Theme 3. At colleges and universities in the UK and the USA

1. 
   What do you think are the most urgent problems of higher education today?
   
2. 
   Do you think higher education should be free of charge? Why? Who do you think should pay?
   
3. 
   What expenses should scholarships cover? Do you know how your peers in Western countries pay through college?
   

financing, vice-chancellor, to commission a report, to distance oneself, pri­vately, to address economic and social problems, subsidy, fund, funding re­gime, chance, prestigious institutions, leading academics, elitism.

Some vice-chancellors in the Russell group of 19 leading universities, which commissioned the economists¹ report, are privately distancing them­selves from the recommendations.

The report, written by Professor David Greenaway of Nottingham Univer­sity and three other university economists, calls on universities to be freed of state controls to set their own tuition fees, thus addressing their funding short-

falls'. The report offers a simple, free market solution to higher education's economic and social problems: charge the rich extra fees and use the money to fund scholarships for the poor.

The economists argue that current funding arrangements equate to a state subsidy for the middle classes. Students from rich backgrounds are charged a flat rate of £1,025 a year in England, but most of the fees are still paid by the government.

The universities must be allowed to set their own fees and student numbers as US institutions do. Annua! fees for university tuition can be as much as $25,000 (£16,500) in the US. Existing state funds would be used to support scholarships for poorer students.

The new funding regime would be phased in" over a number of years to give parents a chance to start saving. Eventually, prestigious institutions such as Oxford and Cambridge would be able to charge fees for degree courses at a similar market rate to the top ivy League institutions, accompanied by an ex­tensive range of scholarships and loans.

Ministers are keen that international research centres such as Cambridge and Oxford are able to compete with the best universities overseas' in recruit­ing leading academics. They also want to support the efforts of universities to attract more students from poor areas but do not want to spend more public money on higher education.

Senior ministers believe that the recent row over elitism has weakened the case for top-up fees, as they would discourage students from relatively low incomes who did not qualify for scholarships. But even some opponents be­lieve the shortfall in research funding in universities makes differential fees inevitable in the medium term. Top-up fees are strongly supported by Sir Colin Campbell, the Vice-Chancellor of Nottingham University, and pri­vately by others.

The report explores a number of funding options, including a graduate tax, to bring higher education funding in Britain in line with the levels seen in other countries such as the US. British universities do not have the multibillion-pound endowments' and alumni donations associated with the top institutions in America.

Under their plan, Russell group universities would be modelled on Ivy League institutions such as Cornell, funded by state and private money. The economists believe that a move to differential fees is the only way to fix the immediate funding problems facing British institutions.

True / False statements:

1. 
   The economists' report advises strengthening state control over universities.
   
2. 
   The report proposes supporting scholarships for the poor by charging the rich extra fees.
   
3. 
   At present students from rich families in Britain pay much less than rich students in the USA.
   
4. 
   The British economists strongly criticized the funding arrangement in the US universities.
   
5. 
   According to the report, the state should stop funding higher education.
   
6. 
   Ministers do not want to spend more public money to help the universities fix their funding problems.
   
7. 
   At present some universities in England charge tuition fees well over £ 16,500.
   
8. 
   At the moment both Cambridge and Oxford find it difficult to recruit lead­ing scientists.
   
9. 
   The government supports the idea of introducing very high tuition fees.
   
10. 
    According to the report, introducing differential fees is the only solution to current funding problems in British universities.
    
11. 
    Unlike the universities in the US, British universities do not have an exten­sive programme of financial assistance.
    
12. 
    The new funding regime is to be introduced next year.
    
13. 
    The vice-chancellors are unanimous in thinking that education should be free for all.
    
14. 
    The report explored introducing a graduate tax apart from charging top-up fees.
    

Who is the modern student? The athlete with his college scarf? The blue­stocking, cycling to her lecture? The activist hurling abuse at a politician?

These days the students you are most likely to meet are the checkout girl at Sainsbury's or the waiter in your favourite bistro.

The modern student works: "full-time student" no longer means someone who spends time in libraries or lectures, with an occasional vacation job. At many universities, most students have jobs during term-time. At London Guildhall , more than 80 per cent of our students work during term for between five and 25 hours a week.

Why do they do it? For some, it is certainly to fund a car or to finance eve­nings in the pub. For many, however, whose families are too poor to help, it is to keep body and soul together. Some have a natural aversion to building up a large debt to the Student Loans Company. Many mature students feel guilty about their wives, husbands or children supporting them during a college course, and work to reduce the burden.

Juggling study with work is hard. It requires skills of time management that would be envied by many management consultants. As one student, Aidan, put it to me: "1 need lectures to start at 10am, not because of a party the night before but because then 1 can use a cheap railcard. 1 must be away by 4pm to pick up my daughter, leave her with her gran, and get to my eve­ning job. When do 1 write my essays? Well, there's the weekend and early mornings."

Many students still live in college rooms or halls of residence. But others stay at or close to home, where jobs are easier to come by. Often, they com­mute to classes and live in cramped accommodation, a shared room where there is nowhere to study. There is not enough money for books, let alone a computer. It is no surprise that they sometimes wonder if they can cope or will be forced to drop out.
Негізгі сұрақтар:

Discussion questions:

1. 
   What are the problems that students face in Russia?
   
2. 
   Are the problems of young and mature students similar?
   
3. 
   Do full-time students work in Russia?
   
4. 
   Is it possible to combine day study with work?
   
5. 
   What are the major differences between students in Russia and in Britain?
   

2. Айбарша Ислам «Английский язык»

3. Зражевская «Курс английского языка»

Theme 4. Employment. Looking for a job.
Курстың мақсаты ; студенттерді ауызша сөйлеу қабілетін дамыту. студенттерге алған білімдерін жүзінде қолдану үшін кәсіби мен дағдыларға төселдіруге көмектесу.
Pre-reading questions:

1. 
   Is it easy for young people to find jobs nowadays?
   
2. 
   What activities does looking for a job involve?
   
3. 
   What questions do you think you will be asked at an interview?
   
4. 
   If you manage to secure a good job would you like to stay in it for life? Why?
   

In Britain when a pupil leaves school at sixteen or later he or she must find a job. To achieve this goal school leavers without special qualifications will probably visit a Job Centre or look through local newspaper advertisements. School careers officers also can offer advice. But ultimately it is up to the boys and girls themselves to find work.

Graduates from universities and other colleges are in the same position except that they are older and are looking for different kinds of work. Usually they start their search near the beginning of their third (i.e. final) year in college. The pro­fessional work many of them seek normally requires further specialized training, so the first step is to get a place on a training course - and a grant or some other funds to pay for the course. Probably the first stage will involve some kind of exam and an interview - necessary procedures for choosing which applicants shall be given places on the course which may lead to a job in the end. (Such courses are essential for librarians, computer programmers, social workers, ac­countants and many other kinds of qualified workers.) Certain organizations take graduates directly and train them while they are working - for example the BBC. A recruitment committee has to read through the papers and select maybe eight or ten applicants for interview. At the interview they will be asked their reasons for wanting the job, and have to answer questions about their academic career, other activities and - often - questions which seem to have no point but which are intended to reveal their personality, skills and general suitability for the job.

Eventually someone will be selected. If the fortunate candidate is not happy with all the conditions of the job (pay, hours of work, pension rights and so on) he doesn't have to accept it - but once he has signed the contract he cannot leave the job without giving notice (of maybe three or six months) and he can­not be thrown out of the job without notice and without good reason.

Today graduates can expect to make dozens of applications for jobs and get short-listed for interviews two or three times before they find satisfactory work. Some of course know exactly what they want and manage to find the right job first time, but more often graduates can spend months searching, meanwhile earning enough to pay the rent by washing dishes or some other short-term work.

Having found your job, you certainly do not expect to stay in it for life - or even more than a few years. Whether they are working in private industry or in the state sector, people assume that if they want more money or more responsi­bility they must expect to move from one employer to another or from one area of work to another. Promotion up the steps of the ladder within a firm certainly happens, but the advantages to both employer and employee - stability, familiar­ity with the work, confidence, loyalty to the firm and its workers - must set against the advantages of bringing in "fresh blood", new challenging ways of ap­proaching the work (avoidance of intrigues and resentment among those already in the organization about the promotion of one over the other) and the hard work that can be expected from someone new in the job who has to "prove" himself or herself. In practice promotions are usually a mixture of "within-house" and from outside. Consequently, employees who want to improve their position start look­ing for other jobs within few years of securing their first one.

1. 
   What steps do school leavers in Britain take to find a job?
   
2. 
   What makes it more difficult for college graduates to find employment?
   

4. What information do interviewers try to get during the interview?

5 What obligations do the employer and the employee assume once the con­tract has been signed?

6. How long do people usually stay in the same job? Why?

7. Does loaylty to the company give employees an advantage over those who are new in the job?

8 Why are employers interested in bringing in "fresh blood"?

О SPEAKING 1

• 
  starting one's search for a job
  
• 
  the methods involved
  
• 
  selection of applicants
  
• 
  mutual commitments of employers and employees
  
• 
  changing jobs
  
• 
  promotion prospects
  

• 
  Always know who your client or customer is - no matter what your job is.
  
• 
  Never take a problem to your boss without some solutions. You're getting paid to think, not to whine.
  
• 
  If you tell a racist joke, be prepared to be fired.
  
• 
  As Henry Ford II said, "Never complain, never explain". Be courageous in your business perspectives.
  
• 
  Treat your time as if someone is paying for it - someone is.
  
• 
  Maintain a sense of humour and inject it when appropriate.
  
• 
  Return calls within 24 hours. Never leave one unanswered.
  
• 
  Be comfortable around senior managers, or learn to fake it.
  
• 
  If you even think you're vulnerable, you should probably find another job.
  
• 
  Develop a point of view about success - your own and your organization's.
  
• 
  Read your job description but never be restricted by it. Do what needs to be done.
  
• 
  Maintain a 3-year rolling career plan.
  
• 
  Always have an answer to the question, "What would I do if 1 lost my job tomorrow?"
  
• 
  Never apologize for an idea that didn't work - but always admit a mistake.
  
• 
  Being good is important, being trusted is essential.
  
• 
  Become known for building ideas, not for finding fault.
  

READING 3

1. 
   How do you see your future as an employee? Which professional activities would you like to be engaged in?
   
2. 
   What demands do you make upon a job?
   
3. 
   Do you think that you will often change your occupation?
   
4. 
   Would you mind living and working for some time in a foreign country? Why?
   

•'You're fired. As of now. Just get your coat and go. OK?"

"But..."

"But nothing. You were rude to that lady, and nobody in this diner is rude to anyone. OK. Now go."

Fleur walked along the road, furiously swinging her bag. It just wasn't fair. No one was nice to her, no one would help her. Aunt Kate treated her like she was six, her teachers at high school all hated her and criticized her constantly, her own mother was refusing to send her any more money. And now just be­cause some old woman had complained when she spilled just a tiny bit of cof­fee in her saucer, and she had answered her back, quite mildly really, she'd been fired from her night job at the diner, which was her only hope of getting together enough money to go to Los Angeles.

She had got the job at the diner quite easily; she was pretty and personable and had seemed an ideal waitress. Which she was in some ways: she was quick and neat, could run the bills up in her head, and never forgot a side order or whether or not a coffee was to be white or regular. The only problem was the customers. They were demanding, stupid, ungrateful, mean with their thanks, meaner with their tips. She found it harder and harder to smile, and almost im­possible to be polite. And this evening she hadn't managed it, and now she'd got the sack.

1. 
   Fleur could make an ideal waitress.
   
2. 
   Fleur was a born secretary.
   
3. 
   Fleur had a vocation for advertising.
   

to find it easy to do smth

to be good at

to have difficulty in

(not) to be very interested in

to spend a lot of time doing smth

never to miss a chance to do smth

to have the habit of

(not) to be very enthusiastic about

Pairwork

What makes a person fit for a particular job?

1. Read the following extracts and make a list of a) personal qualities, b)

special skills and qualifications, c) attitudes of a career diplomat. Discuss

your list with a partner.

Advice of a Retired Diplomat to the New Generation

• 
  Interest and concern is a substitute of intelligence to a certain extent, but not vice versa.
  
• 
  Good manners is the best guide in practical diplomacy even in difficult situations. Even when you must be impolite, your guide is still good
  

• You must have the ambition to serve your country, your fellow citizen and

your fellow man.

• 
  Shoulder your responsibilities. That is what you are paid for. Not assuming your responsibilities sometimes leads to a greater responsibility, that of omission.
  
• 
  Always do things more difficult than you think you are capable of, other­wise you will fall into a rut.
  
• 
  If you want to be taken seriously, don't take yourself seriously.
  
• 
  We differ from the other civil servants mainly because of our knowledge of foreign languages. Don't neglect them. In any case, they are the best means of communicating with our foreign counterparts.
  
• 
  Political affairs are easy. Study economics and trade. This way the foreign service gains in weight and importance.
  
• 
  Don't neglect answering letters addressed to you by private individuals, your own or foreign. It is an example of civilization, good administration and respect for the private citizen.
  
• 
  Use modern office equipment. It speeds up and multiplies results.
  

They present themselves as practical men and women who take the world for what it is, rather than what it might be, and who let reason, rather than emo­tion, govern their actions. According to Mattingly diplomacy does not so much require special qualifications as makes special calls for common qualifica­tions", as well as the "application of intelligence and tact" and "a ready wit and sense of propotion".

Like Dobrynin with his "reassuring presence", diplomats see themselves as the steadying influence when others - public and politicians alike - are carried away by the heat of the moment to demand the satisfaction of national honour with war or be tempted by fear or selfishness to renounce important interna­tional responsibilities when they become dangerous or expensive to uphold. This they call professional detachment.

Some Qualifications Desirable in Members of the Foreign Service

What should the contemporary diplomat be? What personal qualities and at­tainments does he need for a job that is evidently so far from simple? Ideally speaking, nothing short of all-round perfection can be wished for in a man who is called upon to represent his country. One cannot, in principle, deny that such a man ought to be clever, wise, good, beautiful, and much else besides.

It is admittedly unusual and even somewhat shocking to contend that the diplomat should have a warm heart. Certainly he should not be emotionally ef­fusive in his behaviour, and he should preserve an unruffled calm when things

go wrong and relations become strained. However, he will succeed best in his job when he not only likes at heart, but also shows quite plainly that he likes the fellow human beings with whom he comes in contact. And he will be well advised to make this liking the plainer, the greater the racial and other differ­ences may be.

A certain capacity for deception is needed in a diplomat; but where it is needed is in the domain of ordinary good manners. He must keep a good deal of what he thinks to himself and say for the sake of politeness a good many un­important things he does not mean. He must be intelligent, but carefully refrain from any oppressive display of intellectual powers. He must have humour (for that is fundamentally no more than a good sense of propotion), but if he also has wit he must usually keep the edge of it well sheathed not to wound those

without humour.

Linguistic competence in the diplomat is a specialized branch of good man­ners as well as a by-product of sensitiveness to environment.

One final virtue of the professional diplomat is patience. Unless he is en­dowed with it in ample measure, the would-be diplomat will never in reality become a diplomatist at all; for it is of the essence of the profession to plod endlessly on at tasks which are neither simple nor quickly disposed of.