The Belarusian State University of Informatics and Radioelectronics, the former Radioengineering Institute, was founded in 1964. It was established on the basis of the Polytechnic Institute of the Republic of Belarus and initially had 3 faculties: the Radioengineering Faculty, the Faculty of Automation and Computer Machinery, the General Engineering Faculty for Part-Time Studies.
Today the BSUIR is the leading Belarusian University in the field of computer science, radioelectronics and telecommunications. The University includes 10 faculties, 42 departments, the Institute of Information Technologies, the Research and Development Department. The overall number of students is more than 17,000 including international undergraduate and postgraduate students coming from more than 30 countries of Asia, Africa, Middle East, Latin America, European Union and CIS.
The University offers a great choice of engineering courses along with excellent study and research facilities. It trains engineers in 35 specialities in the field of radioengineering, computer science, microelectronics, telecommunications, automatic control, artificial intelligence, electronic instrument-making, medical electronics and economics.
There are about 1,000 highly qualified members of the academic staff at the University. The teaching staff consists of academicians, Corresponding members of the Belarusian Academy of Sciences, foreign Academies of Sciences, professors, assistant professors, doctors and experienced teachers.
The students study at 10 faculties: the Faculty of Computer-Aided Design; the Faculty of Information Technologies and Control; the Faculty of Radioengineering and Electronics; the Faculty of Computer Systems and Networks; the Faculty of Telecommunication; the Faculty of Engineering and Economics; the Military Faculty; the Faculty of Extra-Mural Training; the Faculty of Continuous and Distance Education; the Faculty of Pre-University Preparation and Occupational Guidance.
Different subjects are taught at the University depending on the faculty and the course. The first-year students study physics, higher mathematics, descriptive geometry, technical drawing, and social sciences. Later they acquire profound knowledge in electronics, cybernetics, computing machinery, etc. Special attention is given to such subjects as impulse technique, analog and digital computers.
Four foreign languages are taught at the University. Two departments teach English, French, German and Spanish to students and post-graduates with an emphasis on understanding and translating scientific and technical literature. Original and modern methods and forms of teaching foreign languages are practiced in a Language Training Center. Five specialities at the University are available also in English.
The course of study lasts four years. The academic year is divided into two terms. Lectures, seminars, laboratory and practical classes make up the majority of teaching time. Students are usually assessed at the end of each semester through a pass-fail system, written and oral examinations, and through a coursework in the form of projects. The students financially covered by the government are granted studentships. Students from other cities lodge in 4 comfortable dormitories with a local net and Internet-access.
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The University offers excellent facilities for teaching, learning, research and recreation. A number of computer classes, well-equipped engineering laboratories are at the disposal of the students. There is a large library with 8 reading halls, including the electronic library with Internet access. A local computer net, including more than 4,000 computers with Wi-Fi access, connects all educational buildings. A videoconferencing center and lecture rooms are equipped with up-to-date multimedia means.
The BSUIR today is a large educational and scientific centre of Belarus. The University has the status of a scientific organization and cooperates with more than 100 science organizations and educational institutions from 30 countries. University staff and students take part in various international programs, fulfill scientific research contracts and receive grants of the world top IT companies.
International seminars and conferences for academic staff and students are held at the university on the regular basis and attract the attention of the scientific community worldwide. The first Belarusian IT business incubator was opened in 2010 in the BSUIR to promote the development of the top IT companies. The University presents its latest developments at Belarusian national expositions, as well as at world-famous fairs and exhibitions.
The BSUIR has always been one of the top sporting universities. The University teams regularly win the leading positions of student sports in athletics, basket-ball, and keep-fit activities and compete at a national level. The major forms of physical practice are obligatory classes in physical training, held at all faculties 4 hours a week. The students are free to choose between athletics, soccer, basket-ball, volley-ball, hand-ball, swimming, freestyle wrestling, body-building, shaping, etc. There are all necessary facilities available like a swimming pool, fitness-center, open playgrounds, ski depot, summer camp at the Braslav Lakes.
University life is more than just lectures and exams. The Trade Union offers a wide range of entertainment and support for students. The Student Club organizes evening parties, discos, festivals and social events. The University is proud of its Brass Band, Students Theatre, Folk group Gamanina, group of Sport Dances Tango, and Bard Songs Club.
The BSUIR plays a leading role in training the engineering and scientific staff in the field of computer science and radioelectronics in Belarus. The graduates of the University successfully work in the most science-intensive fields of national economy.
Comprehension
3. Discuss the questions in pairs.
1. When was the University founded?
2. What faculties are there at the University now?
3. How many students study at the University?
4. What training programmes does the University offer?
5. What subjects do the students study?
6. How many countries does the University cooperate with?
7. When was the first Belarusian IT business incubator opened?
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8. Why is the BSUIR considered to be one of the top sporting universities in the country?
Vocabulary practice
4. Make comparative and superlative forms of the following adjectives and adverbs.
| high, late, original, modern, comfortable, large, regularly, successfully |
5. Make up your own sentences with these adjectives.
6. Read the following statements and express your opinion.
1. The more you learn the more you know.
2. The more you know the more you forget.
3. The more you forget the less you know.
7. Match up the adjectives and nouns to make a phrase.
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
| 1) computer | a) geometry |
| 2) automatic | b) drawing |
| 3) artificial | c) sciences |
| 4) electronic | d) mathematics |
| 5) medical | e) instrument-making |
| 6) higher | f) technique |
| 7) descriptive | g) science |
| 8) technical | h) control |
| 9) social | i) machinery |
| 10) impulse | j) electronics |
| 11) digital | k) intelligence |
| 12) computing | l) computers |
8. In the text find the words and expressions which mean the following:
1. The first of two mentioned persons or things.
2. To set up, found, as an institution or business.
3. A student of a university or college who hasnt completed a four-year course yet.
4. Any means, aid or convenience; a place or office equipped to fulfill a special function.
5. Produced by human art rather than by nature; made in imitation of or as a substitute for something natural.
6. The faculty for part-time students; for those who study in the evenings.
7. To obtain knowledge, to gain something as a skill.
8. To perform as a duty or command; to finish, to come to the end of; satisfy, as the terms of a contract.
9. Discuss in the group.
1. Do you like to study at the University?
2. What does the University give you?
3. What would you like to change at the University?
Reading
10. Read the text and speak on the differences in the process of studying at British universities and at universities of our country.
Text B: Oxbridge
The University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge are the two oldest universities in the English-speaking world. Both were founded more than 800 years ago. The two ancient English state universities have many common features and are often jointly referred to as Oxbridge. Their similarities in having a collegiate structure and a tutorial (supervision) system have set them apart from other educational institutions. Students are selected on the basis of their results in the national examinations or the special entrance examinations. There are many applicants, and nobody can get a place by paying a fee. Successful candidates are admitted to a specified college of the university.
Undergraduate teaching is centred on the tutorial, where 1−4 students spend an hour with an academic discussing their weeks work, usually an essay or problem sheet. Students usually have one or two tutorials a week, and can be taught by academics at any other college not just their own as expertise and personnel require. These tutorials are complemented by lectures, classes and seminars, which are organised on a departmental basis.
The academic year is divided into three terms. Within each of these terms, Council determines an eight-week period called Full Term, during which undergraduate teaching takes place. These teaching terms are shorter than those of many other British universities, and the total duration of Full Terms amounts to less than half the year. However undergraduates are also expected to do some academic work during the three holidays (known as the Christmas, Easter and Long Vacations).
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The universities are responsible themselves for conducting examinations and conferring degrees. At Oxford the passing of two sets of examinations is a prerequisite for a first degree. The first set of examinations, called either Honour Moderations (Honour Mods) or Preliminary Examinations (Prelims), are usually held at the end of the first year. The second set of examinations, the Final Honour School (Finals), is held at the end of the undergraduate course. Successful candidates receive first, upper or lower second-, or third-class honours, or simply a pass without honours, based on their performance in Finals. An upper second is the most usual result, and it is a minimum requirement for entry to many postgraduate courses in the UK, while a first is generally prerequisite for graduate study.
The University of Cambridge divides the different kinds of honours bachelors degree by Tripos [ʼtrapͻs] the three-legged stool candidates once used to sit on when taking oral examinations). Undergraduates are examined at the end of each part (one- or two-year section) of the Tripos, and results receive different classifications for different parts.
After three years of study a university graduate will leave with the Degree of Bachelor of Arts, Science, Engineering, Medicine, etc. Later he may continue to take a Masters Degree and then a Doctors Degree. Research is an important feature of university work.
Comprehension
11. Decide if the following statements are True or False? Say, why?
1. The University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge are often jointly referred to as Oxbridge.
2. Students are admitted to a specified college of the university by paying a fee.
3. Undergraduate teaching is centred on lectures, classes and seminars.
4. The academic year is divided into three terms, with an eight-week period within each of these terms.
5. Undergraduates dont do any academic work during the three holidays (known as the Christmas, Easter and Long Vacations).
6. At Oxford the passing of two sets of examinations is a prerequisite for a first degree.
7. The University of Cambridge divides the different kinds of honours bachelors degree by Tripos.
8. After three years of study a university graduate will leave with a Masters or a Doctors Degree.
Vocabulary practice
12. In the text find the words that are the opposite of the words below.
| modern, differences, free of charge, postgraduates, unsuccessful, lower, written |
13. Which terms do the following sentences define?Match up the following half sentences.
| 1) A first degree | a) is a minimum requirement for entry to many postgraduate courses in the UK. |
| 2) An upper second | b) is prerequisite for graduate study. |
| 3) A Bachelor's degree | c) is an academic or professional degree that qualifies the holder to teach at the university level in the specific field. |
| 4) A Master's Degree | d) is usually earned for an undergraduate course of study that nominally requires three to five years of study. |
| 5) A Doctor's Degree | e) is awarded upon graduation from a university. |
Reading
14. Read the text and compare your University life with those of English and American students. Is it different? In what way?
