NationStates Jolt Archive

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

Far too intelligent to reply to this topic. Hmph.

Far too intelligent to reply to this topic. Hmph.

English major, eh?

English major, eh?

:p

No, I haven't majored in anything yet, and when I do it won't be in English.

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

I majored in Electronics Engineering.
Have additional military school backgrounds in electronics (useful) and submarine tactics (useless).
Also have an MCSE.

I have a degree in physics. My area of expertise is physical comedy. :)

I have a Master's degree in British & Commonwealth Cultural Studies, and I'm now teaching that at university and preparing a PhD.

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

Undergraduate - BA in General Studies with a major in Business.
Graduate - MS Ed with a major in Occupational and Adult Education.
Expertise - Avionics (Aircraft Electronics) I have about 45 years experience in this field.

As an undergraduate I got a degree in international politics with a concentration in international economics from Yale University in New Haven, CT. I attended lawschool and recived my JD from Harvard University School of Law in Cambridge, MA. I then sat for the bar in New York. My expertise is in commercial secured transactions and post 9/11 national and international banking regulations.

I'm edumikated!

I have an associate degree in finance, and finished a BA in family counseling last year, I am now working to getting a masters in family counseling. (none of those are the exact names.....but I don't have my stuff right now to remember the technical parts......I think my masters is like.....something about family science and children or something....right now my brain is fried so meh.)

Edit: M.S. IN HDFS WITH A SPECIALIZATION IN DEVELOPMENTAL AND FAMILY SCIENCE

(HDFS meaning human development and family science)

I have to write a thesis....*cries*

did you pass the bar first try? [/rude question]

yeah, but I took it later than most since I already had a job offer coming out of lawschool that didn't require me taking the bar, I went straight to that and didn't worry about the bar for a while

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

I'm studying medicine.

As an undergraduate I got a degree in international politics with a concentration in international economics. I attended lawschool and recived my JD, then sat for the bar in New York. My expertise is in commercial secured transactions and post 9/11 national and international banking regulations.

did you pass the bar first try? [/rude question]

I did fantastic in high school without trying, and being heavily stoned most of the time. Had no idea what I wanted to do at Uni, but started out in Honours English, then switched to a Major in Anthropology, Minor in Latin American Studies, which I then switched to an Honour degree in Latin American studies, which I got sick of and went into Education and got my BEd. I could have gotten a combined BA/BEd, but I didn't give a shit. Went out, taught for a few years, decided to see if I could get into law school, was accepted immediately, and here I am. Wondering what the fuck I'm doing this to myself for. My focus is Aboriginal law.

I'm currently in my undergraduate course in Music at Cambridge University.

I have no idea about future studies right now.

Say, you wouldn't happen to know a gal by the name of Elle, would you?

I know a girl named "Ellen" from law school, that's all I can think of right now...

edit: haha, legally blonde, very funny. I had to have someone explain that one to me...

As an undergraduate I got a degree in international politics with a concentration in international economics from Yale University in New Haven, CT. I attended lawschool and recived my JD from Harvard University School of Law in Cambridge, MA. I then sat for the bar in New York. My expertise is in commercial secured transactions and post 9/11 national and international banking regulations.

I'm edumikated!

Say, you wouldn't happen to know a gal by the name of Elle, would you?

No Elle Woods? I could have sworn she went to Harvard Law..

oh yeah, she's the one who finished her entire first year in 2 hours..

I know a girl named "Ellen" from law school, that's all I can think of right now...

No Elle Woods? I could have sworn she went to Harvard Law..

oh yeah, she's the one who finished her entire first year in 2 hours..

Yeah! She's quite impressive. Have you met her?

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

Bachelor's degree: English
Master's degree: Secondary Education -- English
License: English Day High School (7-12).

B.S. Networking modeling and simulation
B.S. Network information security
B.A. Statistics
M.A. Network modeling and simulation
M.A. Network information security


Expertise is network design and server administration, specifically *nix server administration but I also am heavy in experience with windows server 03

Bachelor's in International studies.

messed up in GCSE's so 2 C's in science (which covers 3 subjects:confused:)

got some shitty adult qualification in literature from the army (better than GCSE my shaven arse)

works tits off at college though predicted B level stuff which isn't good enough!


I'm 17 thats my excuse

Associates Degree in Criminal Justice concentration in Corrections
Bachelors Degree in Criminal Justice concentration in Probation and Parole

Approximate College debt: $45,000 USD . I should have it payed off by the time I'm eligible for Social Security...I hope

Area of Expertise: Annoying the crap out of everyone on NS.....:D

I'm 17 and currently in high school. I'm a National Merit semi-finalist now. :)

I'm excited about going to the University of South Florida next year. I want to do a five-year program where I can get a BA in chemistry and an MS in chemical engineering.

All I have at the moment is my Leaving Cert(well, I have my junior too, but that's useless), so ask me again in 4 years.

I majored in music and essentially "minored" in English and chemistry (my college didn't actually offer minors) at a Very Good School. When/if I can afford it, I'll probably go for an MFA in choral conducting. I also intend to look into getting my teaching certification once I have some idea what state I'd like to teach in. (Ideally, I'd love to spend the rest of my life in one grad school program after another, but that would cost a great deal more money than I'm ever likely to possess.)

I'm half way through an MGeol in Geological Sciences, and so in a year and a bit I'll have that.

I'm currently in my undergraduate course in Music at Cambridge University.

I have no idea about future studies right now.

:eek: What instrument do you play?

I'm a finance/economics major at Ohio State.

I'm too young to be at university.

I'm going for a BS in Forensic Science.

I'm getting a BA in History from Michigan State, with a focus on the mid 19th century (civil war and the like).

After that, I plan to get my Ph.D in Aerospace History from Auburn. And then teach someplace.

B.S. Networking modeling and simulation
B.S. Network information security
B.A. Statistics
M.A. Network modeling and simulation
M.A. Network information security


Expertise is network design and server administration, specifically *nix server administration but I also am heavy in experience with windows server 03

If you are ever looking for a job check with FlightSafety International 2700 North Hemlock Circle, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma 74012. We manufacture full flight simulators for our pilot training centers and outside customers worldwide. Good company to work for, good benefits, and lots of travel.

I have a tenth grade education.

Undergraduate astrophysicist at Florida Tech. I may switch to astrobiology, and I might be able to get my masters by doing a fifth year as an undergrad.

Chandelier, may I congratulate you on becoming a National Merit Scholarship Semi-Finalist?

When I graduate, my specialisation will be in Animation, my degree will be a BA in Art and Design.

I have a tenth grade education.

That explains a lot. :p

That explains a lot. :p

Go easy on the kid. We were all there once. :D

When I graduate, my specialisation will be in Animation, my degree will be a BA in Art and Design.

Are you planning a career in cartoons, the movies, or games?

Thank you. :)

One of my best friends (I've known him since third grade) also got it. We're the only 2 from my school. :)

I'm also ranked first in the senior class of about 475 students. Hooray! :)

Nice, congratulations.

I'm only 28th out of 340. :p

Chandelier, may I congratulate you on becoming a National Merit Scholarship Semi-Finalist?

Thank you. :)

One of my best friends (I've known him since third grade) also got it. We're the only 2 from my school. :)

I'm also ranked first in the senior class of about 475 students. Hooray! :)

Go easy on the kid. We were all there once. :D

Oh, I am not much more advanced, education-wise. So I think that gives me a license to poke fun at people, yet demonstrate a sense of irony....or is it hypocrisy..:eek:

Nice, congratulations.

I'm only 28th out of 340. :p

Thanks. :)

That's pretty good too. :p

Thanks. :)

That's pretty good too. :p

Thank ye.

I know a large amount of people who were complaining about their class rank, and when I would ask them what they got it was always better than mine. I would just shrug and smile vaguely or make some comment about how "You can't be the best at everything." Needless to say, they didn't take it very well. :p

I'm in high school and failing because America's worthless educational system is rotting my mind, and I cannot possibly ever get good grades because I am so easily bored. I am currently considering a GED, and then moving on to a community college in hopes that it will be better.

Thank you. :)

One of my best friends (I've known him since third grade) also got it. We're the only 2 from my school. :)

I'm also ranked first in the senior class of about 475 students. Hooray! :)

Congradulations. Keep up the hard work. You will do well.

I have a tenth grade education.

This.

Though I do have a 138 official IQ, had near perfect standardized test scores, and got an 80% on a civics test (I'll edit in a link later if I remember) that Harvard seniors averaged a 69% on.

I'm in high school and failing because America's worthless educational system is rotting my mind, and I cannot possibly ever get good grades because I am so easily bored. I am currently considering a GED, and then moving on to a community college in hopes that it will be better.

It won't. Doing boring things and things that you don't want to do are pretty much going to be with you through every level of education. They're also going to be there when you work, and you really don't have any choice otherwise. For all the fun stuff in every career, there's going to be the boring stuff behind it that has to be done to make the interesting things possible.

This.

Though I do have a 138 official IQ, had near perfect standardized test scores, and got an 80% on a civics test (I'll edit in a link later if I remember) that Harvard seniors averaged a 69% on.

134.

134.

130 or so.

I did not finish college due to some unforseen family crises.

My expertise is in paying attention to important details that other people avoid so as to not complicate their agenda.

My expertise is in considering all sides of an issue, while remaining detached and dispassionate.

My expertise is in refusing the be bound or let the issue be bound by the narrow restriction of dualistic and unbalanced perspectives.

My expertise is in being advocate for all sides of the equation.

My expertise is in collapsing walls with words.

My expertise is in refusing specialization and intelligence for broad-mindedness and wisdom.

My expertise is in sensing and responding to the subtle factors in a given situation, and in doing so, affecting the gross manifestations of those factors, all while remaining anonymous.

My expertise is in shutting down people who think they are smarter than other people because they are only ignorant of 99.999999999999999% of what's happening, instead of 99.9999999999999999% of what's happening.

My expertise is in living well.

Thank ye.

I know a large amount of people who were complaining about their class rank, and when I would ask them what they got it was always better than mine. I would just shrug and smile vaguely or make some comment about how "You can't be the best at everything." Needless to say, they didn't take it very well. :p

Class rank won't make a tinkers damn three years after graduation. I didn't rank very well in High School, in fact I was lucky my GPA was high enough to graduate. I went to college part time, got my BA, and graduated with a 3.25 GPA. In grad school I graduated with a 3.98 GPA. It would have been a perfect 4.0 but I screwed off in my last class and ended up getting a 3.0 in that class.

Tell those who are worried about GPA to blow it out their ass. More important than the GPA is what you learn. I'm sure there is no one in this world who gives a damn about my GPA with the possible exception of an employer and there are many of them who don't give a damn either. They just want to know if you can do the job.

IQ - 146
SAT - 1510
Number of times I found a number a useful way to determine anything about a person - 0

Congradulations. Keep up the hard work. You will do well.

Thanks. I hope so. :)


My IQ was 132 when they tested it when I was about six years old.

Oh, I am not much more advanced, education-wise. So I think that gives me a license to poke fun at people, yet demonstrate a sense of irony....or is it hypocrisy..:eek:

Just be careful about poking fun at old farts. :D

I'm a freshman at my University studying International Relations and Culural Studies, and will have a focus on European studies. I've also studied abroad, having studied Compartive Politics in Germany. I havn't decided on a minor yet, since I'm a freshman..but it will either be German, Spanish or European studies. I'd also love to go to graduate school at George Washington and study abroad again.

Class rank won't make a tinkers damn three years after graduation. I didn't rank very well in High School, in fact I was lucky my GPA was high enough to graduate. I went to college part time, got my BA, and graduated with a 3.25 GPA. In grad school I graduated with a 3.98 GPA. It would have been a perfect 4.0 but I screwed off in my last class and ended up getting a 3.0 in that class.

Tell those who are worried about GPA to blow it out their ass. More important than the GPA is what you learn. I'm sure there is no one in this world who gives a damn about my GPA with the possible exception of an employer and there are many of them who don't give a damn either. They just want to know if you can do the job.

Exactly.

It won't. Doing boring things and things that you don't want to do are pretty much going to be with you through every level of education. They're also going to be there when you work, and you really don't have any choice otherwise. For all the fun stuff in every career, there's going to be the boring stuff behind it that has to be done to make the interesting things possible.

EXCELLENT POST!

Just be careful about poking fun at old farts. :D

Watcha gunna do ol' man? Whip out yer cane 'n wave it at me?
:p

If you went to a university or college, what did you major in
Physics with a specialization in astrophysics and a minor in philosophy.

(or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)?
I'm working on my Master's in astronomy.

BA(Hons) in Music and Recording, specialised in music tech and arranging.

IQ - 146
SAT - 1510
Number of times I found a number a useful way to determine anything about a person - 0

When I worked as a soda clerk in a drug store in 1959-61, there was an MIT professor who was one of our customers. This man was brilliant. He had a PhD., taught at one of the most prestigious engineering universities in the world, and invented one of the first robots. Obviously a man of great intelligence and most likely had a very high IQ.

Very often, he would come into the drug store and when I asked him, “May I help you professor?” His answer would be, “No thank you. I forgot what I came in here for.”

Watcha gunna do ol' man? Whip out yer cane 'n wave it at me?
:p

Or send a B-52 to visit you. :D

Just finished my AS levels (not really sure there's an equivalent to them, erm, anywhere else).

And I'm doing French, German, English Language (woop woop German comes in handy for Old English) and also Modern History, as well as being in the Students' Union.

After college I'll go on to do History somewhere or other at University. Probably Sheffield or something. I'd go to York, but I live there and my mother also studies there, so meh.

Which is slightly tedious, but then complaining about your education being boring is the kind of thing that gets you a world's smallest violin commissioned.

Or send a B-52 to visit you. :D

*reads sig*

. . .

:eek:

BS Mass Communications

MS Speech Communications

emphasis: Rhetoric, logic, forensics

Which is why I try to avoid the "circular reasoning" "Strawman" and other catch words thrown around on this forum when the user doesn't have a clue.

When I worked as a soda clerk in a drug store in 1959-61, there was an MIT professor who was one of our customers. This man was brilliant. He had a PhD., taught at one of the most prestigious engineering universities in the world, and invented one of the first robots. Obviously a man of great intelligence and most likely had a very high IQ.

Very often, he would come into the drug store and when I asked him, “May I help you professor?” His answer would be, “No thank you. I forgot what I came in here for.”

There is something about those three letters (PHD) that fries the brain.

WARNING To those not yet through college: Do not take a class from a person that has a brand new PHD. Doctoritis is a real affliction. It is a type of insanity that causes the person with it to punish every student in sight. Wait at least a couple years for them to recover from this phase of the disease.

Exactly.

It still feels pretty good that I have a 4.723 weighted cumulative GPA though. :)

But I've learned a lot in my classes... both this year and last year six of my classes were college-level (mostly AP, but a dual-enrollment, too). AP Chemistry was probably the toughest class I've ever taken, but I still managed to get an A in it and a 3 on the AP exam and I learned so much in that class.

It still feels pretty good that I have a 4.723 weighted cumulative GPA though. :)

But I've learned a lot in my classes... both this year and last year six of my classes were college-level (mostly AP, but a dual-enrollment, too). AP Chemistry was probably the toughest class I've ever taken, but I still managed to get an A in it and a 3 on the AP exam and I learned so much in that class.

Holy s:eek:t.

The most AP courses I have taken in a year is 4. I hear that AP Chem. is a tough class, but it is good that you learned something from it. As opposed to when I took AP Biology and now hardly remember a thing.

I'm in the process of applying to uni to read Maths and Philosophy (planning to concentrate on the Maths side of the course). I got four A grades at A-Level (Maths, Further Maths, Philosophy and French) so hopefully somewhere will take me. :p As yet I have no expertise.

There is something about those three letters (PHD) that fries the brain.

WARNING To those not yet through college: Do not take a class from a person that has a brand new PHD. Doctoritis is a real affliction. It is a type of insanity that causes the person with it to punish every student in sight. Wait at least a couple years for them to recover from this phase of the disease.

Definitions:

BS = Bull shit.
MS = More shit.
PhD = Piled higher and deeper.
:eek:

Holy s:eek:t.

The most AP courses I have taken in a year is 4. I hear that AP Chem. is a tough class, but it is good that you learned something from it. As opposed to when I took AP Biology and now hardly remember a thing.

That's the usual reaction when people see my report card. :)

I took 5 last year and am taking 6 this year. I'm taking AP Biology online this year but they haven't sent me my lab manual or text book yet...

I have so many great memories from AP Chemistry...

Like the time we were staying after school to finish a titration, and my lab partner (a year older than me and was a National Merit Finalist) said that it was my fault that he didn't read the labels and so was apparently trying to titrate an acid with the same acid.

And the time that the only other junior in the class said jokingly that I was the anti-christ because the distilled water started bubbling when I touched it, and because at that time my cumulative weighted GPA was 4.666. He also joked that communism caused me to have hiccups and named me Junior Whopper and my lab partner Burger King because my initials are JW and his are BK.

I think about 40% my chemistry class passed the AP exam, which was a lot more than the previous year, which was the first year it was offered at my school. I think she said 6 out of the 15 students passed it. (so me, my lab partner, the really nice girl who sat in front of me and was also in my AP Latin class, the smart nice guy who sat in front of her, the guy with the curly hair who sat next to me and was in my pre-calc/trig class, and the guy who was also a National Merit Finalist, first in his class, and had 7 AP classes) :)

I loved that class. And the teacher was the same one I had in tenth grade for Chemistry Honors and she is like perpetually happy. :)

I found once done high school there are two types of education. The first is the kind that we youth are expected to enter. You know, the one that is bought. The one that will pull us out of the daily grind and turn us into better people. Smarter people. Wealthy people.

Or there is the kind that many of our fathers and grandfathers had. The kind of education that is the daily grind. The one that is studied by those society would rather forget than rever. The one studied by the "less intelligent". The one studied by the "poorer" people.

I chose the latter. Nothing at university or college has managed to garner much interest at all. I don't feel the need to shell out thousands of dollars to get a piece of paper I can hang on my wall. I prefer the physical labor. I prefer the people. I may say I hate the mud and the heat or the cold and the wind, but to be honest it beats a day in cubicle and fake light. I would rather shift gears in a truck than type away at a key board.

I figure it takes a different kind of intelligence to do the work that I do. Not the academic, not IQ levels or SAT scores. The kind of intelligence it takes to feel your way around 18 speeds of highway heavy metal and know that truck better than anyone. The kind of intelligence it takes to drill a precise hole thousands of feet into the earth to find that pocket of black gold. The kind of intelligence that can only ever be learned in the real world first hand.

That's how smart I am.

Holy s:eek:t.

The most AP courses I have taken in a year is 4. I hear that AP Chem. is a tough class, but it is good that you learned something from it. As opposed to when I took AP Biology and now hardly remember a thing.

What are AP classes? Advanced Placement?

*snip*. :)

Sounds like good times.

I feel smart now because I knew what 'titration' was. :p

What are AP classes? Advanced Placement?

Right on, old-timer. :p

It still feels pretty good that I have a 4.723 weighted cumulative GPA though. :)

4.723 GPA :confused:

When and where I went to school 4.0 was the highest GPA you could get. Reason:
A = 4.0
B = 3.0
C = 2.0 (and death in a grad program)
D = 1.0
E = toast.

So even if you get an A in every course the most you can come up with for a GPA is 4.0 which was a perfect GPA. What has changed so you can get higher than a 4.0. :confused:

What are AP classes? Advanced Placement?

Yes. :)

In May we take the AP exams for the AP classes, and if we get a 3, 4, or 5 on a scale that goes up to 5, we can get credit for it from universities, depending on the specific school's policy.

Sounds like good times.

I feel smart now because I knew what 'titration' was. :p

Yeah, it was great. :)

Hehe. :P

Yes. :)

In May we take the AP exams for the AP classes, and if we get a 3, 4, or 5 on a scale that goes up to 5, we can get credit for it from universities, depending on the specific school's policy.

Yeah, it was great. :)

Hehe. :P

Great. You can get college credit while in High School. That's wonderful as it allows you to complete college a lot quicker and with less expense.

4.723 GPA :confused:

When and where I went to school 4.0 was the highest GPA you could get. Reason:
A = 4.0
B = 3.0
C = 2.0 (and death in a grad program)
D = 1.0
E = toast.

So even if you get an A in every course the most you can come up with for a GPA is 4.0 which was a perfect GPA. What has changed so you can get higher than a 4.0. :confused:

AP and Honours courses are weighted. So on the scale everything is a point higher. Such as A = 5.0, B = 4.0 and so on.

I have a tenth grade education.

Because you've just come out of tenth grade?

Great. You can get college credit while in High School. That's wonderful as it allows you to complete college a lot quicker and with less expense.

Yeah. I probably won't have to take English at all... I got a 5 on the AP English Language exam and I'm taking AP English Literature this year. :)

4.723 GPA :confused:

When and where I went to school 4.0 was the highest GPA you could get. Reason:
A = 4.0
B = 3.0
C = 2.0 (and death in a grad program)
D = 1.0
E = toast.

So even if you get an A in every course the most you can come up with for a GPA is 4.0 which was a perfect GPA. What has changed so you can get higher than a 4.0. :confused:

Weighted GPAs. They still have unweighted GPAs that are on a 4.0 scale (mine is 4.0).

For unweighted it's pretty much the same, and my high school requires a 2.0 unweighted GPA to graduate.

A=4.0
B=3.0
C=2.0
D=1.0
F= 0

But for a class that is weighted, which would include all Honors, AP, and Dual-Enrollment classes (probably IB, too, but my school isn't an IB school), each one (except F) goes up a point.

A=5.0
B=4.0
C=3.0
D=2.0
F= 0

I guess they do it because otherwise a kid who takes only the easiest classes available and gets As in them would have a higher GPA than a kid who takes the hardest classes available and got like one B. It's supposed to take into account the difficulty of the classes. For class rank and I think for college applications they look at the weighted GPA, although for scholarship purposes they weight it differently than that (I think it's weighted .5 instead of 1 for AP and honors classes... my Bright Futures GPA is 4.47).

I found once done high school there are two types of education. The first is the kind that we youth are expected to enter. You know, the one that is bought. The one that will pull us out of the daily grind and turn us into better people. Smarter people. Wealthy people.

Or there is the kind that many of our fathers and grandfathers had. The kind of education that is the daily grind. The one that is studied by those society would rather forget than rever. The one studied by the "less intelligent". The one studied by the "poorer" people.

I chose the latter. Nothing at university or college has managed to garner much interest at all. I don't feel the need to shell out thousands of dollars to get a piece of paper I can hang on my wall. I prefer the physical labor. I prefer the people. I may say I hate the mud and the heat or the cold and the wind, but to be honest it beats a day in cubicle and fake light. I would rather shift gears in a truck than type away at a key board.

I figure it takes a different kind of intelligence to do the work that I do. Not the academic, not IQ levels or SAT scores. The kind of intelligence it takes to feel your way around 18 speeds of highway heavy metal and know that truck better than anyone. The kind of intelligence it takes to drill a precise hole thousands of feet into the earth to find that pocket of black gold. The kind of intelligence that can only ever be learned in the real world first hand.

That's how smart I am.
Okay, that makes at least one English major...

I guess they do it because otherwise a kid who takes only the easiest classes available and gets As in them would have a higher GPA than a kid who takes the hardest classes available and got like one B. It's supposed to take into account the difficulty of the classes. For class rank and I think for college applications they look at the weighted GPA, although for scholarship purposes they weight it differently than that (I think it's weighted .5 instead of 1 for AP and honors classes... my Bright Futures GPA is 4.47).

That is what I believe as well. It makes sense, because people who take all Level 2 classes(in my school there are AP, Honours classes, then Level 1 classes which are the normal ones, and Level 2 classes as the lowest level) and one AP class could get a higher GPA than me. Though, to be honest, I had Level 2 Precalculus last year. Despite that, I have Honours Calculus this year...which confuses me to no end. I fail at math in general. :p

But for a class that is weighted, which would include all Honors, AP, and Dual-Enrollment classes (probably IB, too, but my school isn't an IB school), each one (except F) goes up a point.

A=5.0
B=4.0
C=3.0
D=2.0
F= 0


Good deal. Gives the folks who work hard and take the difficult classes a leg up. Thanks for the information. Oh, and I'm sure you will do well when you get to college. Remember there are many scholarships out there that do not get awarded every year because no on knows about them. Look for and apply for every one you can find.

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

I'm majoring in pre-law studies and minoring in hispanic studies here in Puerto Rico. I'm about halfway through n.n

That is what I believe as well. It makes sense, because people who take all Level 2 classes(in my school there are AP, Honours classes, then Level 1 classes which are the normal ones, and Level 2 classes as the lowest level) and one AP class could get a higher GPA than me. Though, to be honest, I had Level 2 Precalculus last year. Despite that, I have Honours Calculus this year...which confuses me to no end. I fail at math in general. :p

There are people at my school who take two years to take Algebra I... Algebra 1A and Algebra 1B.

Good deal. Gives the folks who work hard and take the difficult classes a leg up. Thanks for the information. Oh, and I'm sure you will do well when you get to college. Remember there are many scholarships out there that do not get awarded every year because no on knows about them. Look for and apply for every one you can find.

Yeah. My only problem with it is that foreign language classes aren't weighted, at least not until you get to the AP level. Every college-bound student has to take at least 2 years of a foreign language, and they're about the same difficulty as the English classes, which are honors.

I'll try to do that. Florida has a nice program called Bright Futures that I qualify for, too. It has 2 different levels. The upper level pays for 100% of tuition and fees (including lab fees) to any public university in the state of Florida and requires a 3.5 GPA weighted by their scale (which I think only includes core academic classes and academic electives), 75 hours of community service (I have 146; plenty of people have lots more than that), and a 1270 or higher on the old SAT or 28 on the ACT. They also have a second level that will pay 100% to a public community college or 75% to a public university in the state of Florida and only requires a 3.0 by their weighting system.

That's good advice, I'm going to try to look for some. I got a $400 scholarship last year from the program I've tutored with at an elementary school for the past three years. It was kind of personal for me, because my little brother was considered as at risk of being held back in second grade because of his learning disabilities, and he was tutored by that same program and it helped him considerably, and he wasn't held back. Now he is a high school freshman and he got 5 A's and 2 B's on his first quarter progress report, and he's been approved to become a tutor in that same program that he was in. So I know that it can make a huge difference in a child's life, even if you don't always see signs that it's happening while they are with you. :)

There are people at my school who take two years to take Algebra I... Algebra 1A and Algebra 1B.



Yeah. My only problem with it is that foreign language classes aren't weighted, at least not until you get to the AP level. Every college-bound student has to take at least 2 years of a foreign language, and they're about the same difficulty as the English classes, which are honors.

I'll try to do that. Florida has a nice program called Bright Futures that I qualify for, too. It has 2 different levels. The upper level pays for 100% of tuition and fees (including lab fees) to any public university in the state of Florida and requires a 3.5 GPA weighted by their scale (which I think only includes core academic classes and academic electives), 75 hours of community service (I have 146; plenty of people have lots more than that), and a 1270 or higher on the old SAT or 28 on the ACT. They also have a second level that will pay 100% to a public community college or 75% to a public university in the state of Florida and only requires a 3.0 by their weighting system.

That's good advice, I'm going to try to look for some. I got a $400 scholarship last year from the program I've tutored with at an elementary school for the past three years. It was kind of personal for me, because my little brother was considered as at risk of being held back in second grade because of his learning disabilities, and he was tutored by that same program and it helped him considerably, and he wasn't held back. Now he is a high school freshman and he got 5 A's and 2 B's on his first quarter progress report, and he's been approved to become a tutor in that same program that he was in. So I know that it can make a huge difference in a child's life, even if you don't always see signs that it's happening while they are with you. :)

Strange. I used to be in the 'Unified Math Program', but first marking period of Freshman year I got a 'D' and was 'recommended' to switch out of the program into Geometry. :p

At my school I believe the fourth year of languages is considered Honours and the Fifth year is then AP. I have Italian V right now. Yay.

Nice, do you have any idea what you would want to major in?

Awesome, its always good to give back to the people/programs that have helped others and/or oneself.

Undergrad: mathematics and philosophy.
Masters: political science, concentration in political theory, thesis on horror movies.
Ph.D. (in progress, expected 2009): political science, concentrations in political theory, public law, American politics; dissertation on free will--critical theory perspectives, philosophy of science.

Strange. I used to be in the 'Unified Math Program', but first marking period of Freshman year I got a 'D' and was 'recommended' to switch out of the program into Geometry. :p

At my school I believe the fourth year of languages is considered Honours and the Fifth year is then AP. I have Italian V right now. Yay.

Nice, do you have any idea what you would want to major in?

Awesome, its always good to give back to the people/programs that have helped others and/or oneself.

Ah. For Spanish and French I think it's that way here, but for Latin you only need to take 2 years of Latin before taking AP, since there are two different AP Latin exams. Of course my school is the only public high school in this county that offers Latin...and my Latin teacher is awesome and also teaches the advanced French classes as well as some freshman English classes.

My other brother (the twin of the one I mentioned before) got an F on the final exam for Algebra I Honors, which he was taking as a high school class in middle school, which meant that he got a C for the semester. But he retook it at summer school and got an A no problem... and a whole bunch of other people got Fs on the exam, so it likely had a lot to do with the fact that they had a new teacher who didn't prepare them as well for it...

Chemical engineering :)

Yes, it is. :)

Chemical engineering :)

Wow... I've heard organic chem is the most brutal of the courses they take for their major. Of course, it's also in extremely high demand and you've got the highest starting salaries of every engineering field, so it kind of balances out.

Me, I prefer the word of finance and economics.

AP and Honours courses are weighted. So on the scale everything is a point higher. Such as A = 5.0, B = 4.0 and so on.

You're lucky, AP classes in the school system I came from weren't weighted...

Wow... I've heard organic chem is the most brutal of the courses they take for their major. Of course, it's also in extremely high demand and you've got the highest starting salaries of every engineering field, so it kind of balances out.

Me, I prefer the word of finance and economics.

I've heard that too... I've heard that AP Chem is more difficult than the first semester of General Chem, but that Organic is really hard.

But it's a five-year program that'll give me a BA in chemistry, I think, and an MS in chemical engineering when I'm done with it... :)

I'm taking the required economics honors class now... it's kind of fun but I can tell that our teacher, who really likes the government portion (I think he worked for people's campaigns or as an advisor or something for a while before becoming a teacher), is getting frustrated with the class because we keep ruining his examples by being "weird" and because a lot of the people don't understand it but don't ask questions when he asks if they have any questions and then complain when he gives them a quiz.
Well, he said that we're weird because we all sat at the front of the room on the first day. And also because he was trying to see how many people bring their own drinks to school this year, because the vending machine prices went up to $1.25 this year, and a lot of said we did, but we ruined it because he then asked how many people brought them last year and most of us said that we did then, too...

It was funny when the guidance office called me down to talk about college stuff right before we started doing classwork. I got back, and my classmates were like, "Jennifer's back!!!!! HELP US!!!!!"

About to read History at York (one week to go, and the accomodation office are officially cunts. Sharing rooms= one very unhappy bunny). I am ever more tempted by transferring to read English literature, at which I am rather better, but either way I intend to then get an Oxbridge Ma, primarily because I want to prove a point, and then either teach, or go into Sports journalism.

Good deal. Gives the folks who work hard and take the difficult classes a leg up. Thanks for the information. Oh, and I'm sure you will do well when you get to college. Remember there are many scholarships out there that do not get awarded every year because no on knows about them. Look for and apply for every one you can find.

I hated the AP grade weighting when I was in high school. I had a friend in "regular" classes who busted his ass for a 4.0 and knew tons of kids in AP classes who just goofed off for a 4.0, didn't seem fair. I had a 5.0 and I was always like "this is useless".

Chemical engineering :)


:eek:

I hear that it is truly a difficult course. Ridiculously so.

Since it is so hard though, I guess it would be useful to have knowledge that the majority of people don't bother gaining.

For a BS in Environmental Studies/Science (depends on which school I end up going to), Organic Chemistry is one of the optional programs. I guess it depends on how masochistic I feel the day I register for the courses.

I'm a sophmore working on my undergrad biochemistry degree. From there, hopefully I get into pharmacy school. If not, I'll probably go for a masters in biochem.

:eek:

I hear that it is truly a difficult course. Ridiculously so.

Since it is so hard though, I guess it would be useful to have knowledge that the majority of people don't bother gaining.

For a BS in Environmental Studies/Science (depends on which school I end up going to), Organic Chemistry is one of the optional programs. I guess it depends on how masochistic I feel the day I register for the courses.

It fits with what I'd really like to do, though (i.e. nanoscience).

:)

It fits with what I'd really like to do, though (i.e. nanoscience).

:)

Interesting.

I have read horror stories about nano-bots taking over the world and such. I believe one of them was "Prey" by...*looks it up*.. Michael Crichton. :p

Though not all of nanoscience is nanotechnology. (I think)

I hated the AP grade weighting when I was in high school. I had a friend in "regular" classes who busted his ass for a 4.0 and knew tons of kids in AP classes who just goofed off for a 4.0, didn't seem fair. I had a 5.0 and I was always like "this is useless".

Much like selective education I feel; it's his own stupid fault for not getting into the AP classes. I fucked about in school, as we all did, and we did better than many comp kids who worked really hard; it's a source of comfort for me.:D

Undergrad major in Physics with minor in Classics.

Working on my PhD...

he can't help it if it took all his effort just to get A's.

True. But he shouldn't resent those who don't need to work; they can't help it either.

Much like selective education I feel; it's his own stupid fault for not getting into the AP classes. I fucked about in school, as we all did, and we did better than many comp kids who worked really hard; it's a source of comfort for me.:D

he can't help it if it took all his effort just to get A's.

Undergrad: mathematics and philosophy.
Masters: political science, concentration in political theory, thesis on horror movies.
Ph.D. (in progress, expected 2009): political science, concentrations in political theory, public law, American politics; dissertation on free will--critical theory perspectives, philosophy of science.
Your thesis was on horror movies? What was it, exactly?

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

i have an MA in Geography and Archeology. i'm primarily interested in Near Eastern Archaeology and transport infrastructures.

Undergrad - Psychology
Grad school - School Counseling

I'll be graduating in two months with a Bachelor of Journalism and a minor in political science. Thinking about doing Honours in PS next year if I can find a part-time job in journalism.

True. But he shouldn't resent those who don't need to work; they can't help it either.

true, I just don't see why I needed a whole extra grading scale.

Political Science although I started as Computer Science. Yes it was a big shift but programming and I apparently weren't as compatible as I thought. A fellow Computer Science major who switched to Physis turned me on to NS.

true, I just don't see why I needed a whole extra grading scale.

Did anyone ever tell you that you were special? :)

Did anyone ever tell you that you were special? :)

no, someone told me I was a fuckwit once, mostly they tell me I am a bitch, except for a few people who tell me I am brilliant.

Several of my teachers said I was the smartest student they ever had. However, college is by far the biggest scam I've ever been involved in.

The worst part is that there is absolutely nothing I can do about it. Here's my money, make me buy a book you wrote, make me read that book, and then tell me things I already know.

Several of my teachers said I was the smartest student they ever had. However, college is by far the biggest scam I've ever been involved in.

The worst part is that there is absolutely nothing I can do about it. Here's my money, make me buy a book you wrote, make me read that book, and then tell me things I already know.

Its just good Business. *nods*

Its just good Business. *nods*

It's brilliant business. They sell nothing, and people buy it in mass fucking quantities.

no, someone told me I was a fuckwit once, mostly they tell me I am a bitch, except for a few people who tell me I am brilliant.

Oh.. well I don't know you really, but I hate being mainstream, so..

You are Brilliant! :)

Figure someone from my region needs to post and since Straughn won't....

Finishing a BA in Psychology with a minor in philosophy.
Skilled in: Sigint, basic military intelligence, shipborn security, terrorism tactics(don't ask...or do), TSCIF security, marksmanship, most weapon personal weapon systems used by US, and disinformation:P

[LIST]
messed up in GCSE's so 2 C's in science (which covers 3 subjects:confused:)




Is it possible to mess up GCSE's?

Was a finance major, but dropped out.

:eek: What instrument do you play?

Piano, oboe, and vocal chords. Though my course is far more theory- and history-based than performance-based.

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

11 GCSEs (A's and B's)
3 A levels and 2 useless AS's (goofed up a lot... grades from A to D)
2 years of university studying economics and politics, before dropping out due to clinical depression (passed the second year though, despite being in hospital during the exams)

i have little intention of going back to uni due to a lasting dislike of academia (i wasn't depressed at uni for no reason...), but do intend to get my degree one day (probably open university)

i have some non-qualified expertise in photography, graphic design/photoshop, and website design.

I'm currently majoring in Computer Engineering. I got kinda screwed by transferring schools. I started off at a University College, with plans to transfer to a University second year to save money. Well, the UC was more expensive than the Uni, and two of my Engineering courses didn't transfer. It is probably going to take me another year because of missing prerequisites along the Engineering line, so I might use the spare time to get a Math degree, too. I have heard, you are only a semester away from a Math degree, and it would be great to lord over people, but I hate doing Math for the sake of Math. It is stupid (this is the same reason I hate Chemistry). It is also a weird position to be in.

11 GCSEs (A's and B's)
3 A levels and 2 useless AS's (goofed up a lot... grades from A to D)
2 years of university studying economics and politics, before dropping out due to clinical depression (passed the second year though, despite being in hospital during the exams)

i have little intention of going back to uni due to a lasting dislike of academia (i wasn't depressed at uni for no reason...), but do intend to get my degree one day (probably open university)

i have some non-qualified expertise in photography, graphic design/photoshop, and website design.
What exactly are A levels and GCSEs? In the US, we have a myriad of tests (SATs, ACTs, ad infinitum). Are the A and O levels similar?

What exactly are A levels and GCSEs? In the US, we have a myriad of tests (SATs, ACTs, ad infinitum). Are the A and O levels similar?

GCSE is the new name for O levels. stands for General Certificate of Secondary Education.

A levels are simply Advanced Levels


you do your GCSE (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GCSE) tests when you're 16, after starting the GCSE courses (and choosing which ones you want to do) at 14. You can then go on to college (not the same as US college) and do two years of A levels. the typical format for A levels is three full 'A2' levels (aka A levels), which take two years to do, and two 'AS' levels, which take a year each.

after college you can go onto university.

however, none of that is mandatory. there are also alternative qualifications to GCSE's and A-levels, but they are by far the most commonly taken and recognised.

its worth noting university here is different from the States, too. there typically are no majors and minors, but you choose one subject to study and focus entirely on that from the outset. however, usually you do get to do a few modules from other subjects in the university, but these are for building up your credits (towards a grade) only.


Triple Award Science FTW!

Computer Science at KDG (College)
MBA at Vlerick (Private)
Usability Design at KUL (University)

Main Expertise: Usability

Originally Math (Warning! Warning! Dragongeek!), but I switched to computer science.

You'd be surprised how lkittle you actually learn. :/

I have a degree in physics. My area of expertise is physical comedy. :)

Really? I would have thought Quantum Mud Theory was your field of study :p

Very often, he would come into the drug store and when I asked him, “May I help you professor?” His answer would be, “No thank you. I forgot what I came in here for.”
Sounds like my great-uncle. Here is a man who spent years working for NASA and helped developed the Saturn V rocket among others, but whose daily conversation was about the color tiles on the kitchen floor.

For the record, my BA was Secondary Education with an English teaching major, computer education teaching minor, and a minor in Japanese Studies. My MS was in Counseling & Educational Psychology with emphasis in Information Technologies in Education. According to my students, my expertise is knowing exactly when they fall asleep in class and waking them up. ;)

High-school dropout, tanked my year 11 exams. So obviously, your intellectual superior.

Was I the only one expecting the next words of this thread to be

'...How come I broke you?'

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?
I earned bachelor's degrees in philosophy, psychology, and biology. I'm currently working on my PhD in neuroscience. My thesis is evil and must die.

I screwed up college (go me!) *thumbs*
Am now working to get through physics & IT degrees through the open university.
I have no real area of expertise but I like quantum physics, being a philosophical git and pretending to know more than everyone else when really I'm no smarter than anyone.

BA(Hons) in Music and Recording, specialised in music tech and arranging.

That is awesome. :) I'd like to be a translator (Spanish) or have a career in music (possibly......) when I get to college.

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

I'm a senior in high school, and I plan to major in either Spanish or music. (or possibly both)
:cool:

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?
Well, I'm just starting university; this is my first semester at MUN (Memorial University of Newfoundland; and yes I'm referring to the main St. John's campus) and I'm in a science major... (not sure yet what within that; I was thinking of going into cryonics research but I'm not sure what specific degree would be best for that)

I'm a senior in high school, and I plan to major in either Spanish or music. (or possibly both)
:cool:

Spanish translation &/or music (singing)

GCSE is the new name for O levels. stands for General Certificate of Secondary Education.

A levels are simply Advanced Levels


you do your GCSE (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GCSE) tests when you're 16, after starting the GCSE courses (and choosing which ones you want to do) at 14. You can then go on to college (not the same as US college) and do two years of A levels. the typical format for A levels is three full 'A2' levels (aka A levels), which take two years to do, and two 'AS' levels, which take a year each.

after college you can go onto university.

however, none of that is mandatory. there are also alternative qualifications to GCSE's and A-levels, but they are by far the most commonly taken and recognised.

its worth noting university here is different from the States, too. there typically are no majors and minors, but you choose one subject to study and focus entirely on that from the outset. however, usually you do get to do a few modules from other subjects in the university, but these are for building up your credits (towards a grade) only.


Triple Award Science FTW!

So students go to college when Americans are juniors and seniors in high school? Interesting.
Are universities based solely on merit, or are there other factors? There was an article in the New Yorker (http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2005/10/10/051010crat_atlarge) magazine about the creation of the admissions process in the US, and I wondered if it was similar in Britain (or the rest of the world, for that matter).

Well, I'm just starting university; this is my first semester at MUN (Memorial University of Newfoundland; and yes I'm referring to the main St. John's campus) and I'm in a science major... (not sure yet what within that; I was thinking of going into cryonics research but I'm not sure what specific degree would be best for that)Ask someone at the university that has a title such as "Career Advisor" or "Academic Advisor" or something similar.

I have a BA in Modern History, and I'm currently studying for an LLB in Law.

I'm also exceptionally intelligent*
*This one's a lie

:p

No, I haven't majored in anything yet, and when I do it won't be in English.

Don't you mean you "ain't gonna major in no English"?

So students go to college when Americans are juniors and seniors in high school? Interesting.
Are universities based solely on merit, or are there other factors? There was an article in the New Yorker (http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2005/10/10/051010crat_atlarge) magazine about the creation of the admissions process in the US, and I wondered if it was similar in Britain (or the rest of the world, for that matter).Well, College means the same thing as University in the US. Everywhere else (well, pretty much anyways), College is lesser than University. In Canada, colleges are most similar to you Community College. I suspect that they are similar to UK colleges, which they do go to during junior and senior year (these two even mean something else outside the US) because highschool ends at age 16 for them. The reason they do so is incredibly archaic, but makes sense when you read it.

Well, College means the same thing as University in the US. Everywhere else (well, pretty much anyways), College is lesser than University. In Canada, colleges are most similar to you Community College. I suspect that they are similar to UK colleges, which they do go to during junior and senior year (these two even mean something else outside the US) because highschool ends at age 16 for them. The reason they do so is incredibly archaic, but makes sense when you read it.

That's not true, although many people fail to make the distinction, so the terms end up getting used interchangably.

Universities are larger institutions which include colleges. A university may include several colleges for different fields as well as vocational programs and post-graduate programs.

Universities also tend not to be focused primarily on education. Colleges that are not part of a university exist to teach people what they need for a degree. Universities exist to give scholars a place to do research, and asks them to teach people stuff if it's not too much trouble.

That's not true, although many people fail to make the distinction, so the terms end up getting used interchangably.

Universities are larger institutions which include colleges. A university may include several colleges for different fields as well as vocational programs and post-graduate programs.

Universities also tend not to be focused primarily on education. Colleges that are not part of a university exist to teach people what they need for a degree. Universities exist to give scholars a place to do research, and asks them to teach people stuff if it's not too much trouble.
While that is all technically true, that would have only complicated things further. My intent was to take about College vs Uni outside the US, so I glossed over the details of how the US system is, so I could spend more time on the unUS part of my post. Besides, the person should already know how the US system works. Why talk about what they already know?

I'm interested in seeing where users are coming from academically. If you went to a university or college, what did you major in (or, if you went to graduate school, what did you do there)? If you didn't go to either of those, what do you personally consider to be your area of expertise?

Well I come form the school of life, I specialise in comunicationg and have a high school diploma, I now specialise in Telecomunications and sleeping with sexy women:sniper::mp5::cool::cool:

BA in History...specialising in lazing around on my arse (and getting paid for it).

Will soon* be studying for a PGDip in Journalism.

*within two years.

I'm studying medicine (MBChB) and hope to take an intercalated degree in anatomy in a couple of years

BA in Studio Art.

I earned bachelor's degrees in philosophy, psychology, and biology. I'm currently working on my PhD in neuroscience. My thesis is evil and must die.

If you don't mind me asking, how did you fund all those degrees? I'd love to get a PhD but I'm not sure if I can afford it.

BS Physics
MA Comp Sci

I'm studying medicine (MBChB) and hope to take an intercalated degree in anatomy in a couple of years
I'm living with a fifth year medic and two fourth years. Have fun. ;)

Currently, GCSEs. In my defence, they were quite good, and I am only just starting A levels.

A level, I'm doing Math, Further Math, Physics, and Government and Politics, with an eye towards doing Math at uni later (hopefully Caltech).

My expertise, such as it is, would probably be in Math.

Graduated from nursery school with High Honors, had a 4.9 GPA at the end of kindergarten, and obtained my elementary school diploma summa cum laude. I majored in Smartass Comments with a minor in Creative Excuses.

Still in high school!!!!!

I earned bachelor's degrees in philosophy, psychology, and biology. I'm currently working on my PhD in neuroscience. My thesis is evil and must die.

How is neuroscience? I'm considering it as a potential major, perhaps along with music (this way I know exactly what my final paper is going to be about, four years in advance).

Woot! I just found out that I've been accepted to the University of South Florida! Yay! :D

I am currently in the second week of my first year studying Environmental Sciences at the University of Brighton in the UK.

Woot! I just found out that I've been accepted to the University of South Florida! Yay! :D

Congratulations. If I'm lucky, I'll be doing University in America as well, just nowhere nearby,

Currently, GCSEs. In my defence, they were quite good, and I am only just starting A levels.

A level, I'm doing Math, Further Math, Physics, and Government and Politics, with an eye towards doing Math at uni later (hopefully Caltech).

My expertise, such as it is, would probably be in Math.
interesting.... i hate maths.

it was the reason i changed from economics to politics at uni. simply couldn't get on with the statistics & econometrics :(
grrr
Woot! I just found out that I've been accepted to the University of South Florida! Yay! :D
yay! nice one :)

That's not true, although many people fail to make the distinction, so the terms end up getting used interchangably.

Universities are larger institutions which include colleges. A university may include several colleges for different fields as well as vocational programs and post-graduate programs.

Universities also tend not to be focused primarily on education. Colleges that are not part of a university exist to teach people what they need for a degree. Universities exist to give scholars a place to do research, and asks them to teach people stuff if it's not too much trouble.
while that is true, the basic point of college in the UK being different from that in the States still holds true. besides, most people in the UK don't bother making that distinction unless you go somewhere like Oxbridge.

basically (correct me if i'm wrong):
college in UK = after secondary school, before university, aged 17 to 18

college in US = university..... after high school??
So students go to college when Americans are juniors and seniors in high school? Interesting.
Are universities based solely on merit, or are there other factors? There was an article in the New Yorker (http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2005/10/10/051010crat_atlarge) magazine about the creation of the admissions process in the US, and I wondered if it was similar in Britain (or the rest of the world, for that matter).

the admissions process for getting into UK universities is based on merit. though, of course, in reality this is distorted.
after attending college you get your A level results. you apply to go to university based on your predicted results (which is a pretty stupid system). when the actual results come out the universities either accept you or not. you can apply to 6 uni's (or you could when i did it) in case you don't get into your uni of choice.

you're judged on your A level grades, wieghted for the subject you want to do (usually), which are aggregated into a total UCAS Score.
a high score would be 360 (3 A grades), which typically would be what you need to study, say, medicine (or, again, was when i did it). for my Economics degree, i needed a score of 300.

you're also judged on a personal entry form, including a personal statement ("i want to go to uni because..." - as it happens my gf is writing hers tonight), extracurricular activities, and the like.

but there is a predisposition for certain schools/colleges to feed into certain universities... such as Eton feeding into Oxford or Cambridge. there are often news stories about how Oxbridge takes far more private school kids than they do state school kids.


that's the gist of it anyhoo. its a fairly arduous process, but the admissions people (UCAS) produce a lot of information to help you out. a lot of it is done online these days, i think. there's also lots of info each year in the papers (the Times is especially good for lists of the best uni's by subject), and most visit their uni of choice (at least) during one of the uni's open days.


god that article is long though... :p

As an undergraduate I got a degree in international politics with a concentration in international economics from Yale University in New Haven, CT. I attended lawschool and recived my JD from Harvard University School of Law in Cambridge, MA. I then sat for the bar in New York. My expertise is in commercial secured transactions and post 9/11 national and international banking regulations.

I'm edumikated!

I have a BA in politics and am currently reading law through the Open University but that sentence made me shudder.

No disrespect but I can't imagine specialising in a more boring field of law, still, horses for courses.

basically (correct me if i'm wrong):
college in UK = after secondary school, before university, aged 17 to 18

college in US = university..... after high school??

Yeah...they don't mean exactly the same thing but they're used pretty much interchangeably.

The USF person told me that what they do is arrange the applications they have received so far so that they look at high-acheiving students (with weighted GPAs over 4.0) first. Then I guess they look at SAT and ACT scores (which are supposed to predict how well people will do when they get to university) and extracurriculars and everything else to decide if they will accept you. There isn't any sort of essay to do for USF.

while that is true, the basic point of college in the UK being different from that in the States still holds true. besides, most people in the UK don't bother making that distinction unless you go somewhere like Oxbridge.

basically (correct me if i'm wrong):
college in UK = after secondary school, before university, aged 17 to 18

college in US = university..... after high school??
That is correct. Like the other post said, colleges are technically different from universities, but it is a technicality. The first place of higher education in the South was the College of William and Mary, but the fundamentalist school in South Carolina is called Bob Jones University. So, it's really up to the school as to what it is called.


the admissions process for getting into UK universities is based on merit. though, of course, in reality this is distorted.
after attending college you get your A level results. you apply to go to university based on your predicted results (which is a pretty stupid system). when the actual results come out the universities either accept you or not. you can apply to 6 uni's (or you could when i did it) in case you don't get into your uni of choice.

you're judged on your A level grades, wieghted for the subject you want to do (usually), which are aggregated into a total UCAS Score.
a high score would be 360 (3 A grades), which typically would be what you need to study, say, medicine (or, again, was when i did it). for my Economics degree, i needed a score of 300.

you're also judged on a personal entry form, including a personal statement ("i want to go to uni because..." - as it happens my gf is writing hers tonight), extracurricular activities, and the like.

That sound similar to the process in the US. There are more tests, I think, and non-academic things seem to count more here than they do in Britain.

A level, I'm doing Math, Further Math, Physics, and Government and Politics, with an eye towards doing Math at uni later (hopefully Caltech).

Whoo! A fellow double-mathematician! :p

Word of advice: if you're with AQA then make sure you get high marks in FP1 and the applied modules (retake if necessary) because the second year further maths modules can be evil.

In order, from least important to most:

10 GCSEs (A* to C),
Five A levels and an AS level (A to B),
Currently predicted a 2:1 BSc in Sociology.

Expertise? Don't have one yet, I'm too young. :p Probably could argue that it's student journalism tho'...

BA Hons in Modern and Contemporary History and Politics.
Currently studying for a Nat Cert in Dentistry to keep my job...

Whoo! A fellow double-mathematician! :p

Word of advice: if you're with AQA then make sure you get high marks in FP1 and the applied modules (retake if necessary) because the second year further maths modules can be evil.

I'm looking forward to them :D. But I'm quite a pure mathematical fellow.

I'll end up doing:

AS Math: C1, C2, M1
A2 Math: C3, C4, M2
AS Further: FP1, D1, S1
A2 Further: FP2, FP3, FP4

I'm really looking forward to A2. Should be great fun.

Did a Law LLB at university and have done 1 year of a Criminology and Sociology BA.

:)

undergraduate in Technologies and Sciences of Music Communications (not in proper words, but the meaning is understandable) ...

EDIT: but i'm not smart at it ... eheh ...

BA (double major) in English Literature and Italian Studies. I really don't know where I'm going with this at all, though I'd like to get my MA and PhD eventually, and teach at a university... be that here in Canada, or in Europe.

Holy fuck, how long has that poll been there.

Holy fuck, how long has that poll been there.

Er...since I made the thread. Are you all right?


I'm kidding. I added it just a few minutes ago, don't worry.