Sometimes I include exams on the syllabus. If I do, there will almost certainly be an essay. Here’s some advice on how to deal with it.

Mastering the Dreaded Essay Exam

[originally published on History Survey on 12/5/2007]

I have a confession to make. My first history midterm exam in college earned a D. That's right. I had studied and studied and studied, but there it was: a big ugly D. What had gone wrong? I earned an A on my paper, but I still only pulled off something like a C on my final exam. I had thought I was good at history, but clearly there was a problem.

At first I just thought I did not know how to write under pressure, that I was not good at in-class essays. I needed time to think things out. Exams denied me that time. Later I realized that I was wrong. I actually had time the time I needed to think things through. I wasn't supposed to spend all my study time memorizing what had happened in the past. I was supposed to spend a great deal of time thinking about what I had learned and organizing it into one or more coherent narratives. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

I began college in 1980 and took an extended break after 1982, because I did not like college and had no idea why I was there. I returned in 1987 after four years in the army. My first summer back I took a pre-colonial African history class, and there was going to be a written final exam. Uh oh. I wanted to earn a high grade, but there was no way that that was going to happen. After all, the blue book was my enemy.

Then I had an idea. What if I tried to predict the questions the professor would, no, could ask. And what if I prepared answers for those questions? What if I developed and memorized outlines? I thought about it some more and realized that there was one question that encompassed everything he could possibly ask: "How did the slave trade impact Africa?" I prepared an amazing outline, which I unfortunately no longer have. It included more than would have worked in a single exam period. I was ready.

I have no idea what the professor asked for the final exam, but I had no trouble answering it. The outline I had researched served me well. No matter what the professor asked, I was prepared. The result was an A.

All of us learn differently, but my experience suggests at least one lesson of broad relevance: It is possible to learn how to prepare for and do reasonably well on history exams. They are not an art form, and they do not require luck or guesswork. All they require is hard work.

Now, I'm not suggesting that every student do such a thorough outline for each exam, but I am suggesting that each student should spend time reflecting on the big picture. Here are some initial questions to help you do that.

• What major themes appeared in the course? How are they related to one another?

• Which lectures, readings, and discussions in the course are relevant to the themes you have identified? How?

Do not try to do all of this in your head. Write or sketch out your ideas, so that you can see them and adjust them as necessary. Mind-mapping might help too, whether on a computer, on paper, or with PostIt notes. Or perhaps you think in a linear fashion and do best with an outlining program.

After you have worked out the big picture, do not neglect the details. For each of your main points you will need supporting examples of various kinds. Here are some ideas:

• events
• people
• economic and demographic trends
• ideas, beliefs, and mentalities
• Where to get these examples?
• the documents assigned in the course
• a textbook or other reference source, even Wikipedia
• the facts as we know them from the lectures
• the assigned books
• movies shown in class or viewed on your own

If you go through this process, you will come up with more than you can possibly remember or write down in the exam. That is okay. The preparation will ensure that you know enough to write a solid essay in class, provided you read and analyze the assigned material.