The world famous universities

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HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE USA

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11. What advantages and disadvantages do the Russian and British systems of higher education have? Where would you like to study? Why?

A lot of young people in Russia nowadays want to get higher education abroad. They go to different countries but one of the most attractive countries for students are the USA. Do you want to study there? If yes, read the texts about higher education in the USA very attentively and get the necessary information.

1. Translate the following words and word combinations into Russian using a dictionary:

to be admitted, to achieve a degree of success, needy, to do exceptionally well, dormitory (dorm), outskirt, to set standards, ability, creativity, to comprise, sophomore, to be devoted to smth., to be aimed at smth., to last, regular academic subjects, area, carpentry, tuition fee, state residents, to be subsidized by, to receive a degree, liberal arts, to designate, to be scattered, enrollments.

2. Practise the pronunciation of the following words. Translate them.

Harvard	[׳ha:vәd]
Massachusetts	[׳mæsә׳t∫u:sets]
Yale University	[jeil]
Princeton University	[׳prinstәn]
Columbia University	[ko׳lambiә]
campus	[׳kæmpәs]
dormitory	[׳do:mitri]
specialization	[ֽspe∫iәlai׳ zei∫n]
tertiary education	[׳tз:∫әri]
prestigious	[pre׳stidзәs]

to repay a loan with interest	возвратить заем (ссуду, долг) с процентами
community college/ technical college/ junior college/ a city college	муниципальный колледж
tertiary education	образование, получаемое в университете, колледже
publicly funded university (state university)	университет, финансируемый государством и контролируемый штатом
privately funded university (private university)	университет, финансируемый из частных источников
board of regents/ board of trustees	коллегия университетского совета
chairman	заведующий кафедрой
to have a special subject area	специализироваться в определенной области
central unit	центральное звено
separate corporate entity	отдельная составная единица
associate professor	доцент

4. Read the text about the education in The United States of America and put the paragraph titles in the correct place in the text.

1. Funding.

3. Entrance standards.

4. General information.

5. Institution administration.

6. Categories of higher educational institutions.7. Degrees. a) ______________________

Higher education began in the United States in 1636, when Harvard College (established by John Harvard, English clergyman) was founded in Massachusetts. The aim was to train men for service in church and civil state. Yale College, Princeton University, Columbia University are the oldest and the most famous American higher educational institutions.

Now there are about 3,000 colleges and universities, both private and public, in the United States. Students have to pay to enter universities.

In the United States, out of the more than three million students who graduate from high school each year, about one million go on for 'higher education'. Simply by being admitted into one of the most respected universities of the United States, a high school graduate achieves a degree of success.

Every young person who enters a higher educational institution can get financial assistance. If a student is offered a loan, he should repay it (with interest) after he has left the college. Needy students are awarded grants, which they do not have to repay. Scholarships are given when a student is doing exceptionally well at school.

American universities and colleges are usually built as a separate complex, called 'campus', with teaching blocks, libraries, dormitories, and many other facilities grouped together on one site, often on the outskirts of the city. Some universities consist of many campuses. The University of California, for example, has 9 campuses, the biggest being Berkeley (founded in 1868), San Francisco (1873), Los Angeles (1919), Santa Barbara (1944), Santa Cruz (1965).

All the universities are independent, offering their own choice of studies, setting their own admission standards and deciding which students meet their standards. The greater the prestige of the university is, the higher the credits and grades are required.

In the USA the lecture method is combined with the informal discussion. The aim is to develop such abilities as logical thinking, creativity, curiosity and imagination.

b) ________________________

There are several ways to continue higher education in the USA: universities, colleges, community colleges, and technical or vocational training schools (institutions).In other words the system of higher education in the United States is complex. It comprises four categories of institutions: The university. A university in the United States usually has several different colleges in it. Each has a special subject area. There may be a college of liberal arts where humanities, social sciences, natural sciences and mathematics are taught. There may be a college of education and a college of business.

A distinctive feature of American university is its 2 levels – the separation of undergraduate from graduate school education. The first level is Undergraduate school of 4 years duration. Here the work of undergraduate students during the first 2 years (the freshman and the sophomore years – the junior years) usually consists of broadly based studies in humanities, social sciences, applied and natural sciences. The last 2 years (the senior years) are devoted almost entirely to the major discipline.

The first 2 years are aimed at providing general education and preparing for more special studies. If all goes well, this undergraduate education culminates in a Bachelor's degree (BS or BA). It's usually known as first degree and may be terminal qualification but it often considered a background for further specialization, a step toward higher (advanced) degree.

The advanced degrees (Master's degree and the PhD) can be obtained in Graduate school, which is the second level of university education. There are two levels at graduate school: the lower to obtaining the Master's degree and upper level for the doctorate or the PhD, which is the research degree.

The graduate students work for 2 or 3 years. During that time they take courses, pass exams, do some laboratory research under a competent professor. On submitting thesis they are awarded a Master's degree.

The four-year undergraduate institution – the college. The American college is known by various titles such as the college of liberal arts, the college of arts and sciences, the college of literature, science and arts. The college may be the central unit around which the university is organized, or it may be a separate corporate entity, independent from the university. A college does not have graduate or professional programs. If a college student completes a course of study in arts or science, he or she gets Bachelor of Arts or Science degree. If college students want to continue for a graduate or professional degree, they must go to University. The two-year, or community college, sometimes called a technical college, a junior college, a city college, is an educational institution providing higher education and lower-level tertiary education, granting certificates and diplomas. The name derives from the fact that community colleges primarily attracted and accepted students from the local community.

From this type of college students may enter many professions or may go to four-year colleges or universities. The program of study in the community college usually lasts two years. Not all of the subjects taught there are the usual school subjects. The community college may give courses in the regular academic subjects or subjects like dental technology, sewing and other non-academic subjects. Not all students of the community college have a high school diploma. They may then go to a college for two more years to get the Bachelor's degree.

The technical or vocational training schools (institutions), at which high school graduates may take courses ranging from six months to four years in duration, and learn a wide variety of technical skills, from hair styling and business accounting to computer programming.

The technical or vocational training institutions have only job training, they have no academic program. Entering this type of institution usually it is not necessary for students to have a high school diploma. Programs may take from six months to two years and more. The technical or vocational institutions give training for work in areas such as electronics, carpentry and others.

c) _________________________

The university may get money from several different sources. A publicly funded university (state university) gets some money from the state government; privately funded university (private university) gets money only from private sources; or the university may be funded by a religious group.

Students have to pay to go both private and state universities. In the state institutions the fees are lower especially for state residents. They are subsidized by state government, e.g. the University of California and the State University of New York. Yet it more prestigious to get a degree at a private university where the quality of education is almost always better.

The vast majority of students (up to 70 percent) lack the financial resources to pay tuition fees and must rely on student loans (money lent by bank on educaton purposes) and scholarships from their university, the federal government, or a private lender. Generally, private universities charge much higher tuition than their public counterparts, which rely on state funds to make up the difference.

Private schools are typically more expensive. Depending upon the type of school and program, annual graduate program tuition can vary from $15,000 to as high as $40,000. Note that these prices do not include living expenses (rent, room/board, etc.) or additional fees that schools add on such as 'activities fees'. These fees, especially room and board, can range from $6,000 to $12,000 per academic year (assuming a single student without children).

d) _________________________

As it was mentioned above to enter such institutions as the community college and the technical or vocational training schools, usually it is not even necessary to have a high school diploma but the entrance standards at the universities and at the four-year colleges are much more rigid. Applicants here are chosen on the basis of:

a) high school records;b) recommendations from high school teachers;c) an autobiographical essay written by an applicant;d) the impression they make during interviews at the university;e) their scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Tests (SAT).

It is necessary to note that entrance standard and admission policies may be different considerably from university to university.

e) _________________________

There are no final examinations at colleges and universities, and students receive a degree if they have collected enough credits in a particular subject. The traditional degree which crowns the undergraduate course is that of a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) or a Bachelor of Science (B.C.). The lower level of graduate school is for obtaining a Master's Degree (M.A. or M.C.), and the upper level is for the degree of a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

f) __________________________

Higher educational institutions usually are governed by a board of regents or a board of trustees.

The executive head of a college or a university is usually called the president. The various colleges or schools which take up a university are headed by deans. Within a school or a college there may be departments according to subject matter fields, each of which may be headed by a chairman. Other members of the faculty hold academic ranks, such as instructor, assistant professor, associate professor, and professor (full professor). Graduate students who give some part-time service may be designated as graduate assistants or fellows.

g) _________________________

Speaking about the most famous American higher educational institutions it is necessary to name the oldest one that is Harvard College (Massachusetts), established in 1636. The College of William and Mary (Virginia, 1693) is the second institution of higher education founded in the Colonies. In 1701 Connecticut Puritans established Yale College (Connecticut).

All these Colonial colleges were gradually turned into Universities with classical education. Their aim was to train men for service in church and civil state.

By the 1770s several more colleges had been opened: University of Pennsylvania (1740), Princeton University (1746), Washington and Lee University (1749), Columbia University (1754), Brown University (1764), Rutgers College (1766), Dartmouth College (1769).

Though the colleges in the first half of the 19^th century were numerous and widely scattered over the settled area, their enrollments were comparatively small. Since 1870s the colleges have developed enormously. Their resources have multiplied, the number of their students has increased by leaps and bounds, the program of studies has broadened and deepened, the standards have been raised, and the efficiency of the instruction has greatly increased. Rigidly prescribed courses of study have given way to elective courses.

In the course of time, when research centers and experiment stations were attached to the Universities, these institutions turned into the strongholds of science and higher education.

5. Translate the words and word combinations into English:

цель; служба; быть принятым в университет; достичь успеха; вернуть долг с процентами; необеспеченный студент; общежитие; развивать навыки; муниципальный колледж; техническое и профессиональное училище; специализироваться в определенной области; первый и второй годы обучения (младшие годы обучения); степень бакалавра гуманитарных или естественных наук; аспирантура; диссертация; требования при поступлении в университет; выпускные экзамены; декан; заведующий кафедрой; преподаватель; доцент; профессор.

6. Find the words in the text which mean:

– purpose;

– aid;

– poor;

– percents;

– consisting of many different parts;

– to be funded by;

– one of the best and the most important;

– money paid for education;

– strict;

– the length of time;

– to get;

– to be presided by;

– to choose somebody for a particular job or purpose;

– to study very good at school;

– initially.

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