Higher Education in Great Britain

The British Higher Educational System includes universities, colleges of higher education and advanced courses of further education. There are about 90 universities and 47 colleges of higher education in Great Britain. All British Universities are private institutions. It means that they are independent and autonomous, but they all receive financial support from the state.

It is interesting to know that all universities in Great Britain are symbolically divided into YellowStoneUniversities (Oxford and Cambridge), RedbrickUniversities (LondonUniversity) and WhitebrickUniversities or NewUniversities which appeared in the 60s and were made of glass and concrete.

Oxford and Cambridge were founded in the 13^th and 14^th centuries. So they are the oldest, the most prestigious and privileged Universities in the UK. Many prominent men and members of the Royal family were educated there. Today Oxbridge (as the two together are known) educates less than 1/10^th of Britain’s total student university population. Both universities grew gradually, as federations of independent colleges most of which were founded in the 14^th, 15^th and 16^th centuries. Each college has its own name, symbols and traditions. For centuries Oxbridge Universities were only for men. Nowadays almost all colleges are mixed. Oxbridge Universities are known for their specific system of education, called the tutorial system. It means that each student has a tutor, who directs the student’s work, gives personal instructions and keeps an eye on his progress. Every week the tutor and his student meet to discuss the work they have done, to criticize it in details and to set the next week’s work. These weekly meetings are called tutorials.

Redbrick Universities were founded in the 19^th century (between 1850-1930) as a respond to the great demand for educated people. They were based on the mass lecture system. LondonUniversity is the most famous redbrick university, which was established in 1836 by the union of 2 colleges: UniversityCollege and King’s College. Now LondonUniversity is the largest in the country.

The most revolutionary development in university education was the establishment of the Open University. It was formed on the initiative of the leader of the Labor Party, Harold Wilson, in 1971. Open Universities provide every person in Britain with the opportunity to study for a degree without leaving their home. The university is open to everybody if you are 18 and live in the UK. The fees are rather acceptable. It conducts learning through correspondence, radio and television and also through local study centers. There are 150 different courses from which the student can choose. Diplomas are available in 29 subjects. The standards of the Open University degrees are the same as those of other universities. It takes 6-8 years to get a degree. In fact Open University nowadays is the largest university in GB with 200000 registered students and 4 million of others who watch its programs on television.

The admission to the Universities is by examinations or selection (interviews). It looks like that: two or three months before leaving school, applicants fill in the form, putting down the name of 5 Universities in the order of preference. The copies of the form are sent to the Universities for examining and discussing the achievements of the school-leavers during school years by the authorities. The result of out-of-school activities and the references of teachers and the headmaster of the schools are taken into account. The final decision depends on the A-level results. On the basis of all this, applicants are sent a rejection or an offer. In their turn, applicants must accept or refuse the offer within 72 hours. Sometimes applicants get offers from several universities and they may choose.

Vocabulary

advanced courses of further education -

to be autonomous -

support -

to be divided into -

to appear -

to be made of something -

glass -

concrete -

to be founded -

prestigious -

privileged -

prominent -

gradually -

a tutor -

tutorials -

to direct the student’s work -

to keep an eye on somebody \ something -

demand \ to be in demand -

to be established -

establishment -

to provide with -

fee -

to be acceptable -

to conduct -

to be available -

admission \ to admit -

to fill in the form -

in the order of preference -

achievement -

school-leaver -

out-of-school activities -

headmaster -

to be taken into account -

a rejection -

an offer -

to accept -

to refuse -