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Higher Education
The term ‘higher education’ is used to refer to degree course at universities. Most big towns in Britain have both a university and a college of higher education. There are 91 universities and 47 colleges of higher education in Britain. Universities offer three- and four-year degree courses, while colleges of higher education offer both two-year HND (Higher National Diploma) courses, as well as degree courses.
A degree is the qualification you get from a university when you pass your final exams. Then you are awarded a BA (Bachelor of Arts), BSc (Bachelor of Science) or BEd (Bachelor of Education). Other degrees conferred by the university include the master of arts/science/education, etc. and doctor of philosophy degrees, there are also higher doctorates in law, medicine, music, science, and theology.
Admittance to a University
British universities are not open to everyone. To get a place, one normally applies in their last year at school before taking one’s A-levels. Competition to get into one of the Britain’s universities is fierce and not everyone who gets A-levels can go. Students usually need three A-levels to go to university and grades at A-level go from ‘A’ (the highest grade) to ‘E’.
When students apply to universities (months before taking their A-levels) they are given interviews and then the universities decide which student they want. They offer them the place which depends on their A-level results. The university may make the applicant an offer. For instance, it will give you a place if you get at least one grade ‘A’ and two ‘Bs’ in the A-levels. The offer depends on market forces; for popular, high-prestige courses, the university will ask for very good A-level results. And in general, the more popular the university is, the higher the grades it will ask for.
As a result, only 25 per cent of student population goes on to higher education. Most British students choose to go to university a long way from their home town: university is seen as a time to be independent, to live away from home and develop new interests.
Higher education is fee-paying; thus students whose parents do not earn much money are given a grant (i.e. money from the local authorities). Some students borrow money from the bank which must be paid back after they leave university.
In theory the grant pays for rent, food, books, transport and socializing. In fact, the grant is not a lot of money, and students often have to work part-time (or during the holidays) to earn more money. Because it has become increasingly difficult to do so, more and more students are dropping out, failing to finish their courses.
The system does not allow students to follow full-time courses in a casual way, having a job or living in another town as they study. Students are quite closely monitored, and have to see their teachers regularly. Consequently, drop-out and failure are low.
British Universities
Officially, all universities in the country are equal in status. But they differ greatly in reputation and public image. In general, the older the university is, the higher its status. So the most prestigious are the ancient ones – Oxford and Cambridge – followed by long-established ones such as London, Manchester and Edinburgh.
Some of this is based on tradition and snobbery. In fact, each university has strengths and weaknesses, and sensible students make their choices according to their own particular needs and priorities.
Young gentleman from public schools can enter Oxbridge. This name denotes the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, both founded in the medieval period (*Oxford in the 12th century, Cambridge in the 13th century (1209)).
They are federations of semi- independent colleges, each college having its own staff, own dining hall, library and chapel, and contain accommodations for at least half of their students.
The students are taught either one-to-one or in a very small group (known as “tutorials” in Oxford and “supervisions” in Cambridge). They work at university level, doing research work in physics, chemistry, mathematics, cybernetics, literature, modern and ancient languages, art and music, philosophy and psychology.
Both Oxford and Cambridge libraries are legally entitled to a free copy of every book published in Britain. Before 1871 all Oxbridge colleges were single-sex (for men mostly). Since the 1970s the majority of colleges admit both sexes.
There are 39 colleges in the University of Oxford and 31 independent colleges in the University of Cambridge.
The Open University is Britain’s largest university, with some 160,000 people currently registered on its various programmes of study. The OU is an international university, teaching undergraduate and postgraduate students in other European Union countries. Its courses are also offered through partnerships in Hong Kong and Singapore Universities.
Further Education
Further education (FE) in Britain means education after GCSE and GNVQ exams taken around the age of 16. It includes courses of study learning to A-levels which
students take at their school or six-form college. Some students go straight to college of further education.
FE college, such as Ealing Tertiary College (ETC), has two main attractions:
1) there is a wide choice of A-level subjects, including Law, Computing and Sociology;
2) there is a much freer, more adult atmosphere than at school.
Student who are not happy with the academic study involved in A-levels, and who want to do a vocational course which leads quickly to a job, may also go to FE college. FE colleges offer all sorts of work-related courses, from Car Mechanics to Dental Nursing, which give students NVQ (National Vocational Qualifications).
Then there are those who leave school at the age of 16 and go straight into a job, but later on realize the need for higher qualifications. Quite a lot of people in their mid-20s or older come back into education at an FE college and take a one-year Access course; this gets them into university, where they are often more successful than younger student because they are more serious and focused.
(*Many people combine their studies with work. Some companies release their staff for training one or two days a week or for two months a year. Large companies often have their own in-house training schemes. The British government is very enthusiastic about such training schemes, because so few people go straight to university).
FE colleges like ETC also offer English-language courses for foreign visitors; in some way they are a better learning environment than specialist language schools, as the visitors mix with all British students around them.
