Independent learning
While high school instructors both teach and ensure that work is completed with the intention of achieving a basic level of education, the role of university lecturers and professors is largely to provide students with a framework and the skills from which they can explore their academic subject.
For the uninitiated, this leads to one major difference between the two – no one tells you what to do at university.
Mr Randy Vener, Deputy Director of Admissions at The American University of Paris, reflects on how some first year students react to the challenge of being responsible for their own study programs and workload.
“There’s a look in the eyes of many first year students as they adjust to so many changes in their first few weeks with us. Many can’t believe their luck that there’s no one saying, ‘do this paper by tomorrow,’ or ‘read chapter three tonight.’
"This kind of freedom can go to a student’s head, but the good students recognise that they need to set their own targets and work consistently and steadily to ensure that they keep up with the pace of university studies. It’s all about maintaining a balance between studying and living.”
Perhaps a further difference between school and university is the way in which students are actually taught and expected to learn.