tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089222247758430095.post7329404398697236045..comments2022-03-26T07:56:49.515-04:00Comments on Janus Professor, My Travels in a Two-Body Life: To Qual or Not To QualJanus Professorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01339961758398856767noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089222247758430095.post-4231646650496813112012-06-17T21:18:55.884-04:002012-06-17T21:18:55.884-04:00@ Anonymous - I like that idea, so I will bring it...@ Anonymous - I like that idea, so I will bring it up this fall.Janus Professorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01339961758398856767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089222247758430095.post-6905358508149102752012-06-15T09:20:58.536-04:002012-06-15T09:20:58.536-04:00At our university (most universities?) passing a q...At our university (most universities?) passing a qualifying exam is a university requirement for a PhD. Did the student not know his/her stuff? Over-anxiety? Do your colleagues not understand your work? Are you as an advisor allowed to sit on your student's exam? If so, you can see why your student did not pass. If not, perhaps you can try to change the rules so that the advisor is allowed to at least sit-in on the qualifying exams.EarlyToBedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15574283499868324142noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089222247758430095.post-90525008286205406312012-06-14T21:59:37.150-04:002012-06-14T21:59:37.150-04:00My old GradU Department had a three tier official ...My old GradU Department had a three tier official scores on the qualifying exam. Pass, conditional pass, and fail. Conditional passes were common. They could be minor conditions (write a page about topic X, read papers and talk with professor SoNSo) or more major, reexamined on a portion of the exam. It would allow promising students to stay in the program and learn, while still ensuring students were qualified to focus on PhD level studies/research.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5089222247758430095.post-33397599172375207362012-06-14T10:41:28.769-04:002012-06-14T10:41:28.769-04:00My department has a hybrid approach to quals (in p...My department has a hybrid approach to quals (in part because we attract so many students changing disciplines). You can either take a written exam, or pass the corresponding subject class with a B+ or higher for the core material, and then there is an oral thesis proposal presentation. You're given two chances at the written exam, should you decide to take it instead of the class, and if your grade is low in the class, you can do the exam. <br /><br />As a student, I really appreciate this setup, because it emphasizes the importance of research over being able to regurgitate information that may have nothing to do with your subfield. However, it still ensures all of the physics majors learn what a stress-strain curve looks like.Miss MSEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06529587231142371243noreply@blogger.com