, and will probably meet once or twice a week throughout February, March, and April. As Comps draws closer, you’ll start looking at previous years’ test questions, maybe doing a dry run a few days beforehand, etc.
The actual days of Comps go something like this:
9AM on the first day, you go to the COL office and each pick up an envelope from Eugenia. Then the seniors will whisk you away to have a lovely home-cooked breakfast. You will schmooze, have some nice food and perhaps some coffee, and then head over to begin work. (You are given thesis carrels, as the seniors will already be done with their theses – yikes. You, of course, can choose not to work in your thesis carrel, but the option is available to you.)
-The questions themselves: depending on your examiners (they are different every year) you will probably have somewhere between 2 and 5 questions. Normally (though your examiners may structure things differently) you will choose 2 of the essay questions and begin figuring out how you want to write your essays. You have 3 hours of actual writing time (that is, 1.5 hours per essay) and the rest of the time should be used for preparing (creating an outline, rereading parts of works that you might want to use, etc) as well as other important activities including eating, taking a break to shower or take a walk or a nap, and sleeping. Once you have finished your 3 hours of writing, you are done for the day! Go home, get some rest, watch a movie, etc.
-This process repeats 2 more times. So, if you receive your first set of questions on Tuesday morning, you will hand those in at 9AM Wednesday morning, get the next set, answer those, turn them in Thursday morning, receive the last set, answer those, and hand them in Friday morning.
-The oral component: once all your essays have been handed in (and you have recovered from the shock/revelry), you will have the oral part of the exam. This happens during reading/finals week, and basically means meeting with the two examiners who wrote the questions. At this point, they have read your essays, and want to talk to you about them. Maybe there was a part they didn’t understand and want you to elaborate on; maybe they loved a section and wanted to hear more about what you thought. It is basically a chance for you to re-explain any parts of your writing that could have used a little more work had you been given more than 1.5 hours to write.

OK. I have talked way too much, as usual. Thanks for slogging through all that. I hope this helps clear up some of what might be worrying you all. I just have 2 more quick things to say, and then I’m going to shut up:
1) I was thinking it might be useful to have an in-person information session with a handful of the seniors and all of you guys to talk about comps, answer questions, give tips, etc. This would probably happen at the very beginning of next semester, if there is general interest.
2) If you have any questions now – if something in this explanation was unclear, or if I forgot to touch on some aspect of Comps that you’re really concerned about, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me. You’re welcome to email me (tmatz@wes) and we can even set up a time to talk in person if you’d like. I’m also sure that any and all of the other seniors would be more than willing to talk to you guys. I know these exams can seem a little terrifying, but they can also be really rewarding and often help to solidify your COL experience. And in any case, you’ll feel really, really good once they’re over and done with….

Be well,

Tamar