Different Names – Same Essence
Preparatory courses for international applicants are organized both by universities and colleges themselves and by English language schools. In most foreign universities, the administration, concerned about the prestige of the institution, prefers to select the most promising among foreign candidates, and then purposefully prepare them for study at that particular university using their own teachers and educational technologies. The result is an impressive variety of pre-university options: Access Courses, Pre-Sessional English Language Courses, Foundation, International Foundation Year, University Preparation Program, Study Year Abroad, etc. This also includes programs that give a foreigner the opportunity to obtain a high school diploma of the country where they plan to study within the normal period (two years) or an accelerated one (one to one and a half years). That is, the British A-Levels certificate, the Irish Leaving Certificate, the High School Diploma in the US and Canada, or the international International Baccalaureate.
These programs, which vary in duration, price, form, and content, share a common goal: to teach a foreigner to absorb academic knowledge in English. Hence the most common name for the courses – Foundation. The Foundation certificate is an alternative to a national high school diploma, a document that opens the doors to a desired university – of course, provided sufficiently high scores in general subjects and English.
The educational program in schools in the UK, USA, and Canada differs from that in our country not only in the duration of study but also in the set of subjects. It is not surprising that some sections of foreign school programs are completely unknown to our applicants. So in preparatory courses, they have to work in three directions at once. First, it is necessary to bring their English language proficiency to the appropriate level (usually, yesterday's schoolchildren are accepted into Pre-University programs with an IELTS score of 4.5 or TOEFL 450-500, while universities generally require TOEFL of at least 600 or IELTS of at least 5.5, and prestigious ones even higher). Second, to fill gaps caused by differences between school programs at home and in the country of further study. Third, to adapt to an unfamiliar system of testing and evaluation, teaching methods, and an unfamiliar academic and cultural environment.
Note-taking and Other Useful Skills
Foundation programs always include special courses (mandatory or optional modules) such as 'Study and Study Difficulties', IT Skills, Study Life Skills, electronic library, etc., where future students learn to effectively use educational computer and internet technologies, find necessary materials in library catalogs, take notes, prepare lab work, write reports, essays, abstracts, and annotations. For example, at the Aspect language school (Christchurch, New Zealand), in the IT Skills course, University Foundation Year students study topics such as operating systems, file management, text editors, spreadsheets, databases and reports, the Internet, and electronic libraries.
Special attention is paid to references to used materials and bibliography. The fact is that in British universities, the emphasis is on students' independent work. They are taught to plan and conduct their own research, rather than borrowing, slightly paraphrased, others' results. Whereas for many students from the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, it is common and not at all a sin to put together a compilation from books and internet data or even 'copy' a suitable essay entirely. The topic of Avoiding plagiarism (about the inadmissibility of such an approach and responsibility) is necessarily discussed within the 'Essential Study Skills' program.
In addition, there are many vocabulary sections and elements of communication that are not even mentioned in a standard English course. It is useless to find out why cigarettes are called 'fags' and an antisocial person is a 'minger'. Student slang is dynamic; you cannot keep up with it. Especially in West London, where street speech is peppered with components of the Cockney dialect, where sauce is called by the name of a popular singer, and a car is not a car but a 'jam jar'. With classical language training, hardly anyone ventures into these linguistic nooks, but for those who are to study in London, it is simply necessary to familiarize themselves with this section of English to avoid getting into trouble. And the developers of Pre-Sessional English Courses at London colleges and universities have taken this into account.
Choosing the Right Course
Country, price, and future specialty are the main factors determining the choice of students and their parents. In searching for a specific University Foundation program, consultants on education abroad, the Internet, meetings with representatives, alumni, and students of foreign educational institutions can help. Such meetings are held annually as part of international education exhibitions and at the initiative of individual agencies.
When future plans are clear, the search circle for suitable preparatory courses narrows significantly. The ideal option is a Foundation program directly on the campus of the chosen university or in a nearby language school. For example, a young man is planning to go into the oil and gas business and is interested in the European energy market. His direct path is to the University of Dundee – the most 'oil' university in the British Isles. And it is conveniently located – surrounded by specialized enterprises, and the preparatory courses at the Dundee language center cover the oil and gas topic very extensively.
Studying under the Foundation program at the university lasts from six months to a year. Applicants can live in the university dormitory, use the library, attend lectures and seminars, be part of sports clubs and societies – in short, feel like full-fledged students. Some manage to earn university credits during this time, that is, to complete and report on some study modules from the first year. Later, when the intense student life begins, they will find it a bit easier than their less foresighted colleagues.
If the prospects for future professional activity are still unclear, it is better to choose a program of the broadest profile: A-Levels, International Baccalaureate, or an Academic Year at a good language school, which offers many additional classes, educational excursions, and activities that will help the applicant find their way.
International Bellerbys College, part of Study Group (UK), offers students a whole range of educational programs: Pre-GCSE, GCSE (lower secondary school program), A-Levels (full secondary education), General English, preparation for IELTS, Pre-Masters, and Foundation with a huge list of specialized subjects. With such a broad scope, the college has its own specialty. Says director of Bellerbys Cambridge John Rushton: "We are proud of our pre-university preparation programs, especially in mathematics: our graduates always show excellent results, and in 2005 they were the best in the country. As a rule, students from CIS countries have very high results in mathematics. Every year teenagers from your country come to us, and with very, very rare exceptions, they are hardworking and successful... I am often asked what is needed to enter Cambridge University? Yes, we have a special program for those who want to enter Cambridge and Oxford, and our graduates successfully meet the entrance requirements of Cambridge, the London School of Economics, and other prestigious universities. To do this, you need to have the highest grade A in four or five chosen subjects. But not only that... You need to stand out, have victories in Olympiads, special outstanding results and achievements... And English! Not very good, but very best – that is what your English should be like if you want to study at Cambridge."
With and without a guarantee
When they say that Foundation students are guaranteed admission to a university, it means that some universities enter into partnership agreements with the administration of preparatory courses and reserve places for Foundation graduates, but only for those who, by the end of the program, will meet the university's admission requirements. The guarantee does not apply to a student with poor grades and poor English; no university will accept him.
Bellerbys College, for example, cooperates with 38 UK universities. The college's consultants and their colleagues from the admissions offices of partner universities monitor the progress of each student based on the results of ongoing interim tests and plan their studies so that by the final exams they have earned the necessary points in compulsory and optional subjects. The higher the applicant's indicators, the wider his choice, while a graduate with low scores will have to limit himself to the most undemanding universities with lowered admission requirements.
"If a student has successfully completed our Foundation program and has an IELTS 6.0, then he is guaranteed a place at Middlesex University," says the head of academic preparation at the Beet language center (Bournemouth, UK). "However, many other institutions also consider applications from graduates of our center, though they offer no guarantees."
University placement services inform Foundation students throughout the year which partner universities they could enter right now and how many more points they need to have their documents accepted by the university the student initially targeted. For example, using partnership agreements, the International Language School Aspect receives invitations from universities for its students even before the completion of the preparatory course.
But not everyone works on this scheme. For example, the preparatory department of the British University of Warwick has been accepting foreign applicants for over 20 years without any guarantees, not reserving places in advance anywhere for anyone. Nevertheless, as "Карьера" notes, 100% of graduates of the Higher Education Foundation Program (HEFP Warwick) enter bachelor's programs at Warwick and other British universities, thereby proving that excellent study is a real guarantee of success.