multiple choice vs essay Forum

[swtlilsoni]

Deciding on professors now. For evidence, one prof gives a multiple choice exam and the other gives essay/short answer. Both are good profs. Since 'which test format is easier' is too subjective, my question is which types of students do well in multiple choice and which types of students do well with essay?

[nevdash]

Multiple choice: Students who think very mechanically, pay close attention to detail and don't rush
Essay: Students who write well and put in the extra work to understand the big picture of the course and how topics fit together

Those skillsets obviously aren't mutually exclusive. You can be good at both kinds of test or bad at both.

[Lacepiece23]

Multiple choice: Students who think very mechanically, pay close attention to detail and don't rush
Essay: Students who write well and put in the extra work to understand the big picture of the course and how topics fit together

Those skillsets obviously aren't mutually exclusive. You can be good at both kinds of test or bad at both.

Definitely agree. Good at essay sucked at MC. Definitely would classify myself as the big picture type of guy who writes pretty well under a lot of time pressure.

[nebula666]

Multiple choice: Students who think very mechanically, pay close attention to detail and don't rush
Essay: Students who write well and put in the extra work to understand the big picture of the course and how topics fit together

Those skillsets obviously aren't mutually exclusive. You can be good at both kinds of test or bad at both.

Definitely agree. Good at essay sucked at MC. Definitely would classify myself as the big picture type of guy who writes pretty well under a lot of time pressure.

My civ pro exam was multiple choice but you had to explain your answers. If you picked the wrong answer but explained why in a good way, you could get more points than someone who picked the right answer but didn't explain it well. My professor was an evil genius.

OP, I think it's really just personal preference. I would inquire as to which professor was more well-liked than how his or her exam was.