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The "So here's how my exam today went..." thread

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    #32
    Censorsh!t
    Registered Users Posts: 1,121 ✭✭✭Censorsh!t


    Exactly. At first I was like "Shiiiit, I feel bad for him" but then I felt good cos i knew I'd done better than him:p

    Could see him shaking like mad for the rest of it.


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    #33
    ReacherCreature
    Registered Users Posts: 4,500 ✭✭✭ReacherCreature


    Eliot Rosewater wrote: »
    That must of hurt. I think he'd probably have preferred to have been taken outside, given a bollocking, and told to go back in. But that kind of silent treatment, where you're uncertain afterwards what's going to happen to you, is hard to deal with.

    Still, I have little sympathy for him. In one sense exams are a competition amongst fellow students, and if someone does better through cheating everyone else is worse off.

    Is he allowed to be fired out of the hall? Or they have to make him do the paper?


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    #34
    Bannasidhe
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 19,219 Mod ✭✭✭✭Bannasidhe


    ReacherCreature wrote: »
    Is he allowed to be fired out of the hall? Or they have to make him do the paper?

    The action taken in the exam hall depends on the senior invigilator. Usually whatever material the student is using to cheat is taken off them (one year a student in Neptune was caught with equations written on her feet-she was made to wash her feet),the invigilator makes a note on the script that cheating material was found and what kind it was, the lecturer is contacted and a report is also sent to the exam board who then decide what action to take. What happens after that is confidential but can include all of the script written prior to them being caught being disallowed, the student deemed to have failed - they may be allowed to resit and capped at 40% or expulsion. They tend not to ask cheating students to leave during the exam as it can cause a distraction.


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    #35
    IHeartChemistry
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,756 ✭✭✭IHeartChemistry


    MA1003 today. Absolute cnut of a paper. One of the nastiest things I've ever seen. By the sounds of loads of people gave up half way through and walked out.

    Thats defo one repeat for Autumn.


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    #36
    sleepyescapade
    Registered Users Posts: 788 ✭✭✭sleepyescapade


    IHeartChemistry wrote: »
    MA1003 today. Absolute cnut of a paper. One of the nastiest things I've ever seen. By the sounds of loads of people gave up half way through and walked out.

    Thats defo one repeat for Autumn.
    Really? o_O Surprised to hear. I am by no means a Math genius but I found all the past papers on Blackboard helpful at the time.


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    #37
    Bloody Nipples
    Registered Users Posts: 915 ✭✭✭Bloody Nipples


    MA1003 must have changed since my day. It was always a guaranteed 1H. Oh Trevor Brawn how I miss you.


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    #38
    IHeartChemistry
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,756 ✭✭✭IHeartChemistry


    Bloody Nipples wrote: »
    MA1003 must have changed since my day. It was always a guaranteed 1H. Oh Trevor Brawn how I miss you.

    Trevor was EPIC. Shame about him collapsing and leaving the job. Instead we got McKay.


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    #39
    Sarky
    Closed Accounts Posts: 31,967 ✭✭✭✭Sarky


    AM2006 for me today. Should have been a perfect paper, near 100% less whatever few marks my atrocious handwriting would lose. Instead brain fart occurred and I did merely ok. I've never liked exams. Assignments and continuous assessment is where it's at.

    Oh well. 4 down, 8 to go. This taught masters lark is heavy going.


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    #40
    Bloody Nipples
    Registered Users Posts: 915 ✭✭✭Bloody Nipples


    IHeartChemistry wrote: »
    Trevor was EPIC. Shame about him collapsing and leaving the job. Instead we got McKay.

    Yeah my brother told me that. I'm in final year micro now though so I don't actually do maths anymore :cool:


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    #41
    KnifeWRENCH
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11,148 ✭✭✭✭KnifeWRENCH


    Turns out there ARE cracking down on people writing on their exam papers during reading time! Had an exam at 4.30 today and invigilator announced "Reading time is for READING only. No biros please". :mad: Like I understand you not being able to write on your script but it's ridiculous that you can't even jot down memory aids on the exam paper.

    Anyway, I had three horrible exams in two horrible days. Yay!

    Thursday evening - Stochastic Modelling II. Paper was tougher than last year, so didn't go quite as well as expected. Was hoping for a high mark in it, will now have average mark. Could have been worse though.

    Friday morning - Quantum Optics & Advanced Spectroscopy. One lovely question, one not-so-lovely question and one absolute disaster of a question. Fortunately, the lovely question (the one on Doppler cooling) saved me from a fail, I think.

    Friday evening - Functional Analysis.
    This one was never gonna go well; really difficult module. And the exam this year actually wasn't horribly bad, I just had a blank and forgot some very basic stuff. *hits self repeatedly*. On the upside, I only need 27/75 to pass and while aiming for 40% is by no means ideal, at least I shouldn't have to repeat it anyway. (Even if I did get less, I'll more than likely be able to compensate it anyway)

    2 exams next week; Advanced Quantum Mechanics (terror) and Introdcution to Condesned Matter Physics (deceptively difficult). Fun times.......


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    #42
    SuperInfinity
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 2,449 ✭✭✭SuperInfinity


    KnifeWRENCH wrote: »
    I usually use my reading time to scribble down stuff on the exam paper. One over-zealous and pedantic supervisor stopped me from doing it before; "This is READING time" :rolleyes: But most of them don't take any notice.

    Your issue is with the concept of "reading time", not with that supervisor who was doing his job properly (unlike the other supervisors).

    I think it's a valid enough concept. Let's face it, if it's going out of your head within seconds/minutes after staring at it, you don't really know it very well. I've also been in the position where I've crammed so much that I wanted to get it out super fast, and obviously didn't understand it very well or remember much of it afterwards. If it's that transient then you don't know it as you should.


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    #43
    Papa_Lazarou
    Registered Users Posts: 1,863 ✭✭✭Papa_Lazarou


    Had MB3001 today. Actually went pretty well thank god :) First time in my life i think i can say that i was delighted Gonnorhoea came up :P


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    #44
    Faith
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 30,657 Mod ✭✭✭✭Faith


    AP3015 this evening. Very, very fair paper actually. Any low marks I get will be from poor answers on my part rather than unfair questions (unlike yesterday).


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    #45
    lilmissprincess
    Registered Users Posts: 3,016 ✭✭✭lilmissprincess


    EC2102 this morning. After a bit of a meltdown regarding ISLM curves last night, I walked out an hour early feeling confident of having passed.


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    #46
    closeline
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,256 ✭✭✭closeline


    Had Celtic Civ today.2 papers..the celts and also celtic religion and mythologhy...for the celts the question was to discuss the tactics and strategies used by Caesar in Gaul..what were his stategies..i basically told the events..second question was the distinghuising features of celtic Iron age weaponry..i went on a two page, ya only 2 page ramble on swords..so might get very little...2nd paper..not good..first question was the relationship between otherworld and sovereignty in the human world in the wooing of etain..i hardly know what sovereignty means...is it power or sumting...once again basically told the story..section b..disaster...question on 'kings and goddess' wrote a page and a half of crap..im not sure if i was writing the wrong stuff so i might get nothing for it. Not a great day overall. One thing I learned was Celtic Civ is not easy..if ur picking something just as an "easy" fourth choice, which i was told to, i wouldnt advice to pick this..To pass the subject you need to do a nice bit of work.


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    #47
    Byron85
    Registered Users Posts: 1,443 ✭✭✭Byron85


    closeline wrote: »
    To pass the subject you need to do a nice bit of work.


    At third level? In a University ranked in the top 2% of universities in the world? Say it ain't so!!!!;)


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    #48
    SuperInfinity
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 2,449 ✭✭✭SuperInfinity


    Byron85 wrote: »
    At third level? In a University ranked in the top 2% of universities in the world? Say it ain't so!!!!;)

    You don't actually believe that do you...? I went to UCC, but no way is it even the best university in Ireland.


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    #49
    robp
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,934 ✭✭✭robp


    SuperInfinity wrote: »
    You don't actually believe that do you...? I went to UCC, but no way is it even the best university in Ireland.

    There are a alot of Universities out there. These figures aren't pulled out of a hat.


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    #50
    deisedude
    Registered Users Posts: 4,842 ✭✭✭deisedude


    SuperInfinity wrote: »
    You don't actually believe that do you...? I went to UCC, but no way is it even the best university in Ireland.

    Ranked 184th in the world out of God knows how many colleges in the world. May not be Ivy league standard but it isn't a bad university


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    #51
    Serbitar
    Registered Users Posts: 42 ✭Serbitar


    IHeartChemistry wrote: »
    MA1003 today. Absolute cnut of a paper. One of the nastiest things I've ever seen. By the sounds of loads of people gave up half way through and walked out.

    Thats defo one repeat for Autumn.

    You know you're in trouble when you actually start laughing away at the paper. Supervisor gave me a funny look and all. The single most miserable exam I've ever done in my life. Sure, something to plan August around I guess.


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    #52
    ReacherCreature
    Registered Users Posts: 4,500 ✭✭✭ReacherCreature


    GR3007 Alexander the Great yesterday. The paper was simple, the questions nice and expansive, but you needed to know your stuff. I answered a question on his military tactics - which was very very similar to the essay I handed up during the year. Second question was OK, I realised half way through that I should have did a different question but it's no huge deal, it was fine.

    Off 'till Wednesday until I have a showdown with Adolf Hitler.


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    #53
    Parsley
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,144 ✭✭✭Parsley


    Faith wrote: »
    AP3015 this evening. Very, very fair paper actually. Any low marks I get will be from poor answers on my part rather than unfair questions (unlike yesterday).

    twas grand for me too! i'd only prepared the topics of offender profiling and psychopathy so was praying for them to come up, and they did. delira!


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    #54
    teddy b123
    Registered Users Posts: 399 ✭✭teddy b123


    Serbitar wrote: »
    You know you're in trouble when you actually start laughing away at the paper. Supervisor gave me a funny look and all. The single most miserable exam I've ever done in my life. Sure, something to plan August around I guess.

    Really? lots of people were b1tching about how hard the exam was! i thought it was ok, it was pretty much like all the past papers and practice exam they emailed us?

    btw anyone know how its marked? is there attempt marks / marks lost for slips and blunders like in the leaving cert?


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    #55
    Serbitar
    Registered Users Posts: 42 ✭Serbitar


    teddy b123 wrote: »
    Really? lots of people were b1tching about how hard the exam was! i thought it was ok, it was pretty much like all the past papers and practice exam they emailed us?

    btw anyone know how its marked? is there attempt marks / marks lost for slips and blunders like in the leaving cert?

    To be honest...I didn't really do a tap of work for it :P I passed both the MCQs handy enough so I was hoping it'd be the same sort of stuff, but it wasn't to be. Also didn't help that I blanked on the Applied stuff.


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    #56
    Cows Go µ
    Registered Users Posts: 902 ✭✭✭Cows Go µ


    SuperInfinity wrote: »
    Your issue is with the concept of "reading time", not with that supervisor who was doing his job properly (unlike the other supervisors).

    I think it's a valid enough concept. Let's face it, if it's going out of your head within seconds/minutes after staring at it, you don't really know it very well. I've also been in the position where I've crammed so much that I wanted to get it out super fast, and obviously didn't understand it very well or remember much of it afterwards. If it's that transient then you don't know it as you should.

    In fairness I use that time to right down the random formulas for the exam. That doesn't mean I don't understand them, just that I can't remember exactly where each thing should be all the time. And I know as soon as I'm asked to remember it in a question then I won't so I write them all down as soon as I can on the paper. I write everything that might possibly be relevant to the module down because I know when I need it I won't remember. However, I understand it perfectly and can generally derive a lot of the stuff (but that would take ages and would be a massive waste of time) and I know how to use it. I'm a mathematician, I don't remember vast amounts of crap, I work things out well. Hell, I know lecturers who don't remember the formula so why should we?

    On topic, I haven't had any exams yet, first one on Thursday. They should be all grand except for the last one, we have no idea what will come up or how hard it will be. The lecturer has never taught this module before so we have nothing to go on and he won't tell us anything other than it will be on what we covered in class. Which is something we assumed


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    #57
    SuperInfinity
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 2,449 ✭✭✭SuperInfinity


    Cows Go µ wrote: »
    In fairness I use that time to right down the random formulas for the exam. That doesn't mean I don't understand them, just that I can't remember exactly where each thing should be all the time. And I know as soon as I'm asked to remember it in a question then I won't so I write them all down as soon as I can on the paper. I write everything that might possibly be relevant to the module down because I know when I need it I won't remember. However, I understand it perfectly and can generally derive a lot of the stuff (but that would take ages and would be a massive waste of time) and I know how to use it. I'm a mathematician, I don't remember vast amounts of crap, I work things out well. Hell, I know lecturers who don't remember the formula so why should we?

    Then the formula should be written on the exam script! If you do not feel it necessary that you should know the formulae then your view is that they should be written on the exam script. I was assuming that the script was fair when I wrote that.

    Reading time is a valid concept whatever way you look at it. Think of it like a part of the exam: You do not have access to your material but you are also not allowed to write.

    If you can't keep it in your head for the length of reading time there is then you DON'T KNOW IT AS WELL AS YOU SHOULD FOR THE EXAM. I've gone into exams hardly even bothering to look at my notes because I knew it so well.

    In fact if they stopped you from looking at your notes for 24 hours beforehand, that would really sort the people who knew the material from the people chancing their arm better. But of course then they would need to cut out a lot of material.

    Semantics: By my understanding of the term "understanding": If you understand them then they don't appear "random". If you understand them then you can derive them pretty much instantly in your head. I would never say I "understood" a formula unless I could derive it almost instantly. Maybe you understand how to USE the formula, that's a different thing. That's the easy thing. It's like the difference between understanding how a car works and how to use a car. Knowing what each of the terms in the formula does is like the noob/passing student's idea of "understanding" a formula.

    I didn't understand the majority of the formulae that I used in my exams... I understood how to USE the formulae but not the formulae themselves.

    So by my usage of the word "understanding" of a formula, you would not forget the formula because you would far sooner forget your understanding far sooner than forgetting the formula. And that is how I use it. You are free to use the word as you like, but I wouldn't use it that way.


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    #58
    teddy b123
    Registered Users Posts: 399 ✭✭teddy b123


    Serbitar wrote: »
    To be honest...I didn't really do a tap of work for it :P I passed both the MCQs handy enough so I was hoping it'd be the same sort of stuff, but it wasn't to be. Also didn't help that I blanked on the Applied stuff.

    Yeah blanking in an exam really does suck! im glad i spent almost two weeks on it! made up for not being there for a lot of Ms Rebrova's and Mckay's lectures!


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    #59
    seandoiler
    Registered Users Posts: 107 ✭✭seandoiler


    Cows Go µ wrote: »
    On topic, I haven't had any exams yet, first one on Thursday. They should be all grand except for the last one, we have no idea what will come up or how hard it will be. The lecturer has never taught this module before so we have nothing to go on and he won't tell us anything other than it will be on what we covered in class. Which is something we assumed

    not sure any lecturer should be telling you what is on the paper in fairness so i'm not surprised you weren't told much ;-)


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    #60
    teddy b123
    Registered Users Posts: 399 ✭✭teddy b123


    not sure any lecturer should be telling you what is on the paper in fairness so i'm not surprised you weren't told much ;-)

    Yeah and lecturers should probably make an effort in changing the questions form year to year, not just changing the order they ask them! :P


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    #61
    Faith
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 30,657 Mod ✭✭✭✭Faith


    Parsley wrote: »
    twas grand for me too! i'd only prepared the topics of offender profiling and psychopathy so was praying for them to come up, and they did. delira!

    Ooh, an anonymous classmate! Now I'm wondering who you are :D


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