Teaching and learning

The US academic year may be divided into two semesters of about 15 weeks or three quarters of about 10 weeks each. Students take courses in a variety of subjects, regardless of their main subject, because the aim of the liberal arts curriculum is to produce well-rounded people with good critical skills. At the end of their sophomore (= second) year students choose a major (= main subject) and sometimes a minor (= additional subject) which they study for the next two years. Students take four or five courses each semester from the course catalog. Courses may consist mainly of lectures or may include discussion sections or lab sessions.

Students are given grades at the end of each course. The highest grade is A; the lowest is F, which means that the student has failed the course and will not get credit for taking it. To check a stu­dent's overall progress, the university calculates a grade point average (GPA). Students who finish their degree with a high GPA may be awarded Latin honours, of which the highest is summa cum laude.

At most British universities the academic year is divided into three terms. Students study a main subject throughout their degree course, which is usually a mix of compulsory courses and electives. Teaching methods vary between universities. Most students have lectures and seminars (= discussion groups) and there are practicals for those doing a science subject. At some universities students have individual tutorials or supervisions.

In Britain a professor is the person in charge of a department or a senior member of staff. Other teaching and research staff are called lecturers. Junior academic staff may be called research associates. In the US most people who teach at colleges or universities and have a doctorate are addressed as professor. Full professors are senior to associate professors, assistant professors and instructors. Graduate students working towards a higher degree may teach undergraduate courses at larger universities. These grad students are called TAs (teaching assistants). In return, TAs do not have to pay for their own tuition and get a small amount of money to live on.

Main Text 2 Higher Education in the uk

Entrance to British universities is via a strict selection process based on an interview. After the interview a potential student is offered a place on the basis of exam results. If the student does not get the grades specified in the offer, a place cannot be taken up. Some universities, such as Oxford and Cambridge, have an entrance exam before the interview stage.

Specialisation - Students usually specialise in one subject, for example, French or History, and they study only that subject with maybe a related subsidiary subject for all three years at college. The system of selective interview is designed to assess a student's aptitude in that subject area. For all British citizens a place at university brings with it a grant from their Local Education authority. The grants cover tuition fees and some of the living expenses. The amount depends on the parents' income. If the parents do not earn much money, their children will receive a full grant which will cover all their expenses.

Students don't usually have a job during term time because the lessons, called lectures, seminars, classes or tutorials (small groups), are full lime. However, many students now have to work in the evenings to supplement their grants.

Holidays are longer than school holidays - from two to three months in the summer.

Students do a wide range of summer jobs and holiday jobs at Christmas or Easter. Students cannot usually repeat a year. Failing exams is very serious.

The social life is excellent with a lot of clubs, parties, concerts, bars ...

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 home 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.

Anyway, the three university terms are only ten weeks each, and during vacation times families are reunited.

Freshers

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.

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.

After three or four years (depending on the type of course and the university) these students will take their finals. Most of them (over 90 per cent) will get a first, second or third class degree and be able to put BA (Bachelor of Arts) or BSc (Bachelor of Science) after their name. It will have been well earned!