Arcona wrote:
What are the American equivalents of GCSEs and A Levels?
Hi. As far as I know there are not precise equivalents for these credentials. I believe GSCEs are roughly equivalent to an honors track (Advanced Placement or AP) high school diploma. "A" levels are ~roughly~ equivalent to freshman (first year) studies at an undergraduate university. In general, each US university here will look at GSCEs and A levels slightly differently when assessing transferability. You might find it useful to check with the US school you plan to attend to see what their policies might be. If you can, it might be helpful to take placement tests (and they may be required) once you arrive at school here, so that you are not placed into inappropriately hard or too basic courses.
I don't know how much information you need, or if any of this applies, but, just in case:
American High Schools (3 or 4 years - roughly ages 14- 18 ) tend to offer students a variety of subjects, but do not typically go into them in very much depth at all. There are no national standards for graduation - it's left to the states. AP or honors track programs offer a better quality of education, but are not available at all schools. My daughter studied 7 subjects (a few of them AP courses) in each of her years of high school. She also took the California high school exit exam in her 9th grade year (first year of high school) and found it ridiculously easy to pass. (They would not, of course, let her leave school at that point to go to a university as she hadn't "taken the courses required to get admitted yet".)
The quality of the school systems varies wildly from community to community, with those in lower socio-economic areas tending to be barely functional as a general rule (there are exceptions, of course). Even public (state) schools in more "well to do" areas are not necessarily that rigorous - although they may well be so. Taken as a whole, it could be said that high school graduates in the US are marginally literate and just functional enough to enter the workforce at the lowest levels. In the "middle of the road" schools there is a serious disconnect between the preparation the students receive and what they really need to have for success in their first year at a good university. There's a lot of brain-shock for those first-semester/first-quarter freshmen. Private schools are typically more exclusive and often seem to produce more functional graduates. They can be extremely expensive, though. I have little experience with them and so cannot comment.
Another "just in case you can use it" - a crash course in the public (state supported) higher education system in the US follows, with particular emphasis on California as that is the state with which I am most familiar. I think some permutation of this scenario is pretty common in most states. -
Public (state) higher education is tiered - After high school one can go on to the community colleges (CCs). If you're breathing, you pretty much qualify for admission. They offer only the first two years of courses towards an undergraduate degree. Many students do their first two years at a CC to save money and then transfer over to a 4 year university (CCs are extremely affordable). The CCs also typically offer pretty decent vocational programs - auto repair, basic nursing, intro to computer programming, office work, etc. It is possible to get an "Associates" degree after completing a two year course there, but these degrees are generally not considered a "real" college degree, but something more like a trade school diploma even if one has taken solely academic coursework. Someone with a GSCE and A levels should should have no trouble with the work at a community college, but might want to go to the next tier unless you want to take it easy for a couple of years. (Nice, if the surf's up!)
In California, the next level that would be the State University system (Cal State). These are not known as being particularly rigorous as a whole, although some programs at some schools are excellent. My experience was that roughly 1/4th to 1/3 of incoming freshman students were not functionally literate enough to participate in the introductory Math or English classes and had to have remedial work before they could manage them. Unfortunately, that drags down the quality of the classes, which negatively impacts the opportunities for students who are more functional. The schools tend to be large (25-35,000 students) and have impacted (full) programs. You can be admitted into the school and end up not admitted to your major (area of specialization). Admissions standards are a not particularly high, but are more strict than are those of the CCs. When looking at a Cal State school, you want to be looking at the general admissions standards AND those for the particular program to which you wish to apply. (Generally, the tougher the admission standards, the better.) The Cal State system typically offers Bachelors (4 year) and Master's (6 year) degrees. They also offer Education (teaching) diplomas at various levels.
The next level up of state-supported schools is the University of California system. These are the PdD granting, research-oriented institutions. (They also offer BA/BS and MA/MS year programs.) They can be quite difficult to get into, and are basically the top of the heap as far as state-funded schools go. They are also seriously crowded, and it's possible to be admitted to the University, but not be able to get into your major because of overcrowding. When looking at a UC system school, look primarily at the programs of study you want to follow.
There are also the professional schools - Medical School, Law School, Pharmacy School, etc., which have varying prerequisites - some will take people in after a bachelor's (4 year) degree, some require a Master's first, etc. It varies - you'd need to carefully read up on the school.
Of course, there are also the private universities. These can be pricey, and may be of exceptionally high quality, but are not necessarily so. Some are extremely generous with financial aid. It's my general understanding that there is also a "quality tier" system going with them, with schools like Harvard and Princeton, Barnard and Wellesey, at one end, and some smaller religious schools at the other end. I'll have to leave it to others to elaborate on the private school arena.
For someone who was going to choose any university/college, and who planned to stay in the US, I'd strongly recommend looking not only at the programs and the schools, but at their employment placement rates and alumni feedback. Getting a shiny new degree, and working hard for it, and then finding out that it's worthless in the job market (if that's why you've gone to school) is not a nice thing to confront. Especially when you have to start paying back the tens of thousands of dollars in student loans it will have cost you to buy that piece of paper.
Last edited by Nan on 02 Aug 2007, 2:17 pm, edited 2 times in total.
01 Aug 2007, 9:19 am
