I am so happy, as I have just received results of the IELTS exam, which I took in Edinburgh Basil Paterson College 2 weeks ago.
I am officially a good user of English according to the Academic International Language Testing System. It means that I can study in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, United Kingdom and United States of America and many other countries where lectures are conducted in English:) :D:D
In addition, the score (7.0), which I managed to achieve, is accepted by the world's best universities such as Cambridge and Oxford:)
I have already thanked everybody who helped me to go through all stages of the UCAS application, answered thousands of my questions:) and supported me for the last year!:)
My advice for those who intend to take this exam? Preparation is the key to success:) U mustn't learn a day before your exam! Take as many practise test as possible, as you must be acquainted with the form of the exam and types of questions etc. Don't panic!
Learn by heart expressions that you can use in writing tasks, such as: upward/downward trend, rise, increase, it dipped, it decreased, in contrast, similarly
Learn the structure of writing task 2: you have to know what each paragraph must contain. For instance, you have to present examples in Body paragraph!
Reading is the most challenging part so practice at home with your watch and answer sheet as there is too little time:(
Listening is easy but you should take some practice tests as it is completely different from MATURA, FCE, CAE and CPE. Here you do not have to worry about time:)
I have been given 2 offers (from England) so far, which is very uplifting:) Now I am waiting for conditional offers from Scottish universities (Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen).
I am very proud of my getting offer from Lancaster University, which is the UK's TOP 10 University and has one of 5 best Business Departments in Britain:)
I have also got a conditional offer from Nottingham Trent University, which has a great employment rate and provides placements for its students (as a part of Business Management and Marketing course), which is crucial nowadays.
I wonder why I have not heard anything from Scottish unis... Do they really have so many candidates that they cannot make their decisions by the end of February?
Letter from Lancaster University Letter from Lancaster University
Track is a place where I can keep up-to-date with my progress and reply to offers. It has recently become the most important UCAS overlap to me.
Waiting for offers is more scary than it seemed to be a month ago. Now, when my application is already sent, I cannot do almost anything to boost my chances in the application process. I wrote "almost", because I asked universities whether they need scanned copies of my qualifications. They replied that it would support my application, so I sent these documents to them via mial.
Roughly 2 days after sending application, you can log in to TRACK.
To log in you will need your Personal ID and the same username and password you used in Apply!
You can substitute a choice within 7 days from the date printed on your original UCAS welcome letter.
Płaciłem kartą walutową MasterCard WBK Bank Zachodni. Nie było problemy, można też płacić zwykłą kartą w złotówkach-pieniądze się przewalutują. Wzięło mi równe 22 funty-nie pobrali żadnej prowizji za przelew internetowy. Wpisałem dane w z karty: imię, nazwisko, numer karty i 3-cyfrowy numer z tyłu na karcie. Stronka dotycząca kart walutowych: BZWBK
Referencje napisała mi moja nauczycielka z ang. Wpisałem jej dane i maila w polu referencji. UCAS wysłał jej maila z hasłem i loginem i link ze stroną na której miała się zalogować. Jak wkleiła referencje to okienko zmieniło się na czerwone.
W education są niektóre polskie licea, więc po prostu wpisałem High School I LO in Tarnow i dalem OK. Coś chyba wyskoczyło, ale zignorowałem to. Potem wyświetliło się wszystko bez problemu.
Predicted grades: Wpisalem srednia, bo inaczej sie nie dalo...Na stronie pisali, ze mozna opuscic, ale wpisalem.
Pay and Send: Dopiero po wypełnieniu wszystkich pól, będzie można wejść w tę zakładkę:)
Personal Statement...thousands ideas and only 4000 characters (words+spaces+punctuation marks). When I heard about Personal Statement, I thought: "WOW, it is fabulous. You have a marvelous opportunity to present yourself in the best way:)"
Yes... However, it was actually the most tough "essay" I have ever written. You are to stand out from the crowd-present yourself as the best candidate for the course you are applying for.
First of all, try to be ORIGINAL. On the other hand, do not exaggerate! I swear, mentioning dozes of extracurricular activities or competitions, in which you participated, will not help you. You will waste 1000 characters and make an admission tutor die of boredom:) You had better focus on a few distinctive or even remarkable activities/projects/competitions related to your course.
Introduction: It is said to be the most important part of PS. Unfortunately, I disregarded my beginning and "screw it up". I hope you will do your best to perfect this section:) If I were given a chance to improve it, I would write something extremely unusual about the subject I wanted to study. In this paragraph you must make a tutor interested. You have to convince him or her that chosen course is immensely important to you. You can point out why you became fascinated by this subject.
Explication: It is a place where you can present yourself. Everything depends on you-you choose a style, form and key points. I recommend creating at least 3 separate sections
1. Something about your biggest attainment or very important project which inspired you to apply for a course...
2. Something about your Matura /Baccalaureate subjects. Best advice: write what you have learned in your school and how your subjects are related to your course.
3. Something about your interest and free time. I doesn't have to be connected with your course.
Ending: It is also important part of your PS. In this paragraph you shouldn't add any new information. Just highlight that you really long to study or research all aspects of your course:)
Final hint: take care about your Grammar, style and punctuation!
http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=134 If you would like your personal statement reviewed in confidence by a team of advisers, post in this forum. Only a team of advisers, yourself and the TSR moderators will be able to view it.
While exploring universities' websites, some international students may be confused with some words. Here I would like to thoroughly explain some abbreviations or phrases which may be found on unis' websites.
application deadline-ostateczny termin.
Na większość kierunków aplikację składa się do 15 stycznia.
Są jednak wyjątki-dotyczy to na przykład Oxford University i Cambridge University (związane jest to z rozmowami kwalifikacyjnymi na te uczelnie). This does not apply to applications for the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, courses in medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine or veterinary science. For all of these, you must apply by 15 October.
24 March - application deadline for the receipt at UCAS of applications for art and design courses except those listed with a 15 January deadline.
Podobno istnieje możliwość aplikowania w późniejszym terminie-do 30 czerwca. Nie polecam!Applications received at UCAS after the deadlines, up until 30 June, will only be considered by the universities and colleges if they still have vacancies for the course(s) you have selected.
clearing-coś w rodzaju naszej II/III rekrutacji, czyli zapełnianie wolnych miejsc.
interview-wywiad/rozmowa kwalifikacyjna-jest wymagany na niektórych kierunkach, np. na Social Work i kierunkach artystycznych. Niektóre uczelnie mogą wymagać prac (architektura) albo esejów (np. Cambridge). Na pewno jest to podane w sekcjach "requirements"/"application process" na stronach uniwersytetów.
deferred entry-aplikowanie o miejsce na rok następny-dla osób, które chcą wziąć sobie gap year. For instance, w 2011 roku aplikujecie na kursy rozpoczynające się we wrześniu 2012 roku, ale możecie wybrać deffered entry i aplikować w 2011 roku na kurs rozpoczynający się w roku 2013. It is up to you!
prospectus-coś w rodzaju katalogu/broszury, w której opisane są wszystkie kierunki. Zawiera informacje na temat university facilities/accommodation etc. Możecie o niego poprosić w mailu lub wypełnić podanie na stronie uniwersytetów. Przesyłka jest free. Ja otrzymałem prospectus-y od około 50 uniwersytetów:)
Foundation degrees-zwykle roczne przygotowanie do studiów.
undergraduate course-studia licencjackie; Undergraduate courses usually last for 3 years in England and 4 years in Scotland. Once you graduate, you get a Bachelor's degree (licencjat).
W UK, stopien Bachelor Degree (BA/BEng/BSci/BArch i te pe) jest dyplomem ukonczenia wyzszej edukacji (stad jest sie po takim stopniu 'graduate' i stad jest 'graduation ceremony') i jest na rowni z polsikim stopniem Magistra. Stopien Masters (czyli Msc, MA, Meng i te de) jest tylko dodatkowa specjalizacja, najczesciej uzyteczny np. kiedy chcemy sie doktoryzowac (PhD) w zupelnie innej dziedzinie niz ukonczony Bachelor Degree.
Dobrze tez pamietac, ze tzw. acient universities (Aberdeen, Glasgow, Edinburgh, St. Andrews, Dundee, Oxford i Cambridge) historycznie wydaja stopnie Masters mimo iz odbywa sie 4 letni kurs na poziomie Bachelora. Te stopnie, mimo przedroska M nadal sa rownowazne tylko z kwalifikacjami na poziomie Bachelora.
BA-a Bachelor of Arts
B.Sc-A Bachelor of Science
BA/B.Sc(Hons)-możliwość otrzymania tytułu z wyróżnieniem
W UK stopien "Bachelor with Honors" upowaznia do podjecia studiow doktoranckich (PhD).
Rownanie w gore jest prostrze oraz bardziej intuicyjne, poziom Doktora (PhD) to stopien naukowy ktorego wymagania na calym swiecie sa identyczne - czyli publikacje naukowe. W Polsce dopiero stopien Magistra jest przepustka do studiow Doktoranckich.
postgraduate course-studia podyplomowe; Postgraduate courses usually last for at least 1 year in the UK. Once you graduate, you get either a Master's degree (magister) or a Ph.D (doktor). For instance, you can study postgraduate course in Social Work after graduating from Sociology. But you cannot study a postgraduate course without a Bachelor's degree.
Mode of Attendance: Full-time (odpowiednik dziennych), part-time (odpowiednik wieczorowych)
area of study-dziedzina nauki
faculty/department-school-wydział; For example: Administration Department, Business School, Faculty of Health and Social Care.
placement/year in industry-coś w rodzaju płatnych praktyk/praca na pełen etat w ramach studiów. To sum up, it is the opportunity to undertake a one-year salaried placement.
UCAS-instytucja, przez którą aplikuje się na studia w UK
http://www.ucas.com/students/apply/
Entry requirement:
A Levels-odpowiednik polskiej matury
SQA Higher-odpowiednik szkockiej matury
IB Diploma-matura międzynarodowa
I must highlight that you do not have to take IB to study in the UK, as British universities accept alternative qualifications/equivalent overseas qualifications, for example: Polish New Matura is approved even by Cambridge and Oxford.
I recommend sending formal letters (via emails) to universities. In these mails you can ask about New Matura/IB requirements and language requirements!
Most of universities require 3 subjects taken at extended/advanced (rozszerzony) level. But, it is not a principle!
IELTS-egzamin językowy wymagany przez większość brytyjskich uczelni. Zwykle wymagają wyniku 6.0-7.0 (podobno więcej niż FCE, ale mniej niż CAE). Większość uczelni akceptuje również amerykańską (podobno łatwiejszą) wersję-TOEFL. Egzaminy można zdawać w większych miastach-odbywają się co 2 tygodnie. Na wyniki czeka się ok. 1 miesiąca.
course fees-czesne; IMPORTANT: Koszty studiów licencjackich wzrosły w tym roku do 9 tyś funtów/rok. Czesne w Szkocji pozostało na dawnym poziomie-ok 2 tyś funtów/rok
SAAS-Szkocka agencja finansująca studia Szkotom i mieszkańcom UE.
If you are a Scottish resident or EU national you are not liable to pay fees and should apply to SAAS for funding.
http://www.saas.gov.uk/index.htm student loan-pożyczka na opłacenie czesnego. Jest ona bardzo korzystnie oprocentowana i spłaca się ją, gdy osiąga się dochody w wysokości 25 tyś funtów rocznie.
England - http://www.studentfinanceengland.co.uk/
Wales -http://www.studentfinancewales.co.uk/
Northern Ireland - http://www.studentfinanceni.co.uk/ Scholarships-stypendia. Niestety mogą je otrzymać jedynie osoby, które mieszkają w Wielkiej Brytanii min. 3 lata:( Są wyjątki:)
Some universities offer scholarships for UE students, for example Lancaster University. However, the conditions of receiving such scholarships are extremely strict. For instance, I would have to pass the Polish Marura with an overall score of 90% (including three subjects at advanced level)! to receive the scholarship worth 1,000 pounds.
OFFERS
Conditional offer- jeżeli zostaniecie zaakceptowani przez uniwersytety, otrzymacie wymagania jakie będziecie musieli spełnić (np. zdać maturę ze średnią 75% lub 3 rozszerzenia na min 80%).
Unconditional offer-gdy aplikujesz i masz zdaną maturę i certyfikat (na poziomie wymaganym przez uniwersytet), możesz otrzymać taką ofertę!
Unsuccessful: you have not been accepted by the university or college concerned.
It is hard to choose a proper course to study, especially if you are 17 and have thousands of interests. In the beginning, I wanted to apply for Social Work. It is a high-powered profession, which can be extremely rewarding but also very dangerous. Social workers are responsible for their wards who they have to visit regularly. They have a lot of tough cases associated with sexual/alcohol/drug abuse etc. When I started reading about this occupation, my interest was growing immensely. I got to know that I would need an experience in volunteering to be eligible to apply for this course. During my holiday I thought through my decision and came to a conclusion that I am not mature enough to study such a responsible course. Finally, I drew a list of my merits and flaws which made me understand who I really was.
I thought about my interests and extra curricular activities. As a result, I realized that I would be a wonderful manager:) Yes, I love working with individuals and I have thousand of ideas... During my "educational career", I took part in roughly 30 contest. I even managed to achieve second place in The National Theatre Knowledge Competition. But, It was 3 years ago when I was fascinated by literature. Besides, I have always been into Geography, but I regard that being a Geography teacher is not the best job in the 21 century-low salaries and few job positions. Moreover, I was looking for a versatile job-full of perspectives and challenges. I would like to cooperate with people from different backgrounds... I would like to travel a lot and be completely independent... I know-everybody does:)
In may,2011, I won "Do Business in Tarnow" Competition. I had a privilege to present my project during The Tarnow Entrepreneurship Forum:) and I won a new laptop. Yeah, this contest completely influenced my decision. I decided to apply for a business course-Marketing with Management. It was probably the most important decision in my life.
When you know what you want to study, you can start searching for the most suitable university. Consciously did not I use expression-"the best". In the UK there are many "worse" universities which have brilliant departments of Business, for example. There are also great unis which have low employment rates. So, it is crucial to read university league tables carefully!
If you are an EU student, you should also bear in mind how expensive higher education in England is (even though you do not need to pay well in advance). It is worth considering Scotland when undergraduate courses are generally funded by SAAS.
Because of that, I chose three Scottish institutions and only two English universities. As far as I am concerned, I may recommend some rankings:
And remember: your career is up to you-university can only help you expand your knowledge and acquire essential skills.
Oh, I have almost forgot: here you have my choices: Lancaster University, Nottingham Trent University, Strathclyde University Glasgow, RGU Aberdeen and Napier University in Edinburgh:) They have great business departments, employment rates and ...offer placement-a year in industry:):)
My results:)
