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academic_rules [2016/11/11 04:24] – michaelmedford | academic_rules [2016/11/11 06:20] – [Exams] michaelmedford | ||
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The Prelim is an oral examination conducted by three members of the Department | The Prelim is an oral examination conducted by three members of the Department | ||
appropriate for the fields in which the student will be examined. The Exam | appropriate for the fields in which the student will be examined. The Exam | ||
- | may be taken at any time the student chooses, subject to the regulations | + | may be taken at any time the student chooses |
- | listed | + | listed |
the Department Chair at least one month in advance of the proposed date | the Department Chair at least one month in advance of the proposed date | ||
concerning the topics and the Prelim Committee. | concerning the topics and the Prelim Committee. | ||
- | The examination will be at the general level of the graduate core courses. | ||
- | Normally, the topics consist of three fields chosen from among the list | ||
- | of courses in the [[academic_rules: | ||
- | choose to be examined in another topic at a comparable level of difficulty. | ||
- | Typically, the topics of a special topics class (AY 250) may be used as | ||
- | a preliminary exam topic. In the past, other topics have included: | ||
- | |||
- | * Stellar Atmospheres | ||
- | * Stellar Structure & Evolution | ||
- | * Stellar Dynamics & Galactic Structure | ||
- | * The Sun | ||
- | The prelim is subject to the following rules: | ||
- | |||
- | - The prelim can be taken at any time before the end of the student' | ||
- | - Any faculty member can be asked by a graduate student to administer the prelim exam. Unless that faculty member is on sabbatical or on ASMD (active service modified duties; typically parental leave), they are generally expected to serve. The composition of the prelim committee should be decided in discussions between the student and the relevant faculty, with oversight and advance approval by the head graduate advisor. | ||
- | - A prelim committee member need not have taught the class in the subject the student wishes to be examined in. Furthermore, | ||
- | - Every graduate student who wants to take the prelim is required to fill out a form listing topics and examiners, to be approved by the head graduate advisor. The idea here is that the head graduate advisor can assess whether the proposed prelim is sensible, and consult the faculty as necessary if questions arise (e.g., whether certain Astro 250 Special Topics are permissible to use as prelim topics; whether certain combinations of topics are permissible; | ||
- | | ||
- | - In order to remain in the Department a student must pass the Prelim within six months after the end of the second academic year. | ||
- | | ||
- | - Embargo policy: Questions asked in any given prelim are embargoed (they cannot be shared with other students) for three months following the exam. The purpose of this rule is to lessen the pressure on faculty to devise new questions in a short period of time. | ||
- | - The student must pass all three areas in order to pass the Examination. A pass is equivalent to the level of performance meriting a " | ||
- | - The student selects one member of the committee to serve as the Chair of the Committee. This Chairperson is responsible for timing the examination and any necessary paperwork following the examination. The student selects the order in which the topics are examined. | ||
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- | The Student Affairs Officer maintains a comprehensive list of all topics and questions asked during the preliminary examination. Typically, each topic is alotted 40 minutes of questions for a total of two hours. | ||