Certainly if students are expecting a multiple choice test and they receive an essay test instead, they complain. However, essay tests have their own set of problems. If students are asked to do the test on a word processor, it is hard to insure that the work is original. Grades for essay tests are influenced by the length of the essay. If a student rambles on, there is greater likelihood of hitting a few important points.
Essays test grades depend upon writing skills.
Essay tests tend to focus on a few large issues. They are excellent for promoting integrative and synthetic thinking. Multiple choice questions focus on smaller chunks of knowledge and can achieve thorough coverage. The grading of essay tests is somewhat subjective. Essay tests cannot be scored with a machine, so they are very labor-intensive, and they are almost completely impractical for auditorium sized classes.