Vocabulary activator

Exercise 2. What do you call:

9. the money some students receive if they get a place at university?

10. the qualification you get at the end of university?

11. the name we give students during this period at university?

12. teachers at university?

13. students when they have completed their first degree?

14. students studying for a second degree?

15. the study of one subject in great depth and detail, often to get new information?

16. the talks that students go to while they are at university?

Vocabulary check

Exercise 3. Replace the underlined verbs with different verbs that have the same meaning in the context.

17. Who is giving the lecture today?

18. Did she receive a grant for the course?

19. Is it more difficult to obtain a place at university?

20. You have to pass the exams before you can enter university.

21. He's studying physics, I think.

22. I think they are carrying out some research into the cause of asthma.

23. I didn't take any notes in the lecture yesterday.

24. The course goes on for three years.

Points for discussion

Exercise 4. How similar is university education in your own country? Answer these questions.

25. Do you need to pass examinations before you can go to university?

26. Do some students get a grant to study at university?

27. Is the tuition free if you go to university?

28. Do most students go to university at the age of 18 or 19?

29. Do more students go to university in your country than in Britain?

30. Do most degree courses last for three years?

31. What is your equivalent of the British BA or BSc?

32. Do you have similar postgraduate degrees in your country?

Visiting Open Days

Exercise 5. Before you read the text answer the following questions:

1. Do Saratov universities and institutes organize any kind of 'Open Days' for their applicants? How do we usually call them?

2. When are 'Open Days' usually held in our city? Do they leave enough time to think over your future choice?

3. Why do applicants attend such meetings? What kind of information do they want to get?

Reading for comprehension

Now read the text and find the English equivalents to the word combinations below:

предоставлять возможность

требования к вступительным экзаменам

возможности дальнейшего трудоустройства

подготовительные курсы

All institutions provide you with the opportunity to visit them. This may be in the form of Open Days when anyone can visit. These give you the chance to find out more about courses, departments, subjects offered, entry requirements, career prospects and the facilities available. Pre-taster courses, where a department lays on activities specific to a course, are other options which may be available. Some institutions offer departmental Open Days, which may be open to anyone or specifically organized for applicants who have been offered a place. These will be held within the appropriate department with staff and students there to answer your questions. Their purpose is to help you to decide if you want to accept an offer.

You can prepare for visits by thinking about what is important for you to know about the course, institution and locality before making any further decisions. These might include: teaching methods, assessment, size, subject options and degree structure, accommodation and its cost, laboratory and IT facilities, sport and social life, career destinations of former students, opportunities for placements or study abroad, location, additional costs specific to nature of course.

Exercise 6. Answer the following questions for the text:

1. What are Open Days organized for?

2. What is the aim of pre-taster courses? Do we have anything of this kind in Russia?

3. Does the list of the questions British applicants prepare for Open Days coincide with that of Russian applicants? If not, what are the differences?