Preparing for college.

Higher education in the United States

Applicants entering the United States for higher education should understand that there are over 3,500 universities and colleges in this country. In the American education system, there is no particular difference between the concepts of “university” and “college”, since these words mean the same thing - a higher educational institution. And there, and there you can get higher education: bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees.

These concepts differ only in that the university consists of several colleges, it is larger in size and with a large number of students. So, for example, engineering, business, medical colleges, etc. are part of Harvard University. Therefore, before entering any university in the USA, ask which colleges are included in it.

There are two types of colleges in America:

with training for two years (junior or community college);

with four years of study.

The two-year college is mostly home-based students with some of the expenses covered by the local government, so junior college is relatively cheap for local students. For visitors from other cities or countries, studying is a little more expensive, but also acceptable. To enter such a university, you only need to pass the TOEFL.

After graduating from such an educational institution, the graduate becomes the owner of a diploma of secondary specialized education (associate degree), and gets the opportunity to work, for example, as a secretary, mechanic, kindergarten teacher, orderly or nurse.

As a rule, after graduating from community college, students immediately enter the third year of a four-year college, after which they receive a bachelor's degree. At the same time, all his grades and credits earned during his studies at a two-year college also count. It turns out that junior college is a preparatory stage for more serious training.

The American education system also distinguishes between "small" and "medium" colleges. If the university has no more than 1,500 students, then it is classified as a small college, and if the university has from 1,500 to 5,000 students, then it is classified as a medium university. For example, there are only 880 students in private Pitzer College, approximately 1,300 people study at Reed College - these are small colleges. About 2,200 students study at Wittenberg University, and more than 4,000 at Shepherd College, so these universities are classified as medium.