Vocabulary

to be situated - располагаться

fisheries – зд. рыбная промышленность и хозяйство

to rename into - переименовать,

generation - поколение

campus = academic town - университетский городок

to cover – охватывать

medical aid centre - зд.медпункт

to hold - проводить (собрание, конференцию)

assembly hall - актовый зал

up-to date = modern - современный

swimming pool - плавательный бассейн

to be trained - обучаться

teaching staff - преподаватели

master – магистр, зд. кандидат наук

extra-mural = correspondence student - студент- заочник

time-table - расписание

undergraduate = student - студент

attendance - посещаемость

obligatory - обязательный

to fail in exam(ination) - провалиться на экзамене

attempt - попытка

to submit course paper - защищать курсовую работу

graduate - зд.студент последнего года обучения

to defend diploma project - защищать дипломный проект

to work out - разрабатывать

supervisor - руководитель

postgraduate - аспирант

bachelor - бакалавр

Exercise 2. Give English equivalents of the following words and phrases:

Располагаться, быть основанным, выпускник, охватывать (территорию), чудесный, медпункт, актовый зал, деканат, хорошо оборудованные лаборатории, плавательный бассейн, подготовительный факультет, ректор, преподаватель, лектор, студент заочного отделения, учебный год, практическое занятие, зачет, посещение лекций, обязательный, провалиться на экзамене, вступительные экзамены, диплом, подготовить специалистов, практика на борту судна, степень бакалавра.

Exercise 3. Answer the following questions:

1. What University do you study at?

2. When was it founded?

3. The University campus covers a large territory, doesn’t it?

4. Why have you chosen our University?

5. What can you say about teaching buildings and administrative block?

7. Do you live in Astrakhan? You live in a student’s hostel, don’t you?

8. How many Institutes are there at your University?

9. Who is at the head of the University? Who is at the head of your Institute?

10. Many experienced lecturers and assistants work in the ASTU, don’t they?

11. What is your favourite subject?

12. Is the attendance of lectures and seminars obligatory at your University?

13. Have you got any difficulties with English? Why?

Exercise 4. Use the correct tense of the verb in the round brackets.

1. Astrakhan State Technical University (to be known) in our region.

2. At the end of each term undergraduates (to get prepared) for the credit tests and exams.

3. Students of all specialities (to have) foreign languages on the curriculum as an obligatory subject in Russia.

4. The real wealth of the University (to be) its teaching staff and students.

5. Students of many institues must (to learn) English as part of the syllabus for two years.

6. The University course for students (to run) for 5 or 6 years.

7. It (to be) hard to study at our faculty.

8. She (to have) many classes every day.

Exercise 5. Ask questions for which the following statements may serve as answers.

1. Our course of studies runs for 5 years.

2. My favorite subject is physics.

3. We’ll have a seminar on chemistry tomorrow.

4. Denis can help you with mathematics. He is very good at maths.

5. We’ll have four exams in winter.

6. Our teacher always speaks English at the lessons.

Exercise 6. Translate into English:

1. В этом году я поступил в АГТУ и стал студентом-первокурсником.

2 Я сдал все экзамены с хорошими оценками.

3. Дважды в году я сдаю межсеместровые экзамены.

4. Многие студенты обучаются по различным специальностям.

5. В АГТУ обучаются студенты из многих стран Азии и Африки.

6. По окончании университета я получу диплом.

7. В нашем университете много интересных и перспективных специальностей.

Exercise 7. Insert the verbs to be, to have in the appropriate form:

1. There … many institutes and universities in Moscow. 2. The oldest of them … Moscow University. 3. This university … one of the oldest technological universities in our country. 4. It … founded in 1830. 5. It … old and new buildings. 6. There … laboratories, workshops and libraries in our institute. 7. Every faculty … its own computer center. 8. Our library … a great number of books and magazines in all branches of science and technology. 9. Last year we … at school, next year we … the second year students. 10. We … industrial training in the third year.

Exercise 8. Choose the correct form of the following pronouns:

1. (We, us) all went with (their, them) to the dean’s office. 2. My friend came to see (I, me) last night. 3. Victor gave Peter and (I, me) a book and we went to the reading-room with (he, him) and his friend. 4. He told Mary and (me, I) to go with (he, him) and his sister. 5. They know all about my friend and (I, me). 6. I came to the Institute with Michael and (her, she). 7. An old man asked (we, us) to go and see (him, his). 8. Go with David and (her, she) to visit (they, them).

Exercise 9. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate prepositions in, at, on, to, into, under:

1. We live … Moscow. 2. I get up … seven o’clock and leave … eight. 3. I usually walk … the institute. 4. There are three rooms … our flat. 5. There is a picture … the wall and a small table … the picture. 6. He comes … the room and sits down … the chair … the table. 7. … the evening we watch TV or read books. 8. We don’t study … Sunday. 9. There are several newspapers … the table.

Exercise 10. Read and translate the text without a dictionary:

As you know higher education in this country is accessible and free of charge. The students making good progress get state grants. The course of study at the universities lasts about five years. The students take two or three years of general engineering and fundamental courses, then one or two years of specialized training in some fields of science and technology. In the first and second years a good foundation for professional knowledge is provided. At present there are many modern laboratories at institutes of higher learning. All higher schools have their own computer centers. This means that the state must spend a lot of money to improve higher education.

Exercise 11. Read and learn the dialogue:

Mr. R.: Good morning. Have a seat.

Bob: Good morning. Thank you.

Mr. R.: I have your application here. Your name is Robert Smith, right?

B: That’s right, sir.

Mr. R.: And you hope to enter our university this year?

B: Yes sir, if I can make it.

Mr. R.: Fine, Bob. You finished school a year ago. Why didn’t you enter college that year?

B: Well, I have a sister in college now. And there is another one who’ll be going next year. So I need money to pay for my education.

Mr. R.: All right. How were your grades at school?

B: Well, pretty good. Until my last year I got a little too interested in sports. But I know I’ll work hard in college.

Mr. R.: It’s hard to keep up both sports and studies.

B: Yes sir, I know.

Mr. R.: Fine. Well, we’ll let you know in about two weeks, good luck.

B.: Thank you, sir. Goodbye.

Exercise 12. Read and translate the text about Cambridge. Tell about special features of learning at Cambridge:

Cambridge is one of the two main universities of England located at the Cam River. It was founded at the beginning of the 12-th century. The University consists of 24 different colleges including 4 colleges for women. Each college is self-governing.

The head of the University is the chancellor who is elected for life. The teachers are commonly called “dons” and “tutors”. Part of the teaching is by means of lectures organized by the University. Besides lectures teaching is carried out by tutorial system for which the Cambridge University is famous all over the world. This is a system of individual tuition organized by the colleges.

Each student has a tutor who practically guides him through the whole course of studies. The tutor plans the student’s work and once a week the student goes to his tutor to discuss his work with him. The training course lasts 4 years. The academic year is divided into 3 terms. The students study natural and technical sciences, law, history, languages, geography and many other subjects.

After three years of study a student may proceed to a Bachelor’s degree and later to the degrees of Master and Doctor. Students are required to wear gowns at lectures, in the University library, in the street in the evening, for dinners in the colleges and for official visits. All the students must pay for their education, examinations, books, laboratories, university hostel, the use of libraries, etc. Very few students get grants. Not many children from the working class families are able to get higher education, as the cost is high. The cost of education depends on the college and speciality.

A number of great men, well-known scientists and writers studied at Cambridge. Among them are: Bacon, the philosopher, Milton and Byron, the poets, Cromwell, the soldier, Newton and Darwin, the scientists.