In London secondary school (high school) is until the age of 16, but in America it is until the age of 18. In London, at age 16 you are officially done with school unless you choose to go to take your A Levels or college. A levels are a 2 year program that is typically from the age of 16-18. And when I was there, you would pick a few subjects (most likely 3) and you study those 3 subjects for 2 years. Sounds simple enough - right? 3 subjects in 2 years. No!
It was the hardest education I ever received. I think the biggest part of the reason is because high school/secondary school is very light and easy, and then suddenly the word load triples for A Levels. I remember studying perhaps an hour a day or so for my GCSE's (exams at the end of high school) and it wasn't a big deal. I'm sure GCSE's may be a lot harder now, and also it depends on whether you go to private or public school. A Levels involve exams every few months which are based on all the material you have learnt so far. It was intense. It was really really hard for me. I think the biggest reason why is because I wasn't ready to really study, I was still young and wanted to hang out with my friends, mess around etc... I've heard from quite a few people, especially those that attended public school in England that they received a big shock when it came to A Levels. I'll always remember my biology teacher who told me that I should change my mind about being a doctor or working in the health care field because I wasn't able to understand any of this. So - for whatever reason, A Levels were extremly tough for me, and it did make me challenge my idea that I would ever be able to work in the health care field.
When i moved to Florida I started at a community college. The pace was so much more slower than I was used to, but it was nice. I took 5 classes a semester (for ex. August - December) and for each of these classes they had multiple exams during the semester, most of which were multiple choice. That's another thing too - multiple choice was a new thing for me. In London, I had never had a multiple choice exam EVER!
I liked the idea of multiple exams every few weeks testing on the material because it meant I didn't have to study such a huge volume of material. Later I went to get my Bachelors degree and then my masters. My grades were a huge improvement compared to the grades I was getting in England. Part of it was also probably because I was older and more ready to concentrate on my exams than I had been.
A person I know, who I have known for 8 years recently said to me that she feels like the entire 8 years we have known each other I have been in college. Its pretty true. Because some credits from England didn't carry over, I had to 'start afresh' with some courses like English and Math. So I was at a community college for 3 years. Then another 3 years getting my Bachelors degree, and then 2.5 years getting my masters degree. So - yes I've been at school for ages. But luckily now I have graduated and I am in the health care field as I always wanted!!! :)
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