Oral Exams

A few years ago when I thought about my career in the future, I clearly knew that I preferred the master program of history in a CUNY gradual school. However, in Queens College, go gain a history MA, one must pass two oral exams. I was overwhelmed and constantly sacred by it. I even planned to give up for this reason. Later, I discussed this issue with Professor Kaplan, one of my favorite professors in QC, she told me that everybody fear of oral exams, and encouraged me to go on. In this spring, at the time I was going to graduate and must make a decision, I chose history.

I comforted myself like this: I could take oral exams in the last year of my master degree; thus, I left myself one or two years to improve my speaking. In addition, the most of the graduate courses of history is seminar. For example, the courses I am taking now are both seminar. On the one hand, seminar is a tough class format for me; I am pained by it constantly. On the other hand, it is certainly the best way for me to practice formal speaking and discussing. Holding such a belief, I started my graduate school life.

However, a definite miracle occurred lately. Yesterday, when I mentioned the oral exams to a classmate in the evening class, she told me the oral exams did not exist anymore. She said that she had a classmate who took the oral exams last year. He called himself the last one taking oral exams in this school. I was overjoyed by this news, and could not bear to wait to the next day to go the department for a double check. This morning, I went the history department and a graduate advisor confirmed it. In the whole day, I feel I am the luckiest and happiest person in the world.