It has been a while since I have written a blog post, but the last couple of weeks have been pretty busy for me! 🙂 Over the course of the last two weeks, I have been working and preparing for my comprehensive exams for my doctoral program.
Comp exams are indeed a right of passage for Ph.D. students – we are able to present to our committee the knowledge and skills that we obtained during our graduate studies and discuss our research interests in our focus area (for me, it is in crisis communications and reputation management with social media).
Several friends and fellow colleagues have asked me what were some of the things that helped me in preparing and doing my comprehensive exams. Here are some of my suggestions:
Start EARLY. Not a week, not even a month before – the sooner you can begin thinking about your exams, the better. I began studying for my comprehensive exams as soon as I finished my conference presentations last summer. I began by formatting outlines and reviewing the literature. So, I started the studying process in June and just finished taking my exams in February – so that is eight months of preparation.
Do a little bit each day. I am not someone that leaves things to the last minute and I felt that if I did a little bit each day, it would help me in the long run. Thinking about research, theories, and where my research interests fall under these two categories helped me conceptualize and think strategically about how I would approach my exams.
Practice, practice, and practice some more. My comprehensive exams were each four hours long, and I wanted to make sure that I addressed all of the main points in my paper during that time period. So, I did a couple of practice runs for my questions to see how I did – I took the approach that I used when I was competing in track – I practiced by using the same conditions that I would be exposed to in my comps (no Internet access and just one page of references). This gave me an idea of how my comps would go.
Take care of yourself. It is good to keep yourself mentally and physically refreshed during comps. Make sure to get some physical activity, plenty of sleep, and eat well during this time. You want to be in the best physical and mental state for these exams as possible since they will be taking a lot of your energy away.
I hope that these suggestions help. Overall, I thought that the comp exam process was a very rewarding learning experience. I was able to spend the time to think about research and some of the issues that PR scholars have to deal with in 2010, and how my research interests would fit in. It was a lot of hard work and preparation that went into studying – but it was worth it at the end.
To my fellow friends in the doctoral program – I wish you all the very best in your comps and good luck! 🙂 Hope you all have a great day.
Best Wishes,
Karen
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