This sounds extremely susceptible to unconscious bias, or even just straightforward discrimination.

It does! That’s why you can ask to be evaluated by a commission of professors.

If you don’t pass after 3 tries, commission is mandatory.

You also have a paper trail of written exams and midterms to back you up. If you keep getting good grades and failing the oral, people will find that obviously suspicious.

Honestly the only times I had any trouble in the orals were the exams where I baaaaarely passed the written. Usually oral feels like the chill easy part compared to written because you can have a back-n-forth with the professor.

	▲	Terr_ 2 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		> It does! That’s why you can ask to be evaluated by a commission of professors. Still concerning from a statistical/psych fairness aspect. There's a famous example of the Boston Symphony trying to fairly judge unseen applicants in 1952, and their results kept getting gender-skewed until they adjusted for the fact judges were reacting to the sound of shoes (e.g. high heels) when the candidate moved around behind the divider.
	▲	ryukoposting an hour ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		> That’s why you can ask to be evaluated by a commission of professors. Ah yes, the classic "if you think the system is abusing you, you shall out yourself to the system that's abusing you if you want any chance of recourse." Because a tribunal run by the people you're lodging a complaint against can't possibly be biased.

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jubilanti 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Moreso than a job interview?

	▲	gpm 3 hours ago \| parent [-]
		More systematic than a job interview. If you don't get one job you should have - there are others - it's unfortunate but not life altering. If 3 years into your marine biology program a professor who always teaches a mandatory course fails you because you're a woman who wears non traditional dress - you're not graduating and now there are no jobs. (And this is an example that actually happened to someone I know - not in a western country)