Day 2

Reflections on day 2 of 4 for written exam: Today was a bit like yesterday, 7 questions, 7 hours. I felt like the answers came more easily this time. I wrote out the general gist of each response within the first 2 hours, then spent the rest of my time filling in gaps, polishing, and drawing figures. Everything felt smoother, though I was still quite stressed-feeling. I was even more exhausted today, but less frustrated. I can see now why each PhD student in this program comes out of these exams a changed person.

Day 1

Reflections on day 1 of 4 for written exam: 6 essay questions to complete in 7 hours, it wasn't terrible, but it wasn't any fun either. I could address all aspects of a couple of the questions and most of the others. There wasn't a single question that I knew nothing about, but there were definitely questions that asked for a broader scope than I was prepared to answer. I was completely drained by the end of the day.