How to Succeed in The British Education System Without Really Trying

What a terrible blogger I am. It is certainly not for lack of wondrous amazing experiences and adventures and funny British-isms that I haven't posted lately. It is for lack of time! I am writing this to you from the library at City University on what is quite likely the last day I will ever spend on this campus. I just finished with my psychology exam which was unfortunately difficult and has left me with what may be a permanent claw in the place of my hand. It's a testament to my commitment to you, my loyal readers, that I am typing this at all.

No. That's not true. I'm really just killing time before meeting up with a friend to go to a pub. But the bit about the really hard psych test was true... and my hand does still hurt. Here's the thing about this test. As an international student who is leaving in just a few days (yikes!) I got the pleasure of sitting said exam today, 3 days after the final class where as my peers won't be taking theirs until January 12th. So I got significantly less time to study which is not comforting when you are faced with some pretty tricky essay prompts. On top of that though, is the fact that British people, or at least those at City University, are total nutters about staging exams!

*Note: this is all 3 days old, I write it then forgot to post it but I feel that if I were to change the afore mentioned times now the post would lose some of its impact... also, I don't wanna change it all.*

You know you are in for a long two hours when you can't even figure out how to fill out the front of the exam booklet! Should you ever find yourself sitting a British exam here as some tips; ten minutes of reading time before the test begins does not mean you can review your notes, in that reading time all you are allowed to do is read the questions... for ten minutes. Also, during these ten minutes you are not allowed to make notes on the prompt, just stare at it. This was my first and only formal exam (thankfully) so these ten minutes were really baffling to me. After that initial confusion I set off on a whirlwind essay writing spree on a subject that, aside from the past 9 lectures, I have absolutely no background information on. It was exciting! The rest of those two hours is a blur of hand cramps and really wishing I had used the loo before the exam after all that tea. I literally wrote scrawled my last words the moment the administers called time. Whew! Glad that is done with! 

Here's the thing about the British education system, it's very different from America's system. I am not saying that either one is better or worse than the other. They are just different. I personally have been using the American system for the past 14 years so, naturally, attempting to operate in the British system straight away for just one term is a bit of a shock. I am used to going to any given class between 2 and 4 times a week and doing a bit of homework or a small assignment after each one. Here there is one class a week (usually for a grueling 3 hour lecture), one piece of course work (usually a short essay or presentation), and a final project (a longer essay or an exam). That's it, that's all your grade is based on. So yeah, there is a lot of pressure on those few assignments, not something I particularly enjoy.

So my friends, here is the answer to succeeding in the British education system without really trying; you don't. If you don't put in the effort you are going to crash and burn. But on the plus side, when you see a 70 mark on your paper, do not fret that you have barely even pulled a C. 70 is equivalent to an A here, it's a first level grade. The system does go all the way to 100 but some how marks higher than 70 are reserved for publish worthy, gilded, or magical documents. At least that's how I understand the system to work.