X. Make up a plan of the text in the form of questions.

XI. Render the text in a written form.

XII. Read the text and give a short summary: Harvard University

Harvard University, which celebrated its 350th anniversary in 1986, is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Founded 16 years after the arrival of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, the University has grown from nine students with a single master to an enrolment of more than 18,000 degree candidates. Over 14,000 people work at Harvard, including more than 2,000 faculties.

Seven presidents of the United States – John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Theodore and Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Rutherford B. Hayes, John Fitzgerald Kennedy and George W. Bush – were graduates of Harvard. Its faculty have produced 40 Nobel laureates.

During its early years, the College offered a classic academic course, based on the English university model, but consistent with the prevailing Puritan philosophy of the first colonists.

Visitors often ask: “Who is the typical Harvard student?” The answer is that there is no such person. Each student is a unique individual and the student body is incredibly diverse.

Harvard men and women represent an array of ethnic groups, religious traditions and political persuasions. They come from every region of the United States and more than 100 other countries. They include undergraduates and graduates, continuing education and summer school students. They range from pre-teens to octogenarians. In 1997 Mary Fasano became the oldest person ever to earn a Harvard degree, when she graduated from the Extension School at the age of 89.

Harvard College students have a remarkable range of backgrounds, academic and extracurricular interests. Two-thirds come from public schools and about two-thirds receive some form of financial aid. Despite their diversity, Harvard students as a group do seem to share a few characteristics.

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