Education in Great Britain. Бояринцева Е.И - 11 стр.

                           Master’s Degree                                  individual study. Thus, the graduate takes 6 months to become expert
                                                                            in a subject before sitting examinations. His work is evaluated by con-
       All universities in the United Kingdom provide courses beyond
                                                                            tinuous assessment or through several written examinations, or a mix-
first degree level leading to postgraduate awards. They lead to a degree
                                                                            ture of the two. Coursework assessment may merely monitor your pro-
at master’s or doctoral level, or to diploma or certificate.
                                                                            gress or may form an important part of the final test, as in the case of a
       Applications for postgraduate courses are welcome from stu-
                                                                            taught master’s project where students are required to produce a sub-
dents with a first degree in an appropriate subject. The type and quality
                                                                            stantial dissertation. Written examinations usually form an important
of Master’s courses available vary considerably. The title of the Mas-
                                                                            part of the assessment of taught courses.
ter’s degree is usually determined by the subject studied.
                                                                                   The ‘taught part’ of the course is then followed by four to six
       MA – Master of Arts
                                                                            month’s private research or project work on a special topic, that has to
       MSc – Master of Science
       MEng – Master of Engineering                                         be written up as an extended essay, short thesis or dissertation.
       MTech – Master of Technology                                                The candidate (that is, the person, applying for the degree) sub-
       MBA – Master of Business Administration                              mits his thesis to an examining board, appointed by the board of studies
       There are no grades of master’s degrees although some universi-      (a committee of professors and lecturers, of which there is one for each
ties may award a distinction for outstanding performance.                   subject). The examining board usually consists of 2 or 3 specialists in
                                                                            the candidate’s field. They read the thesis and then summon the candi-
      Academic year                                                         date to an oral examination, sometimes called a viva (from Latin viva
                                                                            voce). At the oral viva the candidate is questioned on his/her thesis and
      Traditionally, the UK academic year runs from September or            sometimes on related topics. After the oral examination the examiners
October to June, divided into 3 terms of eight to ten weeks, with four      come to a joint decision and either accept or reject the thesis.
weeks’ vacation at Christmas and Easter and three months’ vacation in
                                                                                   The place of the traditional MA, awarded on acceptance of a the-
the summer. Postgraduate students, however are frequently expected to
                                                                            sis, has been taken over in some universities by a new Master’s degree
work through vacations – indeed, the bulk of the project for a taught
                                                                            (the Master of Philosophy, or the MPhil), obtained by research. The
master’s course will take place in the summer vacation.
                                                                            MPhil may be in science, engineering, medicine, art or social studies.
                                                                            MPhil is a qualification in its own right; if a student proves he/she has
       Lectures and seminars
                                                                            the ability and motivation to do research, it can lead to a doctorate.
       For taught courses, lectures and seminars provide the basis of              The UK office of Science and Technology is currently piloting a
study at various classes between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Although lecture au-     new research master’s degree, an MRes (Master of Research). This is
diences can be very large – (perhaps over a hundred students) – there is    designed to prepare students for a doctorate. It may eventually become
usually an opportunity to ask questions. Seminars and tutorials provide     the normal starting point for a PhD but it is not mandatory.
more opportunity for discussion in smaller groups. The size of a seminar
group may vary considerably. Some universities retain a tradition of one-                                  Doctorates
to-one work, while others rarely have groups smaller than 20.
                                                                                   The doctoral degree, or doctorate, is awarded for in-depth origi-
      Coursework and exams                                                  nal research in a specific field that makes a real contribution to knowl-
      Students are sometimes asked to write essays which are then dis-      edge. Students carry out independent research (under supervision of a
cussed in the group – this is a good opportunity to develop your skills     professor), and write up their results and conclusions as a thesis. Post-
in presentation and discussion. This work is supported by reading and       graduate research can be in almost any subject. All universities award

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