Vocabulary

body of students - студенты

income - доход, заработок

influence - влияние; действие

residence - местожительство; резиденция; проживание

source - источник

staff - штат служащих, служебный персонал

term - семестр

tutor - руководитель группы студентов, куратор

to admit - допускать; признавать

to confer - присваивать звание; присуждать степень

to consist of - состоять из

distinctive - отличительный, характерный

oral - устный

significant - важный, существенный, значительный

strict - строгий

respectively - соответственно

as follows - следующим образом

in spite of - несмотря на

throughout the world - во всем мире

ЗАДАНИЯ К ТЕКСТУ:

1. Прочтите текст и скажите, как распределяются сферы деятельности и управления в коллегиальных университетах Англии. Какова степень независимости колледжей в университете?

2. Найдите в тексте английские эквиваленты следующих русских словосочетаний.

все еще остаются; совместное обучение; общее соотношение; еще шесть; методы обучения; в целом; следующим образом; в значительной степени независим; источники дохода; семестровые экзамены; выпускные экзамены; вся масса студентов колледжей; присваивать степень; успешная сдача экзаменов; несмотря на все эти изменения; отличительная черта; соответственно; свыше.

3. Найдите в тексте абзац в подтверждение мысли о том, что:

не зная истории зарождения и развития английского университета, трудно понять его сущность; доступ женщин в английский университет ограничен; унифицированные требования к знаниям студентов отдельных колледжей осуществляются через единые выпускные экзамены.

4. Ответьте на вопросы:

1. What higher educational institutions are there in Great Britain? 2. How many universities are there in Great Britain? 3. What collegiate universities were mentioned in the text? 4. Why do they call these universities collegiate? 5. How many colleges are there in Oxford/Cambridge? 6. Why do they call these universities unique? 7. What are colleges responsible for? 8. Who is in charge of organizing final examinations? 9. Do English women enjoy equal rights with men in the field of higher education?

Open university

The Open University is the most recently established university in Great Britain. It was set up in 1969 for those people, who missed the chance of going to an ordinary university. The university differs from other universities in that its students work in full-time jobs and can study only in their free time by means of distance teaching materials, through correspondence and broadcasting. Students need to study about ten hours a week and they are to do a lot of watching and listening to the weekly lectures on television and radio.

As the university is really “open” neither formal entrance examinations, nor qualifications are required at undergraduate level. Students are admitted on a “first come, first served” basis. Each student gets the help of his own tutor who he meets regularly.

Students may be of all ages and come from all walks of life. Some of them want to improve their qualification, others come to the university to do something they have always wanted but had no time or good chance to do it before. This is one of the attractive aspects of the university.

The university has faculties and three programmes of study – undergraduate, associate and postgraduate. The B.A. degree is built up on a credit system. Student's final mark is based on the exam in October and the written assignments done during the year. If you pass and most people do, you have got one credit towards the six that you need for the B.A. degree. At the usual speed of a course a year it will take you six (or eight) years to get your degree.

Returning to “school” may be difficult for most students as they have forgotten or never knew how to study and to prepare for the exams. As an Open University student you get to university life at the summer schools which you must attend -in the first year. You spend a week at a college or university taking lectures and seminars, having discussions and working hard in an exciting atmosphere. It is here that most students understand that they have begun to master the discipline of university study.