C) Look through the facts concerning Siberian Transport University and Sheffield University then discuss in pairs the two universities

The Siberian Transport University is among the largest scientific and educational centres in Siberia.

§ Today STU has all the facilities needed for training high skilled staff on 10 faculties.

§ At present STU is training about 12,000 students and post-graduates. The final stage of training is working out and submitting thesis.

§ STU has highly-qualified staff. 45 departments employ 538 lecturers, of which 25 are professors and 15 are correspondent members of different academies.

§ A lot of attention is given to professional development for lecturers in modern technology, to internships at scientific centers and the most advanced enterprises of the industry. The training takes place at the Institute of Professional Development.

§ The University has had a post-graduate course since 1958 and a doctor's degree course since 1994. It has a license to train post-graduates in 25 majors. At present there are about 200 post-graduates at the University.

§ The University comprises two institutes:

§ -Institute of Perspective Transport Technologies and Professional Development

§ -Institute of Complex Research of Transport Systems (part of the Siberian Branch of the Academy of Sciences)

§ STU has branches in Tomsk, Belovo, Novoaltaisk and Novosibirsk.

§ STU has following facilities needed for training skilled staff: Scientific Technical library was founded in 1932 and supporting educational, scientific and cultural work if students and employees of Siberian Transport University. The total book fund is over 1,045,000 items, including scientific literature- and educational literature-338,000 items.

§ The library funds are universal. The library stores more than 4,000 rare and valuable copies, unique sets of magazines dating back to the 18th-19th centuries.

§ University Facilities

§ Academic Blocks consist of main academic block, laboratory block, training workshops and Institute of Prospective Transport Technologies and Staff Retraining

§ Training Grounds comprise a railway training ground equipped with a locomotive, carriages, VPRS-02 track machine; a unique stand for crash testing of the rolling stock is being created in order to test its durability and proneness to damage; a geodesic training ground

§ Student Campus includes seven dormitories (gyms, study rooms, furnished lounges with computers and home appliances) accommodate 2,000 students, health care facilities

§ Sport Facilities: skiing centres, a modern swimming pool, a gym, a stadium, a mini-football field, tracks and playgrounds, an open-air tennis court with two playgrounds, a complex football/volleyball/basketball playground, gyms in dormitories and academic blocks

Facts and Figures about Sheffield University

§ The University grew out of the Sheffield Medical School (founded in 1828), Firth College (1879) and the Sheffield Technical School (1884). These three institutions came together in 1897 to form the University College of Sheffield, which in turn became the University of Sheffield in 1905.

§ 70 Academic Departments and Sections are grouped in the 7 Faculties (Architectural Studies, Arts, Engineering, Law, Medicine, Pure Science, Social Sciences).

§ 54 Research Units are conducting interdisciplinary research across a broad range of subject areas.

§ 10 specialist advisory services for industry and commerce operate within the University.

§ The University's income for the financial year ending 31 July 2003 was £261 million.

§ 19,587 full-time students were registered for degree, diploma and certificate courses in the session 2003-04. Of these, 16,070 were undergraduates and 3,517 were postgraduates.

§ 4,087 part-time students were registered for degree, diploma and certificate courses in the session 2003-04. Of these, 2,067 were undergraduates and 2,020 were postgraduates.

§ 5,569 people were employed at the University on 31 July 2003. Of these, 1,228 were full-time academic staff.

§ 4,371 First degrees, 1,591 Masters degrees, 469 Doctor of Philosophy degrees, and 34 other Doctors degrees were awarded by the University in the session 2002-03.

§ 3,820 international students from 116 countries were registered in the session 2003-04. The largest national groups were from China (721); Malaysia (538); Greece (189); Germany (149); and India (143).

§ 32,977 applications were received through UCAS for undergraduate entry in September 2003.

§ The ratio of male to female undergraduate students is 47%:53%.

§ The average A level entry score for September 2003 was 25.3

§ 4,878 student places are available in University halls of residence (2,863) and flats (2,015) in 2003/04.

§ Over 1.4 million books, periodicals and other items are held in the University.

§ More than 70 concerts and plays are organized each year by University students and staff.

III. a) Before you listen to the student speaking about student’s life, use the words and phrases in the table to complete the sentences below. Translate these sentences into Russian.

a. a strain on the pocket	b. afford	c. Boxing Day
d. cost of living	e. encounter	f. impulse buy
g. loot	h. on a tight budget	i. Student Union
j. Tips	k. Trendy

1. If you ________ something or someone, you discover it/them unexpectedly.

2. __________ are useful pieces of information.

3. The____________ is the amount of money someone needs to live on.

4. If you can ____________ something you have enough money to pay for it.

5. If something is more than you can usually afford we say this is.

6. The ______________ is a place on campus that hosts student services such as a canteen, bar, lounge, health facilities etc.

7. If you don't have much available income to spend we say that you are ___________.

8. ____________ means fashionable or up with the latest ideas.

9. ____________ is the day after Christmas day. In the UK most shops have a sale which begins on this day.

10. If you __________ something, you steal or obtain it illegally.

11. An _________ is one in which you have a sudden desire to buy something that you see in a shop.

b) Listen and decide if each of the statements about the text is true or false.

1. More than three quarters of all university students in England and Wales borrow money to study.

2. Students tend to buy a house soon after graduating.

3. Paying back a student loan is always voluntary.

4. A degree gives people an advantage when applying for white collar jobs.

5. Graduates often feel their first job doesn’t live up to their expectations.

6. Numbers of British university students began to decline after the credit crunch.

7. Students sometimes break the law to finance their studies.

8. More international students are coming to Britain because the UK currency is weaker

c) Complete the sentences using vocabulary from the previous exercise. Listen again to check your answer.

1. We will lend you £3,000, which you will need to repay with of 3% after three years.

2. Paying my fees every year has been a constant _______.

3. With such a small loan, I don’t know if I’ll be able to pay the_______.

4. I’ve got a good job, but I just wish the work was more_______.

5. When term ends, I’ll have to get___________ just to make ends meet.

6. The_______ is £140 a week, but it’s cash-in-hand, so you don’t pay tax.