Additional texts for reading. Be ready to speak about your working day

Be ready to speak about your working day.

Text 1. Student life in Great Britain

Read and translate the text with a dictionary. Say what you think about it. Study the following vocabulary before reading the text:

vice versa – наоборот

a fresher – первокурсник

Vac (= vacation) – каникулы

a Hall of Residence – общежитие

Most 18 and 19 year-olds in Britain are fairly independent people, and when the time comes to pick a college they usually choose one as far away from homes as possible! So, many students in northern and Scottish universities come from the south of England and vice versa. It is very unusual for university students to live at home. Although parents may be a little sad to see this happen, they usually approve of the move, and see it as a necessary part of becoming an adult.

When they first arrive at college, first year university students are called ‘freshers’. A fresher’s life can be exciting but terrifying for the first week.

Often freshers will live in a Hall of Residence on or near the college campus, although they may move out into a rented room in their second or third year, or share a house with friends. Many freshers will feel very homesick for the first week or so, but living in hall soon helps them to make new friends.

During the first week, all the clubs and societies hold a “freshers’ fair” during which they try to persuade the new students to join their society. The freshers are told that it is important for them to come into contact with many opinions and activities during their time at university, but the choice can be a bit overwhelming!

On the day that lectures start, groups of freshers are often seen walking around huge campuses, maps in hand and a worried look on their faces. They are learning how difficult it is to change from a school community to one of many thousands. They also learn a new way of studying. As well as lectures, there are regular seminars, at which one of a small group of students (probably not more than ten) reads a paper he or she has written. The paper is then discussed by the tutor and the rest of the group. Once or twice a term, students will have a tutorial. This means that they see a tutor alone to discuss their work and their progress. In Oxford and Cambridge, and some other universities, the study system is based entirely around such tutorials which take place once a week. Attending lectures is optional for ‘Oxbridge’ students!

The academic year at all British universities has 3 terms: it starts in October, each term lasting 8 weeks at Oxford and Cambridge, or 10 weeks at other universities.

Students have vacations at Christmas, at Easter and the so-called “Long-Vac” in summer.

After three or four years’ study (depending on the type of course and the university) the undergraduates will take their first degree – Bachelors of Arts (B.A.) or Bachelors of Science (B.Sc.). It will have been well earned!

Дата добавления: 2014-12-24