UK unis harder than US and Canadian unis

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What subjects, out of interest? AFAIK literature, for example, is much more hand held in the USA than it is here: as in, you'll be in class so much with lectures on the darn thing that there's barely enough time to sit down and read around the book

I meant hand held as far as support systems, the way you pick your classes(for the most part, in undergrad, your modules are almost chosen for you), leniency and extensions. Not contact hours

Quite a few people I know who've attended schools in both countries, comment on the same.

Reply 21

username738914

Original post by JMuslimah

Eh? That doesn't make sense.. People have to choose a specific degree/course here - obviously modules will be fairly set.

People in the States have to prolong their specialisation until end of first year/second year. The delivery of most of their courses is, in many ways, done in a spoonfeeding way - at least until they get to senior level classes.

Assessment is also less stringent, class participation and attendance can affect your grades.

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Reply 22

JMuslimah

Original post by Princepieman

Not true...You choose your major when you apply to the college/university. And besides a few classes that have prerequisites(usually higher level math/science) you can take any level classes at any year. Some people just choose to take their gen eds early but that isn't a requirement.

The classes/modules for each major/course is also pretty much set in the US i.e each major has a set list of required classes and a set list of optional classes that you choose from, but you get to choose your classes and class time by yourself from the beginning. There's no tutor handing you a timetable at the beginning of the term.

Assessment is actually pretty strict and for classes that do factor in participation/attendance, that's usually a small percentage of the overall grade. And there generally isn't an option for extensions as in the UK.

Obviously the US is a massive country with thousands of universities so things will vary.

Reply 23

zero_gravity

Original post by Ekemini

An alumni from my a level school who went to the university of Liverpool and got a first class then went on to do two masters finished from Imperial and has now graduated gave us a talk.

Basically he failed his a levels then went on to do a foundation year before he entered uni. He said that in UK unis you are more or less on your own if you are a slow learner.

He said his younger brother who needed you to sit down and explain things to him would not have survived UK but would be doing better in US where he is now because you have more time to absorb things over there rather than here where they throw everything to you at once.
He said he basically had no life. It just included a triangle: class to library to bed to get a few hours of shut eye.(apparently there is no sleep)
If you want to get a part time job it further decreased your sleep time. You may have some time to go to the pub with your friends but that also makes you lose valuable sleep time.
Is this true?

I wouldn't necessarily say that UK unis are harder than US and Canadian unis. It's just a different method of learning and assessment that both systems use.

If you go to a UK uni, you would usually go for the depth of the subject (specialisation) for your degree, whereas in US and Canadian unis, it is more about the breadth of the subject (i.e. your programme will require you to take a set number of core modules on various topics relating to the subject and making connections to the subject based on the modules you take; the rest are electives). In US and Canadian unis, you can choose a major (with no minors, a minor, or double minor), double major, or even triple major (this is the case for some US unis). For certain programs, you can choose a specialisation for your degree instead (with the option of a minor).

UK unis usually base their assessments on examinations and peer evaluation, while US and Canadian unis tend to provide numerous assessment through exams and papers.

Therefore, certain people will be accustomed to the UK system, while others will find it easier with the US and Canadian system.

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 24

Joinedup

Maybe he was just bad at getting help with the areas he was struggling with. Help's available but you've got to seek it out yourself rather than waiting for the teaching staff to check you're keeping up like they did at school.
There's a lot of contact hours in engineering but people manage to organise their time and still have a social life... Just not a social life that consists of eating hobnobs and watching daytime telly with your mates all the time (like English students :smile: