Exam Format & Faculty Guidelines: General Exams

The Greek and Latin Generals will usually be taken in year 2 of the program, starting at the beginning of the third semester, as determined by the student in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) and Graduate Program Coordinator (GPC). Each exam will comprise a three-hour closed book examination, conducted in the department, administered in person by the GPC, comprising the following:

  •  2/6 translation of source and supplementary materials studied by the student since beginning preparation for the exam and supplementary prepared in conjunction with source classes,
  • 3/6 linguistic and stylistic commentary on the same material,
  • 1/6 sight translation of material related to the course and supplementary materials used as the basis for the exam.

In consultation with the DGS, on the basis of the student’s record of preparation of course and supplementary materials kept on file by the GPC, a faculty member whose expertise includes the material on the examination (usually the Instructor of Record [IOR] of the most recent class furnishing material for the exam) will write the exam, and a faculty member with related expertise (usually the IOR for a previous course furnishing material for the exam) will, along with the faculty member who writes the examination, evaluate the exam and award it a grade of Pass/Fail, based on the criteria for passing provided below. A copy of the exam with a record of the grade that it has received will then be sent to the DGS and GPC and included in the student’s dossiers. The result will be released via email to the student. Written feedback will be available on request.

Criteria for passing: students who complete 70% of the exam to the satisfaction of the examiners pass the exam; students who complete 90% of the exam to the satisfaction of the examiners pass with distinction; instances of tying will be referred to the DGS; if the DGS is one of the examiners, the DGS will seek an additional qualified reader.