EXPLORING THE USA

Education
 Educational System
• The American education system offers a rich field of choices for
international students. There is such an array of schools, programs
and locations that the choices may overwhelm students, even those
from the U.S.
 Primary Education
• In the United States of America education for children is
compulsory and universally available, although this does not
necessarily apply to pre-schools and the detail varies from state to
state. Elementary school begins with kindergarten and extends
through primary school which lasts for between 3 and 7 years.
Curricula vary according to decisions at school district level too,
although the emphasis remains on reading, writing, and
mathematics.
Middle Education
• A period of middle schooling follows that fills the years
between primary school and secondary school.
• The duration varies from state to state.
• Some subjects become elective around a core curriculum that
remains academically focused.
Secondary Education
• Senior school runs through to 12th grade. The subject spread
remains wide with general emphasis. Most schools provide
education in sciences (biology, chemistry and physics),
mathematics, english language, social sciences and physical
education.
Vocational Education
• Vocational education varies between states too, although the
majority of post-secondary vocational and technical training
takes place in private career schools. Approximately 30% is also
provided by community colleges. These present 2-year
programs, and courses transferable to 4-year university degree
programs as well.
 Tertiary Education
• The United States has an impressive spread of universities and the
debate rages on regarding which is the oldest and which is most
revered. Core issues include the definition of university as it
evolved in different states, and whether the widest spread of
faculties is necessarily the best.

The oldest American tertiary institutions appear to be Havard

University founded in September 8th, 1636.
 U.S Higher Education
• One of the most attractive features of the U.S. higher education
system is the flexibility it provides through the number and diversity
of institution types it encompasses
• Higher education refers to study beyond secondary school level and
usually assumes that a student has undertaken 13 years of study and
has a high school diploma. There are three main levels of higher
education: undergraduate studies (bachelor’s degree), graduate
studies (master’s degree) and postgraduate studies (doctor’s degree).
• The minimum age for enrolment at university is usually 18, and
some 40 per cent of college students are 25 or over, many of them
taking advanced degrees.
• Others:
–Undergraduate and Graduate (master’s and doctor’s
programs)
- Undergraduate and Postgraduate (master’s and
doctor’s programs)
 U.S Higher Education
• Degree level courses are offered by around 3,500 accredited colleges
and universities, with a wide variety of admission requirements and
programs. Of the total college population of 15 million students (12
million in public colleges and 3 million in private), around 500,000
are overseas students, roughly half of which are working on graduate
level degrees.
• Hundreds of American colleges recruit students in countries such as
the UK, Hong Kong, Japan and Malaysia. Although the terms
‘college’ and ‘university’ are often used interchangeably, a college
may be independent or part of a university (both colleges and
universities are also referred to simply as schools-Havard Business
School).
 U.S Higher Education
• An American college typically offers a blend of natural and social
sciences and humanistic studies.
• Students are usually 18 to 22 and attend college for around four
years to earn a bachelor’s degree in arts or science.
• On the other hand, a university is usually composed of an
undergraduate college of arts and sciences, plus graduate and
professional schools and faculties.
• One of the most surprising and unique aspects of the US education
system is that many of the most prestigious universities are private
foundations and receive no federal or state funds (their main source
of income in addition to fees is endowments).
 U.S Higher Education
• The most famous universities include the Ivy League universities:
Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Pennsylvania,
Princeton and Yale.
• The Ivy League, together with the ‘heavenly seven’ or ‘seven sisters’
(Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Radcliffe, Smith, Vassar and
Wellesley) of once all-female colleges, are the most prestigious
American universities.
• Other world-renowned American higher education institutions
include the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in
Cambridge (Massachusetts), the California Institute of Technology
(Caltech) and Stanford University in California, all of which have
earned distinguished international reputations for their research and
academic excellence.
 Community & Liberal Arts Colleges
• The US has two unique higher education institutions: the two-year
community or junior college and the four-year liberal arts college.
• Two-year community colleges are largely locally controlled and
publicly funded. They offer studies leading to technical and semi-
professional occupations, and studies which prepare students for
entrance to a four-year degree institution.
• A two-year college awards an associate degree after two years’
study, e.g. Associate of Arts (AA) and Associate of Science (AS)
degrees.
 Community & Liberal Arts Colleges
• A variety of institution types offer higher-education degrees. Liberal
arts institutions, for example, offer courses in the arts, humanities,
languages, and social and physical sciences. The majority of liberal
arts institutions are private. Private colleges and universities are
funded by a combination of endowments, gifts from alumni, research
grants, and tuition fees. Private colleges and universities are usually
smaller than public institutions and can have a religious affiliation or
be single-sex schools
 Community & Liberal Arts Colleges
• The four-year liberal arts college may be one of the constituent parts
of a university complex or an independent establishment. It provides
pre-professional training of four years or less for students who
proceed to advanced professional schools, such as law or medicine,
and offers a liberal education for students who don’t enter
professional or graduate school.
• A university college of liberal arts often serves students in parallel
undergraduate professional colleges, such as engineering and
business administration, by providing them with courses in basic
disciplines. In many states, the top 10 to 15 per cent of graduating
high school students are admitted to four-year universities, the next
20 per cent or so go to state colleges, and the remainder attend two-
year community colleges.
 Community & Liberal Arts Colleges
• Community colleges are another option and provide two-year
associate degree programs to prepare students to continue studies for
an undergraduate degree or help them gain occupational skills for
immediate employment. State colleges and universities, also called
"public universities," were founded and subsidized by U.S. state
governments to provide a low-cost education to residents of that
state. Public universities generally offer access to research
opportunities and classes in a wide variety of fields of study. These
universities tend to be very large and generally admit a wider range
of students than private universities. Each student's interests will
guide his/her choice among the many possibilities.
 Features of a Liberal Arts College
• Undergraduate focus: The number of graduate students at a
liberal arts college is low or zero. This means professors are
dedicated exclusively to undergraduates, and your classes will
rarely be taught by graduate students.
• Liberal arts curriculum: Liberal arts colleges focus on broad
skills in critical thinking and writing, not narrow preprofessional
skills. Along with a focused major, liberal arts students will take
a breadth of courses in fields such as religion, philosophy,
literature, math, science, psychology, and sociology.
 Features of a Liberal Arts College
• Faculty focus on teaching: At a large university, professors are
often evaluated for their research and publishing first, and
teaching second. At most liberal arts colleges, teaching has the
top priority. The "publish or perish" model for faculty tenure
may still be true at liberal arts colleges, but the equation for
tenure will place much greater emphasis on teaching.
• Focus on community: Because of their small size, liberal arts
colleges often highly value the interaction of faculty and
students. The overall educational environment tends to be more
intimate and personal than at larger universities. If you don't like
the idea of 500-person lecture halls and professors who don't
know your name, a liberal arts college might be a good choice.
 Course credit
• Regardless of the institution type, in the United States, students
typically earn credits for courses they take and these credits count
towards the completion of a program. Courses are often divided into
"core" subject areas to provide the foundation of the degree program
and "major" courses to provide specialization in a subject area.
Students can also take "elective" courses to explore other topics of
interest for a well-rounded educational experience.
• The U.S. academic calendar typically runs from September to May
and can be divided into two academic terms of 16-18 weeks known as
semesters. Alternatively, some schools may operate on a quarter or
trimester system of multiple terms of 10-12 weeks.
• With the variety of available U.S. higher education options, students
are sure to find the right fit for their academic, financial, and personal
needs.
• The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2021
includes more than 1,500 universities, making it our biggest
international league table to date.
• It is the only global university performance table to judge
research-intensive universities across all of their core missions:
teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international
outlook.
• It uses 13 carefully calibrated performance indicators to provide
the most comprehensive and balanced comparisons, trusted by
students, academics, university leaders, industry and
governments.
 Glossary
• academic adviser (AA): A member of a college faculty who helps and advises students solely
on academic matters.
• academic year: The period of formal instruction, which is usually September to May. It may be
divided into terms of varying lengths, such as semesters, trimesters, or quarters.
• accreditation: Approval of colleges and universities by nationally recognized professional
associations or regional accrediting bodies.
• assistantship: A study grant of financial assistance to a graduate student that is offered in return for
certain services in teaching or laboratory supervision as a teaching assistant, or for services in
research as a research assistant.
• audit: To take a class without receiving credit toward a degree.
• community college: A postsecondary institution that offers associate degree programs, as well as
technical and vocational programs.
• core course: Courses that provide the foundation of the degree program and are required of all
students seeking that degree.
 Glossary
• course: Regularly scheduled class sessions of one to five hours (or more) per week during a term.
A degree program is made up of a specified number of required and elective courses and varies
from institution to institution.
• credits: Units that most colleges and universities use to record the completion of courses (with
passing grades) that are required for an academic degree.
• electives: Courses that may be chosen from any field of study. Electives give students an
opportunity to explore other topics or subjects of interest.
• extracurricular activities: Nonacademic activities undertaken outside university courses.
• faculty: People who teach courses at U.S. colleges and universities. Faculty members may include
professors, associate professors, assistant professors, and instructors.
• fees: An amount charged by universities, in addition to tuition, to cover costs of institutional
services.
• fellowship: A form of financial assistance, usually awarded to a graduate student. Generally, no
service is required of the student in return.
 Glossary
• final exam: Often referred to as a “final,” a final exam is a cumulative exam on a particular course
subject encompassing all material covered throughout the duration of the course.
• financial aid: A general term that includes all types of money, loans, and work/study programs
offered to a student to help pay tuition, fees, and living expenses.
• freshman: A first-year student at a secondary school, college, or university.
• full-time student: One who is enrolled in an institution taking a full load of courses; the number of
courses and hours is specified by the institution.
• grade/grading system: The evaluation of a student's academic work.
• grade point average (GPA): The combined average of a student's grades for all academic
coursework completed.In the United States, grades are usually assigned in letters and are based on
a 4.0 GPA scale.
Grade GPA
 Glossary
• final exam: Often referred to as a “final,” a final exam is a cumulative exam on a particular course
subject encompassing all material covered throughout the duration of the course.
• financial aid: A general term that includes all types of money, loans, and work/study programs
offered to a student to help pay tuition, fees, and living expenses.
• freshman: A first-year student at a secondary school, college, or university.
• full-time student: One who is enrolled in an institution taking a full load of courses; the number of
courses and hours is specified by the institution.
• grade/grading system: The evaluation of a student's academic work.
• grade point average (GPA): The combined average of a student's grades for all academic
coursework completed.In the United States, grades are usually assigned in letters and are based on
a 4.0 GPA scale.
Grade GPA
• A 4.0 (excellent) - B 3.0 (good) - C 2.0 (satisfactory) - D 1.0 (needs improvement) - F 0.0 (fail)
 Glossary
• graduate: A student who has completed a course of study, either at secondary school or college
level. A graduate program at a university is a study course for students who already hold a
bachelor's degree.
• honors program: A challenging program for students with high grades.
• junior: A third-year student at a secondary school, college, or university.
• midterm exam: An exam administered after half the academic term has passed that covers all class
material up until that point.
• minor: The student's secondary field of concentration. Students who decide to pursue a minor will
usually complete about five courses in this second field of study.
• placement test: An examination used to test a student's academic ability in a certain field so that he
or she may be placed in the appropriate courses in that field. In some cases, a student may be given
academic credit based on the results of a placement test.
• plan of study: A detailed description of the course of study for which a candidate applies. The plan
should incorporate the objectives given in the student's “statement of purpose.”
 Glossary
• postdoctorate: Studies designed for those who have completed their doctoral degree.
• postgraduate: Usually refers to studies for individuals who have completed a graduate degree.
May also be used to refer to graduate education.
• rolling deadline: Institutions accept applications and admit students at any time during a specific
time period until all available spots are filled.
• sabbatical: Leave with pay granted to give a faculty member an extended period of time for
concentrated study.
• SAT: A test that measures critical reading, writing, and mathematical abilities. The SAT Subject
Tests measure knowledge in specific subject areas. The SAT is widely accepted at accredited two
and four-year colleges and universities in the United States, and hundreds of institutions around the
world.
 Glossary
• syllabus: An outline of topics covered in an academic course.
• teaching assistant (TA): A graduate student who acts as an instructor for an undergraduate course
in his or her field, in return for some form of financial aid from the university.
• tenure: A guarantee that a faculty member will remain employed by a college or university until
retirement except in the case of very unusual circumstances. Tenure is granted to senior faculty
members who have demonstrated a worthy research and publication record. Its purpose is to
preserve academic freedom.
• terminal program: Associate degree program leading to a specific career upon graduation.
• withdrawal: The administrative procedure of dropping a course or leaving an institution.