Unit 3 My study at the University

1. Look up the words in a dictionary, find their pronunciation and read them aloud.

to orientate oneself	Descriptive Geometry
Physical Culture	Engineering Drawing
Physics	interval

2. Read the following words and word combinations and learn them by heart.

I have been studying just for one month.	Я учусь только один месяц.
to make the right choice	сделать правильный выбор
to enter the University	поступить в университет
freshman	первокурсник
to take into consideration	принимать во внимание
to consult with teachers	консультироваться с преподавателями
to be dead on one's feet	валиться с ног
to have to	вынужден, приходиться
It takes me…	У меня уходит…

3. Read the following words and word combinations and translate them into Russian.

to go by bus	additional lessons in all the subjects
to include	attend
special subjects	nevertheless
general

4. Make up your own sentences using words and phrases from tasks 1, 2, 3.

5. Read and translate the text.

***

As you know I am only a first-year student of the Technical University. I have been studying just for one month at the Murmansk State Technical University and now I can say that I made the right choice when I entered the University because I like studying here very much in spite of the fact that we have to work hard.

Every day we have three or four pairs of lessons. The lessons begin at 9 o'clock but as I live rather far from the University I must get up at 7 o'clock not to be late for the lessons. Usually I go to the University by trolley-bus; it takes me about 20 minutes to get there. At 8.50 I am at a class-room. By the way at first it was really a problem and not only for me but for all the freshmen to find the necessary class-room. You see our University includes some buildings marked by different letters and the lessons usually take place in different buildings located rather far from each other. Taking into consideration the fact that we didn't know the positions of those buildings and that the interval between the lessons is just 10 minutes you can easily understand that we were often late. But now we can more or less orientate ourselves in the University and can find our ways to the class-rooms.

As for the subjects we are taught they differ from the school subjects. It needs to say that we study a lot of mathematics, some special subjects such as … and some general ones, they are History of Culture, Physical Culture, Physics, Descriptive Geometry (Engineering Drawing), English etc. We often go to the library or reading hall to take books for our studying or to work there. Besides nearly every day we have some additional lessons in all the subjects at which we can consult with our teachers about the matters which are not quite clear for us. As I attend all the lectures, seminars, lessons and try not to miss additional consultation lessons I usually come home at 5 о'clock. Then I have some meals and begin preparing for the next day. I always have a lot of tasks to be done for the following day. So in the evening I usually feel sick and tired and I am dead on my feet. I go to bed at 11 o'clock. The only time when I can have a short rest is Saturday evening because Sunday is my day off and I don't have to go to the University. But nevertheless I like studying because every day I learn a lot of new interesting things.