HIGHER EDUCATION IN GREAT BRITAIN
There is a considerable choice of post-school education in Britain. In addition to Universities, there are also different types of colleges, such as colleges of technology, art, etc which tend to provide more work-oriented courses than universities. Some of these courses are part-time. All students on full-time courses receive grants or loans from the Government which cover their tuition fees and everyday expenses (accommodation, food, books, etc).
Universities in Britain enjoy complete academic freedom, choosing their own staff and deciding which students to admit, what and how to teach, and which degrees to award (first degrees are called Bachelor degrees). They are mainly government-funded.
There is no automatic admission to university, as there are only a limited number of places available each year. Candidates are accepted on the basis of their A-level results. All degree courses last three or four years (medical and veterinary courses last five or six years). Students who obtain their Bachelor degree (graduates) can apply to take a further degree course, usually involving a mixture of exam courses and research. There are two different types of post-graduate courses – the Master’s degree (MA or MSc), which takes one or two years, and the higher degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), which takes two or three years.
2.5 Exam task. Read the text and say if the statements are true or false.
The Open University in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, was founded in 1969. It is called ‘open’ because it is open to all – you don’t need any formal academic qualifications to study for a degree, and many adults enrol. The university is non-residential and courses are mainly taught by e-mail and on-line programmes. There are, however, short summer courses and special part-time study centres where the students can meet their tutor when they have problems.
1. Everybody can enter this university.
2. The students can live on the university campus.
3. The student attend lectures, classes and seminars.
4. Modern technologies are used in teaching.
2.6 Read the text and compare higher education in the UK and in the USA.
COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES IN THE USA
Young people in the USA get higher education in colleges and universities. Students choose a “major” subject and do many courses in this subject.
After four years of study students get the degrees of Bachelor of Science (B. Sc), Bachelor of Philosophy (B. Phil.) or Bachelor of Arts (B.A., if they study Greek or Latin). After a year or two of further study they get a Master’s degree. If they go on in their study and research, they will get a still higher degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. D).
Higher education trains people to become teachers, engineers or to do other professional work.
College students often continue their study at universities. Not all the students get grants. The minimum period of study is two years (in this case they don’t get the degree of Ph. D.), three or even four years.
Many cities have colleges and universities that hold evening classes as well as daytime classes. People who work in the daytime can get higher education attending evening classes.
2.7 Complete the sentences with the words from the list.
draft diploma form instructor
1.A person who teaches at a British university is called a tutor but at an American university a teacher is called an __. 2.Fill in the application __ and send it, with a letter, to the college. 3.He has passed the certificate course and now he is doing a __. 4.When you do a task, first do a __ then write it out again.
Grammar: Degrees of Comparison