Oral examination – format and procedure

The oral exam is a type of exam that serves as a source of learning for many students, particularly when it is constructively prepared and takes a departure in the learning objectives. The oral exam is very dependent on the examiner’s conscious efforts on both learning objectives and questioning techniques at the exam.

Oral exams do not form a limited genre within the existing exam types. An exam may or may not involve drawing a question or topic, it may or may not include preparation time, it may consist mainly of a student presentation, involve much or little dialogue, have one or more participants, and it may or may not include material (text, picture or other). Oral exams may be part of or serve as the conclusion of a long process that also includes a written product prepared by the student, for example in the case of an oral exam that follows the preparation of a project or a dissertation. However, the oral exam can also be an isolated event, making the student’s performance at the exam the only basis of assessment.