Dominican's Flexible Definition of "Midterm"

Something I've noticed in my time at Dominican is the apparent lack of official "midterms." Few classes I've been in have had an actual midterm test when it's traditionally supposed to be held: at the halfway point of the semester.

I asked a few individuals for their thoughts on the matter.

"I've never had an official midterm "test," said senior Brett Wassink. "But I have had tests around that time."

"One of my professors is making us take a midterm quiz this week," said junior Justine Savage. Savage's midterm this week isn't even in the traditional quiz, test or paper format. Her professor instead opted to play a "quiz game" considering all material learned in the course up to this point. "I'm not even sure how we'll be graded if we're playing a game," she said.

Freshman Sylwia Wysocka has not had any official "midterms" so far in her first semester at Dominican. "I haven't taken any midterms, just normal quizzes scheduled around the same time," she said. Sophomore Shannon Seegers has had a similar experience. "This year I did not have any midterms, or if I did, I didn't realize I was having one," said Seegers.

Other students I asked said they have taken actual midterms, but due dates for papers and dates for tests and quizzes were all different, never taking place within the same week. Many of my friends attending other universities usually take midterms in the middle of October, typically prior to a week-long fall break.

I guess the scheduling of midterms (or lack thereof) varies by institution. But it seems like Dominican is truly unique because many professors choose to simply do away with midterms altogether, something I'm sure nearly every one of my fellow students would call a good thing during this stressful time.