American education is known as the most modern and advanced education in the world, with outstanding advantages. Let's find out an overview of the American education system with Maple through the article below.
About American education in elementary and high school training
Elementary and high school in the US usually lasts from grade 1 to 12. At public schools, US citizens are exempt from tuition fees for this level of education. After completing 5th grade (elementary level) students enter high school. High school includes middle high school (grades 6 to 8) and high school (grades 9 to 12).
Usually, international parents send their children to study in the US right from grades 11 and 12 to prepare for college. This trend is because since high school, American students have been accustomed to freely choosing elective courses, along with required/core classes. Common compulsory subjects are English/Literature, Mathematics, Science, Physical... Meanwhile, optional subjects will allow students to be flexible dynamically choose classes, choose hours, choose teachers to suit interests and future development orientations, with subjects such as PE (Physical Education), Foregin Language (Foreign Language), Computer (Informatics), or Art (Art).
Therefore, it is very rare for two students in the same grade to have 100% identical timetables (unless you choose to register for the same class), and learners will then be acquainted with the same form of learning as in American colleges/universities. In addition, students can also register for AP (Advanced Placement) classes, which are advanced placement programs, with content equivalent to the introductory (101) or basic classes at the college year program of American universities. When students meet the required scores for the corresponding AP course, students will receive a reduction in the number of credits in the first year bachelor's program. In terms of results assessment, student achievement is expressed through the average score of each subject and the total average score of all subjects - referred to as GPA.
In particular, some families in the US also apply for the homeschooling program. Most of the parents of these families are knowledgeable about the education industry and want to teach their children under a different system from the schools. However, these students can all take standardized tests such as SAT, and AP like regular students, and all have the right to apply to universities.
Maple will help you understand more about the peculiarities of American education at the undergraduate, master's, doctoral and post-doctoral levels in the following.
University level and popular school models
After completing high school, American and local students have three popular school options for earning an Associate degree (2 years) or Bachelor's degree (4 years):
Community College: Students who choose community colleges will attend a 2-year Associate degree program, after which, they can continue to apply for a transfer to a 4-year University/College to complete the remaining two years of study and earn a bachelor's degree (if they wish). If you're wondering whether to go to a community college in the US because of funding issues, rest assured, that you can save money on tuition for the first two years - when the tuition of Community Colleges is usually cheaper than at American universities, but still ensure the quality of teachers and the number of credits for general subjects.
College: Note that college in the US does not mean a college, because 4-year colleges in the US are similar to universities - are allowed to organize teaching undergraduate programs that grant Bachelor's Degree (Bachelor of Arts) or B.S (Bachelor of Science). The only difference between College and University is that the University can teach and research at the graduate level, while the College is only allowed to grant undergraduate degrees or less. In terms of quality, you can rest assured and should spend time researching the outstanding 4-year colleges, such as: Metropolitan State College of Denver in Colorado, Pennsylvania College of Technology in Pennsylvania or Columbus College of Art and Design (Ohio state) with bachelor's degree courses in the fields of advertising, graphic design, fashion design, art, multimedia…
University: Is the most widely known in the US, specializing in training programs ranging from pre-university, Bachelor, and post-bachelorship (including Master, Doctorate or even Postdoctoral). Some universities may include multiple colleges, such as Harvard College, which is part of Harvard University. The advantage of the University compared to the College is the diversity of subjects, the outstanding learning and research environment in terms of facilities, a combination of exciting extracurricular activities and exchange programs at universities. Not to mention, the number of students at universities is also significantly higher, which means that the percentage of American students from other countries is also higher. In addition to the Ivy League group, which is the pride of American education, you can also use the subject rankings to find out which state's private or public universities are of interest to you, thereby making the best choice.
Graduate level:
After obtaining a bachelor's degree, students can continue to study further to get a master's degree (Postgraduate degree) if they meet the conditions for a master's study in the US. Normally, applicants need GRE (Graduate Record Examination) or GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test) scores for business schools, management and most other fields, LSAT (Law School Admission Test) for Law school and MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) for medical school…. The average duration of a Master's course is 2 years. Like most countries in the world, US master's programs are divided into two systems:
- Research Master: allows students to focus on research in a specific area of expertise, and produce a research thesis of the length required by the university. Popular Masters by Research are Master of Arts (M.A), Master of Science (MSc), Master of Research (MRes), Master of Philosophy (MPhil),...
- Specialized Master's System: here, students will mainly be taught knowledge and provide specialized skills at advanced level. The curriculum at that time was also very close to reality, with many opportunities for professional practice. Specialized masters often allow students to do internships in a company, or a related organization. Popular specialized masters are Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Education (MEd), Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Fine Arts (MFA),...
At the doctoral level, most schools require applicants to have a Master's degree in order to gain admission to a Ph.D. In general, the basic requirements for acceptance into Ph.D. programs in the US include a high GPA (3.4 or higher); TOEFL, GRE / GMAT certificates, good scientific research achievements... To meet the above requirements, you should strive to complete them right from the first day of university. Normally, at this level of study, Ph.D. students will take at least 4 years or more to complete their research. Regarding the cost, most Ph.D. students can participate in teaching or work as teaching assistants to receive financial support from the university. In addition, you can also receive scholarships to study in the US from the government, non-governmental scholarship funds or support funds outside the school.
Post-doctoral research (Post Doc) is also a direction chosen by many Ph.D. students because this experience is very good for resumes as full-time lecturers at universities/ famous colleges. These programs require many quality research papers published in specialized journals. The duration of a Ph.D. studentship depends on each case (due to differences in industries, schools, professors, advisors, etc.) Similarly to the doctoral level, most Ph.D. students are supported financially by the school or related organizations and companies.
Liberal Arts model - the outstanding advantage of the American education system
The pride of American higher education is the liberal arts model, also commonly translated in Vietnamese under the term "nghệ thuật tự do".
In case you have not yet determined your major and want to accumulate general knowledge in many fields, liberal arts-oriented colleges and universities can be a reasonable choice. The training content of these programs is a combination of interdisciplinary knowledge from subjects in the fields of social and humanities (languages, history, psychology, law, politics, economics, etc.), geography, communication...) with groups of science and nature (astronomy, biology, chemistry, physics, botany, archeology, geology, earth science...)
Some famous universities pursuing liberal education orientation:
- Maryville University
- Syracuse University
- University of Kentucky
- Southern Illinois University Carbondale
- University of Hartford - Undergraduate Admissions
However, regardless of whether you choose Liberal Arts-oriented schools to attend or not, American international students at Colleges and Universities have the right to multi-disciplinary. Most of them study two majors (still graduate after 4 years) and a few choose 3 majors (graduate late 1 to 2 semesters). Or you can also choose to study a minor along with your major.
Finally, the flexibility of higher education in the US is also reflected in some schools that are willing to accept doctoral students without master's degrees. This means that students who graduate with a bachelor's degree and do not have a master's degree (but have demonstrated competence, prior academic research experience at the university level and a particular interest in the work of research) can still be admitted to a doctoral degree.
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