At the intitute

Basic Situation: You meet (receive) students from Britain (the USA, Canada) at your university; you describe to them the structure of the university, the system of higher education in Russia; you talk about the life of a student.

Topical Words

higher education establishments: university, college, institute, academy; academic year: term, semester, mid-sessional and sessional exams; grant, scholarship; teaching (administrative) block, library, laboratory, students' union building, sports ground, premises; professor, lecturer; to study, to pass exams, to leave university, to bear costs

Speech Patterns

1.

Where do you study? I study at Oxford University.

Where do you study? I study at Moscow University.

Where do you study, Klim? I study at the institute of architecture (of economics, of building, of (advanced) technology, of ship­building, etc.).

Where do you study, Olga? 1 study at the pedagogical (polytechnical, medical, agricultural, etc.) institute.

Where do you study, Jim? I study at a medical school (at the London School of Economics, at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art).

2.

How are you getting on at the university? I’m getting on (doing) well at the university.

What are you studying there? I'm studying physics.

How's your brother getting on (doing) at college? Unfortunately, he isn't doing very well at college.

What is he studying there? He's studying languages.

3.

When was your university (institute, college) founded? It was founded a hundred years ago, in 1885.

How many faculties are there at your university? There are six faculties, those of mathematics, physics, chemistry, law, history, and languages and literature.

What's the total number of students at the faculties, including the evening and extra-mural departments? The overall number of students is about fifteen thousand.

What subjects are taught at the university? There are different sub­jects taught at the university depending on the faculty and the year.

Do students in this country have to pay tuition at colleges? No, they do not. All the expenses (costs) including the students' grants are borne by the state.

What's the term of instruction at Russian universities, institutes and academies? It is different in different types of higher education establishments, but in most of them it's 5 years.

Exercise 1. Read the dialogues.

1.

A: My name is Dmitry Aleksandrov. I study at the Kostroma Pedagogical Institute.

B: Will you explain to us what you mean? The word "institute" sounds a bit unusual to an English ear. Is it a college or a kind of university?

A: Well, it's a higher educational establishment which trains students to be secondary school teachers.

B: By the way, are the graduates of Russian institutes or universities given (awarded) a degree?

A: No, they are not. The system of scientific degrees in this country is different. The graduates are given diplomas which are actually the same as the British first degree (degree of bachelor). But the degrees of bachelor and master will be introduced when the reforms in the sphere of higher school are completed.

2.

A: I see your university is a rather new one.

B: Yes, it was founded twenty years ago becoming the twelfth higher education establishment in the city.

A: How many faculties are there in your university and what is the total number of students involved in all forms of studies?

B: About eight thousand students study in eight faculties.

A: Do students in Russia pay tuition?

B: No, almost all forms of education in this country are free (of charge). Students of higher and secondary specialised education establishments get grants. Though nowadays there are a lot of new educational forms, for instance, business schools, where tu­ition is paid by the students.

3.

A: Is there any system of further education in Russia for those adults who work after leaving school?

B: For these people almost every university and institute in this country has evening and extra-mural departments.

A: Do such students get any instruction on the premises of the university (institute) and if so how often do they come?

B: Students of the evening department attend classes four times a week. As to the extra-mural students, they have classes during mid-sessional examinations (in winter) and sessionals (in June).

4.

A: What subjects do students take at the university?

B: It depends on the faculty and the year they are in.

A: Well, let's say the first year at the faculty of language and literature.

B: Among the subjects studied in the first year are: linguistics languages (Russian, Latin and foreign), literature, ethnography , political sciences, and physical training.

5.

A: Your institute has a large campus.

B: Yes, rather. Here is the administrative building. Farther and be­hind it there are four teaching blocks. The library and the students' hostel (residency hall) are on your left. There you can also see the building.

A: It's quite a campus.

B: Yes, I know what you mean. The institute was planned and built as a single, separate complex on the outskirts of the city.

6.

A: How do university students spend their summer holidays?

B: In different ways. Some return home, some stay at the students' camp for a few weeks, some join together in building teams and go to the countryside and some work at restaurants.

A: What about sports, hobbies, music and dance?

B: Well, I think those things always come first.

A: Thank you for your reception. You've shown and explained to us a lot of things. You must be tired, let's call it a day. We'll meet this evening at the club, shan't we?

7.

A: Did you pass all your sessional exams?

B: Yes. I could hardly manage them. I was sure I would fail at least two of them.

A: The trouble is that you burn the candle at both ends. You can't work all day and play all night.

B: But I don't. I sat up late and worked at night for the last two weeks.

A: Studying all night isn't good either. You need your rest, too.

B: I took a short sleep every few hours.

A: Well, well. You should be serious about your studies at the uni­versity. It isn't a playground, you know.

8.

A: I enjoyed yesterday's lecture very much. The speaker really knew his subject, didn't he?

B: Yes, he covered it from A to Z, giving the audience convincing arguments and examples.

A: We're lucky we can listen to such lecturers - people who aren't afraid to come out with new ideas.

Exercise 2. Ask your fellow students.

… what new subjects she (he) has this year

… how many classes she (he) has every day

… if she (he) attends classes regularly

… what subjects she (he) is especially good at

… if she (he) fell behind the group when she (he ) was ill

… if it took her (him) much time to catch up with the group

… if she (he) has already begun to read up for the exams

… if it is difficult to do two foreign languages at the same time

… if she (he) always comes in time for classes

… what her (his) favourite subject is

… what subjects she (he) had in the first year.

Exercise 3. Read the text.