Fighting Squirrels Tackle Exams

 

One of the more unique traditions at Mary Baldwin College is our exam week system.  Students get to choose when they take their exams.  Before exam week begins, cards with all of the student’s courses are placed into her mailbox, along with more instructions.  There are two or three exam periods every day and students are allowed to take up to two exams a day, in the order that she chooses.

For many students, our exam system is one of their favorite perks about being a student at Baldwin. For busy athletes, this system works perfectly because it gives students choice.

 

Phoebe Wright, a sophomore on the soccer team, describes her experiences with the exam system, "My freshmen year, I was nervous about becoming a student athlete in college because I was worried that my sport would conflict with my grades, especially around exam time. Mary Baldwin diminished my fears completely because of their sweet exam system, where you can pick and choose what day and time to take your exams. You can personalize your exam schedule tailored the way you will do best."

For Wright, the support of her team and coaching staff has also been extremely beneficial.  Wright adds, “My teammates also study with me, and we encourage each other to keep going even when the going gets tough. It's always fun to get a study group together with the team, because you can schedule study breaks and make Sheetz/Walmart runs then share snacks while you study more."

Wright also offered insight to her personal exam taking strategy, stating that she likes to take exams in the morning because she is a morning person.  By taking her exam in the morning, it gives her the rest of the day to go back to sleep or celebrate the completion of a hard exam.  In addition, Wright also explained that she feels the exam system is a huge reason many students pick Mary Baldwin.
Bridget Lane, a senior member of the soccer team, offered a unique perspective as a transfer student on our exam system.  Before Lane attended Mary Baldwin, she attended two other institutions where they took exams in a traditional way and she had not heard of a school with an exam system like MBC’s.  Lane finds beauty in the system because, "It is a very flexible schedule and allows you to have time in between exams so you do not overload yourself all in one or two days."

Katie Hurlock, the Honor Council Chairwoman, was also willing to share her insights on the exam system.  Katie says, "I would say that any concerns about our nontraditional exam system should be resolved by knowing that well-trained Honor Council reps and student leaders monitor all the exam periods.”  Because our exams are not administered with a proctor watching over us, there are faculty and members of the Honor Council that are watching over the exam rooms, which are filled with students taking exams for various courses.  Hurlock also added, "Furthermore, in my experiences as the Honor Council Chair, MBC students are some of the most honorable and honest out there.”  Hurlock explains that there are actually few instances of cheating because of our Honor Code, which students hold in high esteem.  The Honor Code allows us to have this exam system which is popular with the students, so that is more incentive to abide by the rules so we can continue to utilize this system."

Exam week runs from December 8-12.  Good luck to all Fighting Squirrels as they finish the semester!