Hello everyone,
I look for someone who is studying Englisch and/or History and who does so in Britain. I have some questions regarding the overall system and I would like to get first-hand-information. So, if you are around, please raise your hand and - this would be even more nicer - post in this thread :-)

Greetings,
Steve

[Amorya]

Got friends who do both, and my girlfriend is studying history. Any specific questions I can pass on?

Amorya

Originally posted by Amorya:
Got friends who do both, and my girlfriend is studying history. Any specific questions I can pass on?

Amorya

The most important question is very elementary: What is studying like in Britain? I always had the impression that the lessings are very school-like in Britain, that the teachers discuss topics with the students, that you are cared about as a student and so on. Is this true? Possibly, it is more a hope I have than reality...

Greetings,
Steve

[skalie]

"English"

[Randman]

English spelling should be a greater concern that history.

[moonmonkey]

Originally posted by SteveJobs:
The most important question is very elementary: What is studying like in Britain? I always had the impression that the lessings are very school-like in Britain, that the teachers discuss topics with the students, that you are cared about as a student and so on. Is this true? Possibly, it is more a hope I have than reality...

Greetings,
Steve

At university the lessons are called lectures and they last between 1 and 3 hours, I assume they are exactly the same as you would get in the US or anywhere else, one or two people trying extremely hard to stop 20 to 30 hung over people falling asleep.

The workload varies between universities, but suffice to say cocaine and Cambridge have enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship.

As far as lectures being interactive, it really depends on the university and the modules you select to study, but discussing subjects with students is kind of important, so its safe to assume it happens.

The standard of the best universities in the UK is very high, so beware, if you don't perform they will kick you out so fast your Airwalks won't touch the floor.

Good luck anyway.


P.S. people will beat you up if you say "Eliminatory"

[Angus_D]

Lectures are generally not interactive, due to the fact that the student-lecturer ratio is fairly high on most things. There are normally smaller workgroups called tutorials in addition.

Just go and read some university prospectuses online.

[drive-thru]

In the UK, the main difference at university is that you study one subject only.
I believe in the US you major in your chosen subject but also have to take a certain number of other classes in other subjects (correct me if I'm wrong). Over here you apply to university to do your chosen subject (English or History, for example) and you only take lectures in that subject.
The style of teaching and the general culture of the university varies greatly from place-to-place and lecturer-to-lecturer, some being very traditional in their lecturing style and others being more interactive and approachable. As Angus said, lectures as generally just a lecturer going through the material and you taking notes on it. Tutorials are your chance to ask questions and discuss the material in greater depth. This varies with the size of your lectures, on my course (Product Design) some of my lectures were only taken by a small number of people anyway, so these became more tutorial-like.

As moonmonkey said, the standard will be high for any institution worth going to. You may want to consider looking at US (I'm assuming you are from the US) universities/colleges which offer exchange schemes to UK universities - you basically go to study at a university in the UK for 1 or 2 semesters at some point in your course (normally 2nd or 3rd year), but I'm not sure how common these are in the English and History fields.

[Amorya]

Originally posted by SteveJobs:
The most important question is very elementary: What is studying like in Britain? I always had the impression that the lessings are very school-like in Britain, that the teachers discuss topics with the students, that you are cared about as a student and so on. Is this true? Possibly, it is more a hope I have than reality...

Greetings,
Steve

OK, I'll have a go. I'm a science student, and it's different for arts students, but I'll try and go off what they've told me.

You have hardly any lectures in English Lit - two per week is not unusual. What you have lots of is seminars. These seem to be for between six and ten people, and you basically argue a lot.

History AFAIK has more lectures - there's more facts to learn - but a fair few seminars too.

As for 'cared for as a student', I'd need to know more about the alternative. There's not usually anyone to chase you up if you miss a load of classes. But if you need help and grab a passing lecturer they'll sit down and explain stuff to you (or refer you to a book that'll do the same). I was very surprised the other day when a lecturer came up to me in a lecture (my lectures contain 150 people) and told me he thought that something I'd said in an email was a great idea - I had no idea he knew my name! But for an arts student this might be more common - I imagine with small seminar groups then they do get to learn who you are.

Everyone gets a 'personal tutor' - that's the one responsible for caring for you as a student and stuff. I tend not to see mine much - last time I did, he told me to cut off my finger and fill in my cover sheet using the blood from the end, because (and I quote), "I've always wanted to see what they'd do if someone tried that!" But this is the psychology department, so you expect them to be a bit weird

drive-thru is right regarding to only studying one thing. You can study two (called joint honours), but you need to specify this on your application - it can't wait until you get to uni. There's no 'majoring' in stuff - and people tend to choose courses just from their own department. (My department doesn't even offer a choice until third year.)

I can attest that exchange schemes for English do exist - I lived with someone who was doing one last year. However, all the exchange people who came to Warwick said when they left that they wished they were staying (and at least three I know are coming back to do a masters!) Personally I'd come here for the whole three years - you wouldn't end up making friend then soon returning home that way.

(BTW, come to Warwick. It's apparently very good for English, particularly if you wanted English Lit with Creative Writing. And it's a great uni generally There's a huge number of international students, so you won't feel out of place.)

The standard of the best universities in the UK is very high, so beware, if you don't perform they will kick you out so fast your Airwalks won't touch the floor.

Warwick's about 5th best (depending who you believe). They don't tend to kick you out unless you outright fail something, but they don't make allowances either. Late essays lose 5% a day, no arguments. Your mark for the year is the average of all your modules.

As far as I can tell from American media, our higher-ranking universities are more open than yours to all comers. At the moment (due to change in a year or two), the fees are the same for all universities in the country. So the only distinguishing feature is academic merit. Which is good, as you don't get any of the "daddy paid my way" or "I'm on a sports team so I'm a God" stuff - neither of those things would help you at all when applying for uni!


Hope that vaguely helped - sorry I can't tell you more about what it's like doing an arts subject!


Amorya

[moonmonkey]

Originally posted by Amorya:
They don't tend to kick you out unless you outright fail something, but they don't make allowances either. Late essays lose 5% a day, no arguments. Your mark for the year is the average of all your modules.

If we were late the maximum we could get was a pass, no excuses, no extensions, no family deaths permitted etc.

That was the 90's though.

[Psychonaut]

Warum w�rdest du wollen, in Gro�britannien zu studieren?

[drive-thru]

Originally posted by moonmonkey:
If we were late the maximum we could get was a pass, no excuses, no extensions, no family deaths permitted etc.

That was the 90's though.

It's the same on my course. If you're late you either get 40% (a pass) or you fail.
Amorya has some good advice (I hear Warwick is good for English too).

[moonmonkey]

Originally posted by drive-thru:
It's the same on my course. If you're late you either get 40% (a pass) or you fail.
Amorya has some good advice (I hear Warwick is good for English too).

Yeh that was it, good rule!

Hello everyone,
first of all: Thanks a lot for all this information!

As a clarification, I do not come from the US but from Germany (whereof derives the Englisch = English mistake...). Therefore, what I expect from university are sterile rooms without windows and no dicussions at all about any topic. But literature is something that I want to discuss and in my opinion it is something that you ought to discuss in order to understand it fully.
This is my picture of German universities; surely, it is too rough, but still, I would prefer going to Britain.

Some questions are left for me, though.

Firstly, I will have about 500 Euros (=300 pounds) available every month from my parents. Is this sufficient to live? Would I have to work? If so, what is the average salary for normal jobs like working in a store or serving others in caf�s?

Secondly, how much free time do you have available next to university? In fact, I would like to take singing lessons and I'd like to act in a group for laymen next to university - do you think that this is possible at all? Or is this just a dream that is unfullfillable...?

Thirdly, I have considered Warwick. I have a copy of some uni rankings here and it fares pretty well. A question: I am a very enthusiastic theatre-goer: Are there many theatres in Warwick? Is there anything you can tell me about the town?
Other towns I have considered are York, Durham, St Andrews and Cardiffe. Can anyone around here tell me anything about those towns? I saw them on the uni rankings and the websites are quite promising, but otherwise, I don't know much about them and it would be good to do so.

As you see, I am quite concerned about money and about being able to live there. I hope you can help me out on this. Maybe, I'll find a way...

Thanks!
Steve

[Amorya]

Moneywise: that'll just about be enough to live... it's about comparable to the lower student loan amount. Don't forget you'll have to pay fees too, but EU students get special rates. My uni's employment agency offers student jobs starting from around �5.50 per hour. (Up to �9 per hour if you're a techy!)

Secondly, how much free time do you have available next to university? In fact, I would like to take singing lessons and I'd like to act in a group for laymen next to university - do you think that this is possible at all? Or is this just a dream that is unfullfillable...?

Free time activities: as an English student you'll get quite a lot of time (most the work is done on your own - you just come together to argue about stuff). My uni offers singing lessons, for a fee, and has many drama societies.

Singing Lessons
Warwick Uni Drama Society

On top of my degree, I've learned bell-ringing, sing in a gospel choir, am a member of Christian Focus, make TV programmes for Warwick TV...

Regarding Warwick: the uni is actually nowhere near the town of Warwick. It's near Coventry and Leamington. But the best theatre in the surrounding area is Warwick Arts Centre, which is on campus!

People tend to live on campus for first year and possibly third year - otherwise, you live in either Leamington or Coventry. Leamington is very nice - picturesque and stuff. I've not been to the theatre there, but I think it's good for things like that - I always see plays advertised anyhow!

I'm on campus most of the time, despite living in Leam now. I get the bus in every morning, and between lectures I hang out in the Chaplaincy, drinking tea, enjoying the wireless internet, socialising or playing Risk. Campus has most the stuff you need - a supermarket, restaurants, a good Students' Union... it's a running joke that it's possible for a fresher to never leave campus during their first year

As you see, I am quite concerned about money and about being able to live there. I hope you can help me out on this. Maybe, I'll find a way...

If you can sort the fees, then you should be able to scrape by on living costs. (I get about �4000 a year from my loan, and can manage). Don't forget that you can get an overdraft from a UK bank - not advisable unless you need it, but useful nontheless. I had to get one last year to put a deposit on my house.

[Dogma]

Sorry to butt in but, even in my days as a student �300 wouldn't get you anywhere - and I had a grant!

Part-time job is the way to go at least.
Don't take less than �4.50 an hour.
Don't take jobs that give you fixed hours - you sign a contract for 8.5 hours a week, that's what you get, no more no less.
If you want to hole up in a dodgy student dive and live on beans, bread, and milk, then �300 will be fine.

Avg. living costs (not including tuition fees)
�50 per week for non rat infested room big enough to study in
�15 per week for REALLY basic food shopping
�1-�2 Short journey on Bus.
�5+ Journey on Train.

Go small city/town for decent chance of stretching cash.
Avoid Glasgow, Edinburgh, London, Birmingham if you want any money left at all (for one, the night life and ******** is just much more prevelant in those places and you'll never get any work done!)

[iXavier]

Forgive me, but as an American in a university I'm curious as to why students live on campus for the first and third years. Usually here, students live on campus for the first and sometimes the second year and then move off. Why would students want to move back on the third year?

x.

[Amorya]

Originally posted by iXavier:
Forgive me, but as an American in a university I'm curious as to why students live on campus for the first and third years. Usually here, students live on campus for the first and sometimes the second year and then move off. Why would students want to move back on the third year?

x.

To work, and be in close proximity to the library.

First years need campus because it's harsh to make them find a house before they come to uni. Second years then move off, to experience a bit more of life and have a few parties etc. (and because you're not allowed campus accommodation in second year.) The people who move back in third year want to put more work into their degree and don't want the distractions of living in the student-y area of town.

That's the general reason. My reason is partly that I had such a bad experience with renting this house (corrupt estate agent, good-for-nothing landlord) that I want the simplicity of one monthly fee to the university and no problems

Amorya

[Amorya]

BTW, if I remember rightly, international students on a student visa are allowed to work up to 20 hours a week in termtime. So you should be fine if you do get a job.

Amorya

[DeathToWindows]

To answer an earlier question in the thread: In US Universities, one declares a major (for example, I am a declared Psychology major with an eventual focus in experimental) and consequently I have a certain set of requirements to fulfill to get my degree. However, I also have overall requirements from my College within Boston University (it's a huge school, and it's divided up into about 10 sub-colleges) to graduate. Even with these two sets of requirements, I still have the opportunity to study outside my major (i.e. I took a course in Eastern Religion this semester)... so, one majors in a field, but one also takes a variety of courses outside of one's major.

[Amorya]

Originally posted by DeathToWindows:
To answer an earlier question in the thread: In US Universities, one declares a major (for example, I am a declared Psychology major with an eventual focus in experimental) and consequently I have a certain set of requirements to fulfill to get my degree. However, I also have overall requirements from my College within Boston University (it's a huge school, and it's divided up into about 10 sub-colleges) to graduate. Even with these two sets of requirements, I still have the opportunity to study outside my major (i.e. I took a course in Eastern Religion this semester)... so, one majors in a field, but one also takes a variety of courses outside of one's major.

Yeah, it's quite different. You'd never get away with that in a psych degree here - the British Psychological Society have decreed that a psychology degree must be 100% psychology - no other modules!

Amorya

So, again, thanks for all the information; this was quite helpful! The question which uni to chose is still open. Any ideas? Warwick seems like a good idea. I look for a university where living is cheap and of which the quality is good. I do not need a great lifestyle; studying should be fun enough. Any ideas? I have thought about Durham, Manchester and Cardiffe, although the first don't seem to be particularly cheap...

Greetings,
Steve

[Thilo Ettelt]

Originally posted by Psychonaut:
Warum w�rdest du wollen, in Gro�britannien zu studieren?

* Warum willst du in Gro�britannien studieren?


- Thilo

[SimeyTheLimey]

Originally posted by Amorya:
Yeah, it's quite different. You'd never get away with that in a psych degree here - the British Psychological Society have decreed that a psychology degree must be 100% psychology - no other modules!

Amorya

AFAIK, he was talking about an undergrad degree in psychology. You can't practice as a psychologist with only an undergrad degree.

Education
Licensure for the independent practice of psychology requires a doctoral degree in psychology in most states, provinces, and territories of the U.S. and Canada. About half the states, provinces and territories also have a category of licensure for the supervised practice of psychology, which usually requires at least a master's degree in psychology. Degrees must be obtained from programs that meet specific criteria, such as regional accreditation and certain course work requirements, set out in laws and regulations.

Link

That's the same pattern as with other professional degrees in the US. A prerequisite for the specialized advanced degree is a less specialized undegraduate degree, and professional licensing requires both. So for example, whereas the basic law degree in the UK is an undergraduate degree, in the US you have to have an undergraduate degree before you can enter law school. Once you have the (theoretically doctoral level) education requirement, you can sit for the professional license.

[Amorya]

Originally posted by SimeyTheLimey:
AFAIK, he was talking about an undergrad degree in psychology. You can't practice as a psychologist with only an undergrad degree.

Yeah, so was I. I'm studying for a BSc in Psychology.

I think you still need postgrad before you can practice (I hope to do a DClinPsych - for clinical psychology you definitely need the postgrad), but the undergrad degree I'm doing still has to be 100% psych

Amorya