Choosing a university

42

Look at the list below.

Decide which things are important to you in choosing a university; discuss it with your groupmates.

Write V (Very Important), I (Important), or N (Not Important) under your names.

	Importance
The University should be: in a large city
in the countryside
very large (over 20.000 students)
very small (under 5.000 students)
world-famous
Co-educational (men and women)
The University should have: an excellent department in your field
a large library
professors who are doing important research
good athletic facilities, open to all students
many students from your country
clean, comfortable dormitories
apartments for married students
modern, well-equipped science laboratories
religious and social clubs for your free time
a student-run radio or TV station
cafeterias, canteens with good food
opportunity for students to do part-time job

43

Study the following 6 important criteria to choose the university. Tell your groupmates what criteria are important for you from the list and how you chose your university. Add other criteria which may be also important in choosing university.

6 Important Criteria to Choose the Best University

1. Programme of studies

When you know your field of studies the next step is to see which country is best to choose. For example, when you are interested in language studies, the best you can do is to study it in the country, this particular language is spoken. This will be a great advantage for you, since you will learn to speak like a person, who lives there, and you have the chance to practice and improve yourself every day. If you are interested in majors like economics, biology, engineering, medicine etc., you should do a research on the best universities, which are specialized in these fields.

2. Official language(s)

Another point you may need to acknowledge is the language(s) spoken in the country of your choice. Ask yourself the following questions: Do I speak ....(the official language)? If yes, is my level of knowledge high enough to study in a university? If not, do I need to take language courses before starting the semester abroad? Is it a must for the university I am applying at? In some universities there are also programmes in English if you don’t speak the official language.

3. Duration of your studies

Are you interested in a Bachelor degree, which normally lasts 3 years? (in some countries it is 4 years or more). Or a 2-year-Master’s degree? The main question is why you want to study abroad. Are you looking for different experiences or do you want to work abroad after you get your university degree? I am asking this, because it is vital to get informed about the degree recognition. There are many people, who studied abroad and couldn’t get a recognition of their university diploma in their home country or it took a long time and money to make it. If I were you, I would get informed about that beforehand.