Practical applications of expository article writing, for exams.

 
     For this part, assume the exam topic is as follows: “Is it right for undergraduate college students to have a part-time job?” 
 
     Brainstorming.  Write down your rough ideas.  (I have ordered them here, so the “two sides” can be easily perceived.)  Against:   Time – effort – lost opportunities – tired – fewer social contacts – parents disagree – work-related dangers.  For:  Can earn money – learn financial independence – can afford a better social life – gain work experience – pay college bills – learn about life. 
 
     Plan.  Choose the most important, balanced, and easily writable arguments.  You are free to make your own value judgments, here. 
       Introduction:             Students – part-time job – have / not have? 
            Body:                           Argument “for”, #1 – Financial independence. 
                                                 Argument “for” #2 – Work / life experience. 
                                                 Argument “against”, #1 – Lost opportunities. 
                                                 Argument “against, #2 – Tired. 
            Conclusion:                  I choose .................. , because ............ 
 
     The article.  From the above plan, you can develop a short article.  Here is one example; there are many other (better) examples in the exam-preparation booklets, or on the Internet!  Have a look, and compare your sources. 
 
     Introduction.  These days in college, many students have a part-time job, although others (such as some parents and teachers) disagree.  Which is best for today’s students? 
     Body.  Having a part-time job while at college can be very useful.  First, it allows the students to gain a sense of financial independence; after all, parents cannot provide for their children for ever.  Second, having a job allows the students to gain work and life experience–something which is very hard to acquire in the classroom. 
     However, having a job while attending college has serious drawbacks.  First, every hour spent “off-campus” means some lost opportunity, had the student been “on-campus”; the university is, after all, “a universe, within a city”.  Second, working a part-time job makes most students really tired; this means they cannot study as effectively as they should. 
     Conclusion.  This is a difficult question, and one which every student should consider carefully.  However, I feel that (most) students should not have a part-time job, as a college education is an expensive gift from one’s parents, and its opportunities should be fully taken advantage of.  Life experience can come after graduation. 
     (Alternative Conclusion.)   This is a difficult question, and one which every student should consider carefully.  However, I feel that if a student is able to responsibly hold a part-time job, then he / she should have it.  Today’s society is very competitive, so the more preparation, the better. 
 
     Finally, I wish to stress again the importance of looking at old exams, the exam preparation booklets, the Internet, and of talking with your friends about this.  Here, in summary, are the main ideas on writing expository articles for exams: 
       (a) Write your plans on small slips of paper. 
       (b) Follow the known article structures that the exam people like. 
       (c) Keep your article structure (i.e., plan) clear, logical, and if possible, balanced. 
       (d) Use sentences that do not waste words. 
       (e) Learn to “write on demand”, under time constraints, and under pressure. 
       (f) Learn to do the above as “synthetic acts of creation”; do not just memorize how others have done it, and then copy them.  Be original, yet follow the expected guidelines.  (You might disagree with this one.  You decide, here.) 
       (g) Finally, take it easy before the exam.  Attend to your own “psychological needs” (i.e., rest, mental preparation) before the exam.  Do not stay up through the night!  Come to the exam in a calm state of mind.  Good luck.  Happy hunting.