UK Schools

[Daisy]

Also thought. I think our ways of studying for medicine and law are different too, from the little I think I understand of your system. Medicine is generally 5 years long at uni. Depending on what type of med school you go to the time that you start meeting patients/learning personal skills etc varies greatly, fomr the 1st year say at Liverpool, to the traditional courses at Cambridge where its at least yr3/4. Then after that you do spend another 2 years on rotation, I've forgotten the official name, where you experince life in various doctor roles and settings. After that I get confused but I think they you specialise and are a proper proper doctor not just a trainee. But its medschool straight away, there is no pre-med. law, you can read law as an undergrad, then you have to take the proffesional exams/train with a law/barrister firm. OR as is becoming more popular, any undergrad degree, then a one year conversion course, then onto proffesional exams etc.

 

and another random piece of trivia. our 1st year of primary school (elementary) is called 'reception'.

 

Celia

[colinian]

Take a look at http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_diff...nd_a_university for lots of answers to this question.

 

Colin

[AFriendlyFace]

Also thought. I think our ways of studying for medicine and law are different too, from the little I think I understand of your system. Medicine is generally 5 years long at uni. Depending on what type of med school you go to the time that you start meeting patients/learning personal skills etc varies greatly, fomr the 1st year say at Liverpool, to the traditional courses at Cambridge where its at least yr3/4. Then after that you do spend another 2 years on rotation, I've forgotten the official name, where you experince life in various doctor roles and settings. After that I get confused but I think they you specialise and are a proper proper doctor not just a trainee. But its medschool straight away, there is no pre-med. law, you can read law as an undergrad, then you have to take the proffesional exams/train with a law/barrister firm. OR as is becoming more popular, any undergrad degree, then a one year conversion course, then onto proffesional exams etc.

I could be wrong and please someone who's actually in or going into these fields correct me, but I think in the US you can get into law school or medical school without having previously done pre-law or pre-med as long as you pass your LSATs (law) and MCATs (med) satisfactorily in the eyes of the institution to which you are applying.

 

I could further be mistaken, but I *think* you can dispense with law school altogether if you can somehow manage to pass the Bar exam without going. Mind you, I would assume you'd have more trouble finding work without a degree/school to back up your license, and I think you'd also have to take certain state exams to be licensed to practice in that state.

 

As I said though, I don't know for sure it's just what I'm thinking. Someone going into law and/or medicine should come and correct me.

 

and another random piece of trivia. our 1st year of primary school (elementary) is called 'reception'.

That's cool! Didn't know that.

[GaryK]

I could be wrong and please someone who's actually in or going into these fields correct me, but I think in the US you can get into law school or medical school without having previously done pre-law or pre-med as long as you pass your LSATs (law) and MCATs (med) satisfactorily in the eyes of the institution to which you are applying.

 

I could further be mistaken, but I *think* you can dispense with law school altogether if you can somehow manage to pass the Bar exam without going. Mind you, I would assume you'd have more trouble finding work without a degree/school to back up your license, and I think you'd also have to take certain state exams to be licensed to practice in that state.

 

As I said though, I don't know for sure it's just what I'm thinking. Someone going into law and/or medicine should come and correct me.

I needed to call my IP Attorney today to discuss changes to her website so I took advantage of the opportunity to ask her some of the things you mentioned.

 

It used to be that you could just take the bar exam and if you passed you'd be considered an attorney. That is no longer the case. No law school will accept you without a degree and without passing your LSAT.

 

The degree does not have to include anything one would consider pre-law. In fact she told me that more and more attorneys-to-be get their degree(s) in something related to the area in which they want to practice. A lot of them are English majors or minors because typically being an attorney involves being able to write well. A minor slip-up in the wording of a contract could have devastating results if that clause were ever called into question.

 

Hope that helps.

[AFriendlyFace]

Thanks Gary!

 

Nice to know that I wasn't totally making that up, and even better to have my information clarified for future reference

[wildone]

Just to add to Graham's comment, in Canada (except the Province of Quebec):

 

Elementary School: Kindergarten- Grade 8 (4yrs to 14)

Secondary School: 14-18 (grades 9-12)

 

Then you can go to:

 

College: 2 or 3 year trade or technical programs (similar to a US Junior College) - You graduate with a Diploma or Certificate

University: Undergrad and Grad School - Graduate with a Bachelors\Masters\Doctorate

 

Quebec is a WHOLE different story which maybe Jack Frost can explain as I've never really figured out what exactly a CEGEP is!

 

Steve

 

Hey Steve,

 

Actually things are a bit different in the weat of Canada. There is really two types of levels of primary education. It varies from municipality to municipality or school board to school board.

 

One way is:

 

Grades 1-6 Elementary School

Grades 7-9 Junior High School

Grades 10-12 High School

 

There is a lot of school boards that are switching to the other form, due to the supposed stress being caused on 12-15 y/o's by just the word 'junior' with high school .

 

So some operate as:

 

Grades 1-5 Elementary School

Grades 6-9 Middle School

Grades 10-12 High School

 

Either way, I have always had to really think out what the whole freshman, sophmore, junior, senior grades are that I read about. Other than refering to Grade 12's as seniors, the other names are not used at all.

 

As far as what happens in College and University in Alberta, the Colleges are diploma granting institutions, where University is degree granting. Although there is now a shift to have Colleges have limited degree granting status due to the overcrowding of the universities.

 

Now doesn't Ontario have a Grade 13 as part of the primary education system as well? I never understood that one.

 

Steve

[BeaStKid]

In India, each college is a part of some University. If it isn't, then they can't hand out degrees....they hand out Diplomas.

 

Each University has a number of colleges under it, depending upon the course. For example, the Delhi University has a college called Delhi College of Engineering and another called Sri Ram College of Commerce.

 

People, here, go to a University and by going to a Uni, they attend that Uni's college.

 

 

BeaStKid