Suggestions for Surviving the Essay Exam

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Suggestions for Surviving the Essay Exam

• ENGL 1113
• Principles of Composition
• Amy Bollman

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Writing an essay exam can be a stressful and
difficult experience.

• Success requires
• a thorough knowledge of the subject
• the ability to organize that knowledge
• the ability to write a good essay under pressure
• preparation and planning

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What can I do before the exam?

• Gain a working knowledge of the course
  materials. Regular, systematic study is
  necessary. Take thorough notes which emphasize
  concepts, events, and names you think are
  important.

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How can I organize my answer during the exam?

• Determine the amount of time you may devote to
  each question.
• Organize before you begin--use scrap paper
• jot down a thesis statement
• list main points
• list supporting details

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What does a good answer contain?

• An introduction, body, conclusion
• The introduction conclusion may be only one
  sentence in length
• The introduction contains the thesis to be proven
• The body develops and supports the point with
  specific details/arguments
• The conclusion sums up the main points and
  reiterates the thesis

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What else should a good answer have?

• A clear, concise style
• use active verbs
• avoid wordiness
• Few errors of fact grammar
• if possible, leave time at the end to proofread
  for silly errors of fact and unclearly stated
  points

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Six Steps to Success

• Read the question
• Locate the key words
• Outline the key topics
• Rewrite the question into an assertion (thats
  the thesis)
• Write the essay
• Proofread the essay

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Read the questions

• The first step is to select (if you are
  permitted) the question(s) to answer, to check
  the points for each questions, to check your
  allotted time, and to set a limit during which
  you will answer the question.

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Locate the key words

• Ask yourself What am I being asked to do, and
  with what body of material? The answer to these
  questions should be jotted down on scrap paper as
  points to be covered within the essay.

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Outline the key topics

• Quickly number or otherwise organize the points
  to be covered--and jot down any supporting
  evidence for each topic to be covered.

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Rewrite the question into an assertion

• Take the question and rephrase it so that it
  states a position
• What were the primary causes of the Civil War?
• REWRITTEN
• The primary causes of the Civil War were
  economics, sectional jealousies, and slavery.

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Write your essay

• Copy your assertion down as the thesis. Use
  one paragraph for each of your major
  points/topics and support them with no less than
  three specific pieces of evidence. Reword your
  assertion for the conclusion, making any
  alterations necessary to account for the points
  you have made.

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Proofread your essay

• If time permits, go quickly over your essay,
  looking for phrases which are garbled and data
  which you have inadvertently misstated.
• If you leave blank lines, you can cross out what
  you wrote and rewrite on the line above.

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For a strong finish

• If time permits, consider extending the issues
  beyond the immediate task of answering the
  questions state which cause of the Civil War was
  the most important and why, or draw a comparison
  to a contemporary situation.

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Remember

• Study productively
• Memorize your key terms
• Budget time effectively
• Sketch out ideas as they first occur to you
• Write an introduction, body, conclusion
• Proofread, if possible