18/03/2021
Good evening
One of the former students of our department of English succeeded this year to be among the champions of PHD and she shared her experience, here it is to whom it may concern :
First and foremost,
For all those who congratulated me, thank you a million for your kind words and encouragement.
I want to share with you some tips 💡 I followed when revising, as well as how I managed my writing on the exam day.
↪️1️⃣ ♨️ 💭 ✒️ Before the EXAM !
I started generally revising Literature in December. Then, two weeks later, I decided to wait until I see which university accepted me first so I can narrow my scope. Oran and three other universities, it was!
I started with Oran University (General and Comparative Literature, 2020-2021).
⭕Step 1: To narrow my research, I had to check the university syllabus. In their second year Master, they focused on Postcolonial Studies. Weeks after, I designed what would have been a revising plan. (You will find it downwards).
⭕Step 2: I googled the name of the contest organiser. I wanted to see his approach to postcolonial studies. I read some of his articles.
⭕Step 3: Now, it is time to build my own approach to the subject matter. A dear teacher of mine adviced me to start with Edward Said's "Orientalism".
❗BREAK: Having had other matters to tend to, I neglected my revision and stopped. Having heard that all universities postponed the contest, I started losing hope and waiting for the "Sorry, no contest this year" to be announced.
Before I can realise it, schedules are posted again and Oran PhD contest is in 10 days.
I got discouraged abit, thinking I can never make it in so little time.
"But wait, what do you have to lose?".
⭕Step 4: Organise your time. I started revising on Saturday and finished Friday, the contest eve. For those who think it is too late ❌, THERE IS ALWAYS TIME. You can make it only if you organise first your mind, then your time.
First 4 days: revised from 4.30 a.m.- 7/8 a.m.
Last 3 days: from 9.3 p.m.- 3/4 a.m.
I am not a morning 🐦, so I found the second timing better.
⭕Step 5: DO NOT loose the thread of your research. In other words, do not go too deep that you lose your way. Always stick to guidelines. For instance, some titles require a day or two; while others, might need more. Make sure to go through the important concepts and information during that due time. When time's up, MOVE to something else. When you finish everything, if you feel that you need to check more, then go back to it.
⭕Step 6: Make summaries so that you do not have to go through all the information you have collected in your copybook again. That would map your mind and enhance your memory skills. In them, make sure to have a quote or two for each topic. That is not enough, but you do not have time, space, or energy to include more in your essay the day of the exam either.
⭕Step 7: YOU ARE READY. Have a good sleep and shut off your inner voices. Sleep.
✅ DO's:
- Write exemplary paragraphs on a topic to see your language. Correct yourself and make sure not to repeat them.
- You can build your own outline. Check the university syllabus, but do not fully rely on it. I do not think they would like to receive the answers they have provided their students with.
- Check, recheck, ask someone to check your language. Having a background of information is good, not communicating them properly is your enemy. For instance, do not (and not don't) use abbreviated words in writing. They enhance your speaking skills (fluenc), but they are a disadvantage in writing.
❌ DON'T:
- DO NOT talk about the exam either before, in or after the exam. It will only distract you. It is stressful and you need avoid all sources of stress.
- Do not go too deep in research. When I was given the exam paper, I realised I have too many information on the topic, and there is no way that I can include all of them. Selecting took me time. So my advice is to know just enough.
❇️ Revision Outline:
- Postcolonialism and lit
- famous lit theorists and their works (Edward Said, Homi k. Bhabha, Gayatri Spivak, Frantz Fanon ..etc)
- concept, stereotypes and binaries
- Postcolonial discourse (style and techniques)
- postcolonial authors
- An insight into feminist and Marxist postcolonialism.
↪️ 2️⃣♨️ 💭 ✒️ EXAM DAY !
Sit in your chair, make yourself comfortable so that you can write. Forget about the setting you are in. You are at home, or school exam, and you have been given a question to answer.
⭕Step 1: read your question very carefully. Start by underlining key words. Read again and see if you have forgotten anything.
⭕Step 2: try to build a plan. In it, you decide what to include in your intro/conclu, as well as your body paragraphs. The key words you underlined and your outline will determine how many body paragraphs you will have. I used the five body paragraphs essay.
For example, the question in general culture was about critical thinking among youth learners/ information. Do educational institutions encourage critical thinking and what can we suggest to improve it (you can check the question in another post).
🔸Key words here are: critical thinking, youth learners, information, educational institutions.
🔸My outline: intro/ conclu plus three body paragraphs: (1) definition and dangers of the absence of critical thinking among youth. (2) critical thinking in educational institutions, and how it builds learners. (3) tips educational institutions can use to motivate and inspire youth learners to think more critically.
⭕Step 3: The introduction is highly important. It is the first impression your reader will get on you. Take your full time in writing it. For me, I took more time in the introduction than any other paragraph. I used the funnel introduction; from general to specific. Started with technology, youth, critical thinking, then all within educational institutions. MAKE sure to clearly state your thesis statement (last sentence of your introduction). It is a must that whomever reads it, will know exactly how many paragraphs you will have and the content of each.
⭕Step 4: Use examples in your body paragraphs. It helps readers better understand. It also shows that you, yourself, have a measurable understanding of the topic.
⭕Step 5: your conclusion is as important as your introduction. Last impression. Make sure to include the general statement again, restate the main idea of each paragraph, to come to a concluding sentence.
⭕Step 6: when you finish, read your essay as if it were a stranger to you. Spot grammar mistakes, spelling mistakes, syntax . . .etc. if the mistake is tiny and a matter of replacing a letter or two, you can use a corrector BUT BARELY, so that even you would not notice after filling the gap. If you spot a lot of mistakes, syntactic ones mostly, a corrector would not do. Check the remaining time. If you still have enough, ask for another examination paper and rewrite it.
✴️ Tips:
🔸Always check your watch. Building a nice essay is good, but not being able to conclude it means losing all the advantage the former gave you.
🔸 Use the draft only when necessary because time is never enough UNLESS you are fast. For instance, I used the draft to write the introduction, conclusion, and the outline of my body paragraphs. The outline is crucial for it helps you keep track of your ideas development. It saves you tons of time because we all sometimes get confused in "what's next?". Other than that, I wrote directly on the examination paper. However, before writing it, I used my mind as a draft. I check the sentence then I write it.
🔸 Forget about who you are and what these people are doing here. Eyes on the paper. Nothing else matters for now.
🔸If you are like me, I am the one who slams the door shut when I finish; the very last to leave the classroom. Do not stress if you see people leaving. Your pace and theirs is different. Take your time. I would rather stay until they say time is up instead of leaving early and missing the opportunity to fix a thing or two.
🔸DO NOT discuss the exam either before or after the contest. It is very confusing and a great source of stress.
On Writing:
🔸 What I did was not to start writing on the first page. I wanted it to look organised, so I started from the second page til the forth.
🔸 What to recommend is to write a short essay. Short essays are always precise and consise. Besides, the longer it is, the more mistakes you will make. Similarly, make sure your sentences are not long. You can get lost and make syntactic incoherence in the way.
🔸Lastly, your copy is neat and nice to read. Make sure to leave space between paragraphs and align your sentences from both sides. There is a tip I learnt a while now: do not write on the dots (......), Write in-between, in that empty space. It makes your paper look neat and clear 📝, and easy to read.
If I think of anything else, I will add it here. If you have any questions, I will gladly answer them in the comments.
I wish you all the best of luck ☘️!
Breath, you can make it insha'Allah 🙏.
By Ouzaa Ibtissem ❤ may allah be with you all the way to success
