1. Nowadays in England there are about 35 universities.
2. The two oldest universities in England are Oxford and Cambridge, which were founded in the middle ages. They have much in common. These two universities are often called Oxbridge.
3. The oldest university, Oxford, was founded in the 9th century. The history of Oxford began in 1243. It is famous for its first-class education. The first of its colleges was founded in 1249. The university now has thirty-five colleges and about thirteen thousand students, many of them from other countries. There were no women at Oxford until 1878. Now most colleges are open to men and women. Some of the most intelligent men and women in the country live and work here. Oxford gives them what they need: a quiet atmosphere, friendly colleagues and the four-hundred-year-old library, which has about five million books.
4. Cambridge is the second oldest University in GB after Oxford. It was founded in 1209. It is famous for its university, which started during the 13th century and grew steadily, until today there are more than twenty colleges. The oldest one is Porterhouse, which was founded in 1284. And the most recent is Robinson College, which was opened in 1977. But the most famous is King's College, because of its magnificent chapel. Its choir of boys and undergraduates is well known all over the world. The Universities were only for men until 19th century when the first women's college was opened. Later the doors of colleges were opened to both men and women. Nowadays almost all the colleges are mixed.
5. The universities which were founded between 1850 and 1930, including London University, are known as redbrick universities (they were called so because that was the favorable building material of the time). Redbrick universities were built to provide a liberal education for the poorer boys and to give technological training.
6. The University of London is the largest of them. London University was founded in 1836. It is the biggest university in Great Britain.
7. Imperial College London is consistently ranked among the best universities in the world for science, technology, engineering, medicine and business. It was formed in 1907 from a merger of three colleges in London and now has 16,000 students and 8,000 staff.
8. During the XX century many new universities were founded in various provincial towns. The college education is not as academic as the education at a university, but it is more practical and usually vocational. Some universities, such as Oxford, Cambridge, London University and some others, consist of several colleges. They are the so-called Collegiate Universities. A university has some independent colleges, each has its own building, staff and students, but all these colleges prepare their students for common final examinations. Degrees are also awarded by the University, not the college. An institute in Great Britain may have the same or very similar structure of a college of Collegiate University. For example: London University includes some institutes.
Vocabulary:
1. Nowadays- в настоящее время
2. To be founded – быть основанным
3. middle ages- Средневековье
4. common. - общий
5. To call - называть
6. oldest - старейший
7. century. - век
8. To begin- начинать
9. Famous- известный
10. First class education- первоклассное образование
11. from other countries- из других стран
12. To be open- быть открытым
13. Intelligent- умный
14. to live - жить
15. to work - работать
16. to give - давать
17. to need- нуждаться
18. quiet atmosphere- спокойная атмосфера
19. friendly colleagues- дружелюбные коллеги
20. four-hundred-year-old library- 400- летняя библиотека
21. second - второй
22. to start- начинать
23. during - во время
24. To grow- расти
25. Steadily- непрерывно
26. recent - современный
27. magnificent chapel-великолепная часовня.
28. choir - хор
29. undergraduates – старшекурсники, магистранты
30. well know- хорошо известен
31. all over the world.- во всем мире
32. Later - позднее
33. Door- дверь
34. almost - почти
35. To be mixed.- быть смешанным
36. between - между
37. to include- включать
38. redbrick universities – университет из красного кирпича
39. favorable building material of the time- излюбленный строительный материал того времени
40. To be built – быть построенным
41. to provide - обеспечивать
42. education - образование
43. poorer - бедный
44. to give technological training.- давать техническое образование
45. largest – самый крупный
46. biggest – самый большой
47. Imperial College London- Имперский Колледж Лондона
48. Consistently-последовательно
49. to rank- оценивать
50. among - среди
51. best - лучший
52. science, - наука
53. technology- технология
54., engineering,- инженерия
55. To be formed – быть сформированным
56. merger - слияние
57. During the XX century – в течение 20 века
58. Various- различный
59. provincial town- провинциальный город
60. academic - академический
61. Practical- практический
62. usually - обычно
63. vocational. - профессиональный
64. To consist - состоять
65. several - несколько
66. independent - независимый
67. staff - персонал
68. to prepare - готовить
69. final examinations.- выпускные экзамены
70. Degree- степень
71. to be awarded- награждать, присваивать
72. similar- похожий