Ph.D. students must complete two comprehensive exams (or "comps" for short), which are described below.
Comp I
Upon completion of all five core courses (without any outstanding
incompletes), the student must complete their first comprehensive exam
(Comp I) that covers the content learned in the core. This a closed-book
exam administered by the Ph.D director and assistant dean for graduate
programs on campus and consisting of two essays, one completed in the
morning (10 a.m. to 1 p.m.) and one completed in the afternoon (2 to 5 p.m.). The
essay questions are not provided in advance and will change from
semester to semester, but students will have some choice in the
questions they answer. Comp I will be given only in January and June
(the dates will be announced in advance) and should be taken as soon as
possible after the student completes the core courses. The essays are
generally graded by faculty members who teach in the core.
If the student receives a failing grade on one or both of the essays,
an additional faculty member selected by the Ph.D. director will be asked
to read the essay(s). The student may then be asked to retake the
exam, following the same format but with a new question. If the student
fails a second time, they cannot retake the exam again.
Comp II
Upon completion of all of the relevant elective courses in their
specializations (without any outstanding incompletes), the student
should complete their second comprehensive exam (Comp II), which
reflects knowledge the student has learned through his or her elective
coursework. The exam takes the form of an essay, representing one of the
student's areas of specialization. The exam is administered by the
student's main adviser, a core member of the SPAA faculty (or if the
student does not yet have an adviser, by a core SPAA faculty member with
expertise in the specialization) as follows:
- The adviser, in consultation with the student, schedules the exam and notifies the Ph.D. director.
- The student submits the essay in final form to the adviser. The
essay can be any combination of a quantitative empirical study, a
qualitative empirical study, or a literature review essay and should be
comparable in length, style, and quality to a journal manuscript. The
essay may be extensions of work the student has done as part of an
independent study or other elective coursework. Important: The essay
must be sole-authored original work by the student--an essay that has been written in part by a faculty mentor, another student, or any other
coauthor cannot be submitted for Comp II.
- The adviser identifies an appropriate second reader for the essay;
the second reader should be a faculty member with expertise in the
relevant area of specialization.
- The adviser and the second reader review the essay and prepare
written feedback and criticism (similar in style to a journal's
peer-review process); as a result, the student will receive two reviews
of each essay (one from the adviser, one from the second reader).
- The adviser, in consultation with the second reader, may decide to
require revisions to the essay. The student will then revise the essay,
generally within a one-month period. The student will have only one
opportunity to revise and resubmit the essay before receiving a final
grade.
- The adviser, in consultation with the second reader, will notify
the student of the final grade for the essay, copying the Ph.D. director.
If the student receives a failing grade on the essay, an
additional faculty member selected by the Ph.D. director will be asked to
read the essay and the student may be given one last opportunity to
revise the essay. If the student still receives a failing grade, he or
she will not be allowed to continue in the program.
Academic integrity is essential in all aspects of the Ph.D. program,
including Comp II. Any indication that any part of a student's Comp II
essay is not the original work of the student will be grounds for a
failing grade (with no chance to revise and resubmit the essay).
Grades
For both comprehensive exams, the possible grades are as follows:
- High pass (pass with distinction)
- Pass
- Fail
Degree Programs and Courses 
