FAQ: Written Preliminary Exam

The written preliminary exam is the first milestone toward a PhD in OLPD. It is an independently written paper that reviews the literature on a topic of the student’s choosing. The purpose is for students to immerse themselves and communicate themes from relevant scholarly work on a topic of interest to them. It is likely that this topic will be the student’s dissertation topic, but it is not required at the time of the written preliminary exam. The written preliminary exam provides the student the opportunity to demonstrate, through the production of a scholarly paper, their ability to review and interpret extant research and to systematically analyze, synthesize, and review key bodies of literature on their chosen topic and guiding research question(s).

Because the exam is an independent writing activity, your program area wants to ensure you have a good plan that meets the criteria for the assessment. The proposal provides a means for your program area to verify that the scale, scope, and focus of your topic aligns with overall expectations of the exam. The proposal is also a “roadmap” for the paper you will undertake during the exam.

Yes. Professor Roozbeh Shirazi developed a guide in the class OLPD 8121-2 (Doctoral Research Seminar) to help students think through how to author a successful proposal.

Yes, you should work with your advisor or other trusted faculty members to help develop your proposal. Your advisor will be your primary contact for this.

This is common. Because the oral prelim exam is an independent assessment, your faculty want to ensure that you are prepared, and will provide input to you on your proposal. You will work with your advisor and program area to ensure the proposal is strong and will serve as a good guide for the written preliminary exam. This should occur within seven days of notification.

To engage meaningfully with your topic of interest, you need to understand the debates, contestations, and relevant research that informs your topic. This is a preliminary opportunity for you to demonstrate knowledge of literature and to demonstrate your skill in organizing sources into a meaningful discussion for your readers. You may make linkages to your future research pursuits in the paper.

It depends on your program area. HRD and EPL will use the written prelim as the basis for its oral exams as of 2024. Other program areas require students to prepare a draft of the first two chapters of the dissertation. The OLPD Student Handbook can provide relevant information on these topics.

Each written preliminary exam is reviewed by two faculty members. They use a rubric and provide specific feedback to you on elements of the rubric. Once they have reviewed your paper, they will assign an evaluation of “pass,” “pass with revisions,” or “fail.” You will likely receive feedback two to three weeks after submitting your exam.

If you pass your exam, please meet with your advisor and discuss the next milestone steps.

A revision means that there were some competencies from the rubric that need improvement. You will receive specific feedback on these. You should meet with your advisor after receiving feedback. At that point, you have one month to make revisions and resubmit your paper (which is resubmitted to Dr. Jeremy Hernandez, Coordinator of Graduate Studies. Please note that if a student does not resubmit their exam it is considered a “fail.” 

Students only fail their exams if there are major gaps in writing related to the criteria of the exam rubric. If you do fail the exam, please meet with your advisor and plan to take the exam during the next exam period. Only students who fail the exam twice are discontinued from their program.

This sometimes happens. If it does, a third reviewer will provide their evaluation and a “majority rules” decision will be made on the final evaluation.

Students who receive an evaluation of “fail” may ask the Director of Graduate Studies to provide an additional reviewer. In addition, if students felt they were evaluated unfairly on criteria not listed in the evaluation rubric, they may raise their concerns to the Director of Graduate Studies.

The written preliminary exam is designed as an independent writing activity to gauge students’ development towards grounding themselves in relevant literature to their topic and communicating themes to readers. These skills are essential components of doctoral work and are prerequisites to further advancement toward the doctorate.

Yes. Resources like the University of Minnesota Writing Center, private editors, and peers may all provide feedback on your early drafts before submission. Faculty may not be used as a resource during the writing process.

OLPD uses an electronic paper review system that allows faculty to make direct comments in a form that contains elements of the evaluation rubric. The Graduate Program Coordinator (also known as the Coordinator of Graduate Studies) compiles all submissions, redacts identifiable information as appropriate, and uploads them into the system for distribution to faculty for review.