Advisees in the MS in Education (MS Ed) and Master of Art Theological Studies (MATS) programs will seek guidance if they desire to complete their program with the comprehensive exam. (The comprehensive exam is not an option for MS in Educational Administration or MS in Special Education.) Advisors themselves often have questions about the purpose and procedures of the exam. Guidelines have been developed to help the advisor understand the exam and respond to students.
The purpose of the exam is to allow the student to demonstrate a level of knowledge, understanding, and application of that knowledge within his/her area of emphasis and within his/her educational setting that appreciably exceeds that of someone who has achieved a bachelor’s degree. The exam is a five-hour written exam.
In preparation for the exam, the advisor may share the following with his/her students.
MATS
The MATS comprehensive exam consists of ten questions, of which the student must answer five. The questions will come from five courses, representative of the student’s program, two from each course.
MS Ed
The MS Ed comprehensive exam consists of nine questions, of which the student must answer five. Exam questions are as follows:
- Question 1 REQUIRED. Master’s Core – Reflects educational research (EDU5005) and educational issues (EDU5001).
- Questions 2 & 3 CHOOSE ONE. Master’s Core or Required Emphasis – Student and advisor decide whether questions represent either the core (EDU5106) or a required emphasis.
- Questions 4 & 5 CHOOSE ONE. Required Emphasis
- Questions 6 & 7 CHOOSE ONE. Required Emphasis or Elective Emphasis – Student and advisor decide whether questions represent a required or elective emphasis.
- Questions 8 & 9 CHOOSE ONE. General Elective – Student decides which elective is used.
The exam is read and scored by the faculty members according to the rubric available on the MLC Graduate Studies website. Each faculty member evaluates the answer to the question he/she supplied. If a second reading is desired, the director of Graduate Studies or a person appointed by him will review the question.
In preparation for the exam, the student should review the major ideas represented from the courses that will appear on the exam. The student may consult with the committee members for further direction on how to focus his/her preparation. The instructors will decide how much direction to give.
The student must pass each of the five questions to pass the exam.
Additional information on the comprehensive exam is available on page 38 of the Graduate Studies Bulletin.
NOTE TO THE ADVISOR: Each committee member only reads and evaluates the answer to the question that he/she supplied. The exam committee consists of five graduate faculty members. One member is automatically the advisor unless the student has not taken a course from the advisor. A second member is an instructor of EDU5001 or EDU5005, the required question. The other three members of the committee are chosen by the student in consultation with the advisor.
In the event that the student has not taken a course from his/her advisor, the advisor does not sit on the committee. Instead, the student, in consultation with the advisor, selects four committee members from courses taken.
Guidelines for advising the student’s committee member selections
The advisor encourages student reflection and meaningful selection of committee members by suggesting he/she consider the following questions:
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- Which courses did the student complete within the area of emphasis?
- Which courses have been of special help to the student in his/her ministry or current employment? Note: Not all students are WELS teachers.
- Which courses does the student have a special interest in?
- Which instructors were especially helpful to the student?
