How do education systems compare in England vs The USA?
Have you ever studied abroad? Even been slightly curious and looked into it? I have.
I even had [well, have, since I never deleted it] a Cappex account, since I wanted to study in the US. In fact, if you’re serious about studying in the US, I would highly recommend Cappex, there are thousands of universities on there, the ability to research and apply for scholarships [probably needed if you’re an international student], reviews etc.. it’s completely free [I gain nothing from this, I only think it’s a great website].
I’ll start this off by confessing that I am going to be comparing two countries here, England and the USA. Since I don’t know too much about any other countries, I don’t feel qualified to talk about them. I hope that’s acceptable. I will also preface this by saying that the reason I am doing “England” rather than “the UK”, is because the education system in all four nations of the United Kingdom are different, and we would be here for hours were I to explain them all.
England.
I thought I would start with my home country’s education system, since that is, obviously, the one I am most familiar with.
Nursery ~Children can attend nursery usually from 6 months upwards, and lots of children do. Once your child turns three, there is funding available for either fifteen hours, or thirty hours a week of childcare, this is something you have to apply for and generally depends on your financial situation. Some limited funding is available for two year old's, but again, you must apply and I believe the criteria is stricter than for the three year old funding.
Primary School~ If a child is four before the school year starts in September, they can start “foundation”, or “reception” as it was called when I was at school. This is a foundation year, focused on; building relationships, learning basic skills, phonics and simple mathematics etc. That’s why it is called a foundation year. It is not compulsory. Meaning if you so choose, you can keep your child at home until they are five. If you do this, your child will be five before the September of the following school year starts. No matter what age you choose to send your child to school, their birthday will fall before or on the thirty first of August, if it is in September, they will start the following year. Meaning, if your child’s birthday is in August, they will be one of the youngest students in their year group, a September birthday would make them one of the oldest.
Primary school is six years, seven if you count foundation. It ends in year 6, usually children are already eleven or will be turning eleven during the summer holidays. Summer holidays run from late July through the beginning of September, school usually starts back roundabout the seventh or eighth of the month. At the end of year six, students sit what are called SATs, these are not pronounced S, A, T’s individually, but as the word sat, with an s on the end. SATs. I will come back to these and their importance in a moment.
In the UK, we used to have primary, middle and secondary, there are still some counties or towns that have this. But widely it is not common. I believe, and having not experienced this myself, this is only what I have been able to research, that middle school was from ages eleven or twelve to age thirteen [year seven and year eight, generally], if I am wrong in this estimation, I apologise.
Secondary school ~ This starts at age eleven, you will be turning twelve in your first year of secondary school, which is year seven [technically your eighth year of education when including foundation]. In secondary school you are put into sets for your various classes. Your SATs that you sat at the end of year six, determine which set you belong in. I believe there were either three or four sets for each subject. I am not very proficient in maths, so I was in set C, which I think was the lowest, at least at my school it was.
In secondary school, you are put into houses [yes, like Hogwarts], and within those houses you have a form, and a form room and form tutor. Your house is made up of people from all through the school, year seven right through to year eleven, and you will have a “Head of House” [usually a senior member of staff]. House assemblies do exist, but aren’t common, at least at my school they weren’t.
Forms are essentially smaller houses. Your form room is your form teacher’s classroom, mine was my English teacher. Your form is again a mix of students from all five years of secondary school. Form is usually held from 8.40~9.00. In form, we had a small ring binder notebook, we had to get it signed by our parents, [I used to do mine myself ~ giving away all my secrets here] to say we had done anything that had been asked of us over the weekend basically. It was also used to pass messages along from form teacher to parent and vice versa.
(Middle School ~ I thought I would add a small part in here about middle schools, as they used to be the “norm”. Years ago, you went to nursery (if your parents could afford to send you), Primary ( Reception through Year 4), then Middle School (Year 5 through Year 8), then Secondary or “Upper School” (Year 9 through Year 11). There are still some Middle Schools left in England, though they are few and far between as far as I’m aware. I know of one within 30 miles radius of myself. I didn’t attend one as there are none in my catchment area. There used to be two in the town five minutes down the road from me but they had both closed in favour of larger Secondary Schools or Academies.)
Classes ~ We do not pick our classes in year’s seven through nine. We are given a timetable and told what classes we are taking. In year seven you have all the usual classes; English language, maths, science, physical education [we call it PE, pronounced P.E]. We also took drama, ICT [information computer technology], geography, history [complete world history, not just our own]. We also did design technology, [which, you guessed it, we called DT]. Now DT rotated every term [semester for those of you whom aren't English], there was graphics, food tech, woodwork, and textiles. Usually you also study a language, I was given German for year seven. In year eight, if we were proficient enough in our language class, we were able to take a second language, but again this isn't a choice, I was given French on top of my German during year eight. In year nine I was put back down to only German [thank god].
At the end of year nine, much like at the end of year six, you will sit another lot of SATs. I will, again, come back to these.
Also at the end of year nine, you will be given a list of available subjects that you can choose to carry on studying for your GCSE’s [pronounce the letters individually, G.C. S. E’s]. Your form tutor will usually be the one to give this to you.
GCSE’s ~ these are subjects you like in your first three years that you wish to continue studying. There are still core subjects that you have to take, which are English, maths, science, PE and ICT, then you pick up to four subjects to study on top of those. I chose drama, geography, health and social care, and business studies. At the end of year ten, [your first year of GCSE subjects], you will sit mock exams for your classes. That is, the ones that have exams.
For example, English, maths, science, and geography had exams, as they were actual GCSEs [General Certificate of Secondary Education, in case you were wondering]. However business studies, health and social care and PE are what's called a BTEC [Business and Technology Education Council], and they were graded on coursework [or in PE a mix of your physical activities and coursework], not exams. Drama, of course, was graded on a mixture of two; coursework and the final play/piece, no exams. Our final piece was My Fair Lady. I was Eliza Doolittle [slight toot my own horn there, can’t lie]. However, due to having a bunion removed and still being in incredible pain and on crutches, I actually wasn’t able to perform in the play, and so my teacher had to step in for me. So my grade was worked out based on coursework and the practice sessions I had done during classes. As as result, I didn’t quite get the grade I had been hoping for.
At the end of year eleven [what used to be your final year of compulsory education], you sit your GCSE exams. Some subjects have more than one exam; English has paper one and paper two, same for maths [one is with a calculator, one without], same for science. Geography just had the one. These are not all done on the same day, or necessarily even in the same week. You will sit these throughout the months of June and July, and receive your results in August. And that's it. You go into school one day during the summer holidays [or in your case, now you’ve finished school, its just another day], shake hands with the headteacher, get an envelope with all your grades in, maybe have your photo taken if you’ve done exceptionally well, and off you trot.
Here’s where it can get confusing for people not accustomed, or even those whom are accustomed to our education system. After year eleven is over, you used to be able choose what to do next. When I left school, I was fifteen, I finished in the May, and wasn’t sixteen till the June, when I started my exams. Back then [this was only 2011], you could leave school then and do nothing if you that's what you wanted. Now, it has slightly changed. You can either leave school and go to sixth form, or you can carry on your education via college [college, not university, they’re different]. But you have to stay in education until you are eighteen now.
Sixth form ~This is years twelve and thirteen. It will essentially take you from sixteen to eighteen. Sixth form is usually attached to a secondary school, though they can be separate too. During this time you do not have to wear any uniform, though you are still representing the school and expected to look smart [no booty shorts please!]. You can take as many or as few subjects as you wish, as long as they fit into your timetable you can do two subjects or ten subjects, its really up to you. The subjects you take will be either an “A level” or a “BTEC”. You can also do an “AS Level” which is essentially the first year of an A-Level.
You also don’t get a list of what you can and can’t take, well you do, but you don’t. What I mean is, they don’t tell you you can’t take Spanish for example [if that's an option at your school] because you haven’t taken it previously, but they might say you can’t take Spanish because the class is taught fourth period on a Tuesday but you have chosen Drama which is also taught then, so your timetable doesn’t allow it.
You also get, provided your timetable isn’t full up with loads of subjects, free periods. How many you get a week depends on how many subjects you choose.
During this time you can do coursework, or just generally chill out. At my school we had a special room dedicated to sixth form students, called the common room [Yes, again, like Hogwarts.] [No, it really isn't very fictional, besides the flying cars, magic, Diagon Alley, half giant and three headed dogs etc]. It wasn’t really anything exceptional, some tables and sofas, vending machines, a table tennis table and a foosball table.
College~ College in England is generally two years, and if you are under nineteen [which you will be if you come directly from year eleven and don’t stop at sixth form first] it is free. [Yes, you read that right, free.] If you are between nineteen and twenty four, and have no qualifications of an equivalent standard, you can either go free or for a subsidised amount.
University~ University, basic undergraduate courses at least, are three years in length, and will cost £9,250 a year, unless you get a loan, a grant or a bursary. These are all varying types of financial aid that could be available to you. One thing to keep in mind, is if you do not earn over £27,000 after your degree, you do not pay back your loan. After thirty years, your loan is written off, as though you never had it. If you do earn over that amount, the amount you pay back each month is not much, it can be anywhere from £30 upwards, such that it probably wouldn’t make much difference to your wages, if you are earning enough.
Some courses, which may be longer in length, offer what's called a bursary. I am going to assume you are aware of the NHS, [if not please google it], this is the NHS bursary. You are choosing to help the country by joining the NHS, so you can get a bursary to help pay for your studies. If you are interested in this, I would recommend reading up on it, as I believe it has recently changed. From what I remember, as long as you work within the NHS, you do not repay your bursary, if you choose to work elsewhere, you have to start repaying it, since they gave it to you so you could work within the NHS.
Postgraduate degrees ~ There are varying kinds of postgrad degrees, such as a Masters, a PGCE [postgraduate certificate] or a PGDip [postgraduate diploma]. You can also use this to define PhD’s.
PGCE~ This is equivalent to one third of a Masters. It’s cheaper, shorter, and you don’t have to write a dissertation like you do at the end of a Masters. These usually take one term to complete [15 weeks]. These usually cost £3000~£4000 roughly.
PGDip ~ Equivalent to two thirds of a Masters, also cheaper, shorter, and no dissertation. These usually take two terms to complete [30 weeks]. These usually cost around £6000~£8000.
Masters~ These are usually a year long, some can be longer, it depends on the subject area. There are a variety of ways to fund your degree, which I’ll attach below if you’re interested. Compared with undergraduate degrees, Master’s degrees usually focus on one particular area of a wider subject, giving students a greater amount of specialist knowledge. They also have more variety and flexibility in terms of modules and study options. However, they are much more intense, and faster paced than undergrad degrees. The class sizes are often much smaller. And, they are cheaper, especially since they only typically go on for a year as opposed to three. They are, however, more expensive than PGCE’s, PGDip’s and PhD’s.
To study at this level [for any of these] you will need at minimum, a 2:2 grade from your undergraduate degree. Also, its notable that you can enroll on a PGCE or a PGDip and continue your studies to convert it to a full masters, likewise, you can enroll on a full masters and choose to abandon your course early, and as long as you have enough credits, you can still achieve a PGCE or PGDip. It’s important to check with your course provider though.
Here is a variety of funding resources for your postgraduate study.[https://www.gov.uk/funding-for-postgraduate-study]
PhD~ a Phd is a Doctor of Philosophy [philosophiae doctor in Latin, [https://www.prospects.ac.uk/postgraduate-study/phd-study/what-is-a-phd] sometimes referred to as a doctorate. It is the generally known as the highest level of education one can study in England, however there are postdoctoral courses, although I am not going to go into detail on those, here is a small amount of information if you’re interested, “A postdoctoral researcher or postdoc is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD).The ultimate goal of a postdoctoral research position is to pursue additional research, training, or teaching in order to have better skills to pursue a career in academia, research, or any other fields” [en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postdoctoral_researcher], I know, its wikipedia, so sue me, I really struggled to find a credible website with information about postdoctoral research in the UK.
Full time PhD’s are three to four years in length. They usually involve students conducting their own research and then writing a thesis based upon that research, though some PhD’s do contain taught material, although not much. The students are assessed on their originality and quality of their work, including the sources for their research, the way their thesis is written, how thought out it is, references, and often things like charts and graphs can be included and these will all be assessed.
“The majority of institutions require PhD candidates to possess a Masters degree, plus a Bachelors degree at 2:1 or above. However, some universities demand only the latter, while self-funded PhD students or those with significant professional experience may also be accepted with lower grades.” [https://www.prospects.ac.uk/postgraduate-study/phd-study/what-is-a-phd]
The USA.
Daycare/ Preschool ~ Starts at ages three to four, this isn’t a compulsory part of education.
Kindergarten ~ Kindergarteners are usually between four and six years of age, this can vary by a number of factors, first is when the child’s birthday falls, whether you decide to send them “on time” or delay by a year perhaps due to their young age, or on your state’s laws. [https://www.superpages.com/em/age-to-start-kindergarten-by-state/], this site lists the laws for various states, and states that “A total of 32 states in the United States require that a child be 5 years old on or before September 1 in the year he or she starts kindergarten, with 11 states having a cutoff date between September 1 and October 15. Only Connecticut still has its cutoff date set at January 1, with 7 states offering local schools the option set their own required dates”.
Elementary School ~ Elementary School are grades 1 through 6. Grade 1 starts at age 6, and you leave Elementary School at age 11.
Junior High ~Junior High is for ages 12 and 13, or grades 7 and 8.
High School ~ High school starts at Grade 9 [age 14] and finishes at Grade 12 [age 18]. In the USA, names can also be given to Grades in High School; Freshman refers to Grade 9, Sophomore refers to Grade 10, Junior to Grade 11 and Senior to Grade 12. Though it is factually unclear if every school in the country does this, or only some, watch any show set in an American High School and you are likely to hear these terms referred to.
College/University ~ In the USA, college and university are generally used interchangeably, although this is not always the case. Often, community college’s are referred to as college, whilst private universities are referred to as university [not uni, though, American’s don’t abbreviate this]. A community college is generally a college that offers two year courses, and is usually much cheaper than four year universities, with the average tuition fee sitting at around $7,500 a year.
College/ University cont.. ~ Then we have the likes of four year universities, of which there are two kinds. One public, the other private. Now you’ve probably watched many American films, and possibly one that’s a high school age type flick. The students will often hope and dream to attend a private university, we are talking the likes of University of Southern California (USC), Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Dartmouth etc.. These are the types of universities that usually you get a scholarship for, because you are a very intelligent person whom has exemplary grades. Either that, or mommy and daddy are very rich and can afford to send you there. Yale and Harvard, for example, average more than $50k a year for tuition. [https://www.savethestudent.org/study-abroad/america/how-much-are-american-university-fees.html#cost]
However there are also, public universities, the kind that still offer fantastic education, but they are funded by the public, and thus are much cheaper. Some of the “best” public universities are the University of Michigan- Ann Arbor, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA if you’ve ever watched the remake of 90210), The University of Florida, The University of Texas at Austin. [https://www.collegeconsensus.com/rankings/best-public-colleges/].Fees for these kinds of universities average $10,230 for in- state students. What does “in state” mean? Why yes, it’s exactly what you think it means. It means that you have to be resident in that state to pay those prices, out of state applicants can expect to pay more in the margin of $26,290. So if you live in South Carolina, but want to study in California, you could pay much more than if you just studied in South Carolina. https://www.topuniversities.com/student-info/student-finance/how-much-does-it-cost-study-us
Graduate (postgraduate) degrees~ Masters and PhD’s are both available too, at both public and private institutions, and they cost between $20k and $35k at public universities, at two years in length, you’re looking at a minimum of $40k up to $70k in debt just for your graduate degree, and between $28,000 to $40,000 for your PhD.
They are slightly different to that of the UK, where masters are less structured and more independent study based [ https://www.findamasters.com/study-abroad/america/masters-study-in-usa.aspx].
Say you study at a private four year university, costing $25k a year, then you go on to do your masters degree at $30k a year, and then you decide “why not, I’ve almost finished, may as well do my PhD now, too” at another $30k a year. That puts you in $160,000 worth of debt. And, no, it doesn’t get written off after 30 years. And yes, you pay it back no matter how much you earn each month.
My conclusion? The UK is fast catching up to the USA in terms of costliness, however still has the added benefits of loans not being paid back if you earn under a certain amount, and then being written off after thirty years is a bonus, too. Both countries have some world class institutions, the likes of Harvard, Yale and Dartmouth, among others for the USA, and Oxford, Cambridge, and University of St Andrews in the UK. Where would you prefer to study? Well.. that’s ultimately up to you. Hopefully this will help you to decide.
