1. How many years have you studied in America?
The undergraduate academic system in the United States (obtaining a bachelor's degree) has no fixed number of years, but generally speaking, the academic system is four years, and different institutions have different academic year standards. The application for undergraduate study in the United States is based on the credit system. Simply put, it is possible to graduate after completing 144 credits. You can't graduate if you don't have enough courses, with an average of 15 credits per semester. If you take three credits in one course, you can take five courses each semester. This 144 credit refers to the sum of all the credits you have studied in four years, including the credits required by your major, the credits for public courses and some other credits. The other part can learn courses that interest them.
The undergraduate education system in the United States is generally four years, but the annual semester system varies from region to region and from school to school. Generally, it can be divided into semester system, quarterly system, early semester system and three-semester system.
1, semester system: Most schools will adopt semester system. The nine-month school year is divided into two semesters: 16 or 18 weeks. The first semester begins at the end of August and ends in the middle and late February of that year, and the second semester begins at the beginning of/kloc-0 and ends in late May.
2. School season system: Generally, western universities will adopt the school season system. A year's courses are divided into four seasons, starting in March in spring, starting in June in summer, starting in September in autumn, and starting in 65438+ October in winter. Each semester lasts for two and a half months.
3. Early semester system: also known as "4- 1-4" system, the nine-month school year is divided into two semesters: 15 to 18 weeks. The first semester is from the end of August to the middle and late February of 65438+,and the second semester is from the middle of June to the middle of May.
4. Three semesters: A school year is divided into three equal parts. The first semester is from the end of August to the beginning of September (65438+February 25th) before Christmas, the second semester is from mid-October to April, and the third semester is from the end of April to the beginning of August. Generally speaking, fewer schools adopt the three-semester system.
Here again, the academic system of community colleges is two years. After completing the two-year course, students can choose to continue their studies in public universities, private universities or liberal arts colleges for two years (provided that they obtain corresponding undergraduate credits in community colleges) and obtain undergraduate diplomas in the form of "2+2".
Second, the classification of colleges in the American study abroad education system
The classification of colleges and universities is mainly divided into three categories:
Comprehensive university, liberal arts college, community college.
Community colleges are equivalent to domestic colleges and universities, aiming at cultivating technical and operational talents for the society and practical undergraduate students for comprehensive universities. Generally, they have two years of accommodation and day study.
The College of Arts and Sciences is a four-year university, but the emphasis is on undergraduate education rather than postgraduate education.
Comprehensive universities must be affiliated with research institutes and engage in in in-depth academic research. Advanced degrees such as master's degree and doctor's degree can be awarded, and various professionals can be trained, which is also the most significant difference between universities and colleges. These universities are also called research universities.
Comprehensive universities are divided into public universities and private universities. On the whole, the reputation of private universities is slightly better than that of public universities. Famous Ivy League schools (such as Harvard and Yale, which are often the top universities in the United States) are private universities with a long history, and because they are private universities, their tuition fees are more expensive than those of public universities.
International students who apply for American universities and want to get an undergraduate diploma generally need to apply for a comprehensive university or a college of arts and sciences. You can also enroll in a community college first, and then transfer to a comprehensive university or a college of arts and sciences by transferring credits.
Third, the characteristics of American study abroad education
The duration of study in a university is four years. During their study in university, students can choose a fixed major at the undergraduate level, and some students who have spare capacity can also choose a second major to study. In the process of learning, lectures are used, and everyone can graduate after completing the credits required by the school. Although the structure of undergraduate education in China and the United States is roughly similar, the undergraduate education in the United States also has its own uniqueness, which is mainly manifested in:
1, choose your major freely.
The first two years of American undergraduate education belong to general education. Students can take multiple courses and then make the most suitable major choice according to their personal preferences and abilities. For example, a student studying engineering at Boston University, after studying in the engineering department for a period of time, found that his ability could not meet the learning requirements of the engineering department, or his interest was not in engineering. He can apply to the school and, with the consent of the school, transfer to his major, such as business administration, literature, economics, etc. This is a very distinctive feature of undergraduate study in the United States. It is completely different from a professional tenure system in China, which gives students great flexibility in learning and is very conducive to the establishment of students' learning progress and professional outlook on life in universities.
2. Students can transfer independently during their college years.
The transfer system of American universities is relatively simple. When students are freshmen and sophomores, if they think that their abilities can enter a better school or that this school is not suitable for them, they can apply for transfer. Moreover, most of the credits of the original school can be brought into the new school, and it is still guaranteed to complete the university education within four years. This gives students room for academic development, and also provides a bigger development platform for students who have accumulated a lot of money.
3. The content of the class is diverse.
Although the teaching in American universities is lecture-style, the contents of classes are quite diverse. Besides teaching exams, students discussing in groups, visiting local companies, writing small papers and making small products, these are all part of the course.