Finished!

I passed the oral exam but I wouldn't say it was with flying colors. I hadn't realized that there were three grades I could receive- pass, pass with distinction and fail- until I spoke with a former classmate the night before the exam. I passed but not with distinction so when I was done, I was feeling a bit down on myself.  Not that I thought that I was that great during the exam. I did a bad job on the first question about the way in which liberalism changed from 1898 to 1945 which I think set the tone for the rest of the exam. I made a statement which caused the professor to raise her eyes in disagreement and then it was kind of downhill from there. I thought I did an okay job on the other questions but nothing that merited distinction. I almost felt like I was a beneficiary of "social promotion:" they couldn't very well fail me as I had gotten all A's in the courses I took in the program. As the exam has receded, I am feeling better about finishing. I might even have a graduation party in January.  Of course, if I hadn't talked to the classmate, I wouldn't have known about the the two levels of passing and would have been okay with the result. What I am pleased about is that I can now count myself among the 75% of persons with post-graduate degrees who disapprove of Trump. What a disaster the next four years will be!

Countdown to the oral exam

I have been spending quite a lot of time reading and prepping for the oral exam for my master's degree. It is scheduled for this Thursday, December 8 at 11 am. I asked whether it will be a back and forth and if I will get any further questioning from my interrogators as I answer.  I was told "no" so I will talk non-stop for an hour. I am very happy to be done.

Thinking of having my band do this song