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Mike expert initially modifies: hearing OK now? (10,4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

michaelmas term

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'hearing ok now?' is the definition.
The definition suggests a singular noun which matches the answer.

'mike expert initially modifies' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'mike' could be 'mic' (I've seen this in other clues) and 'mic' is found within the answer.
'expert' could be 'master' (master is a kind of expert) and 'master' is located in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for michaelmas term that I've seen before include "schooldays" , "start of year" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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