Ecuador and the United States have
very different superior education system, colleges and universities are very
different in each country but there are a few similarities. As someone who has
been a part of both systems it has been easy to see how disparate they can seem
to people. The differences start with the application process, the cost of
higher education, the registration process, the class curriculum, and in
student involvement. But there are similarities, both systems share many of the
same steps and some aspects in each those step. Each system is ultimately set
up to reflect each countries’ needs and serve the students in different ways.
For starters, the application
process in each country is radically different. In Ecuador, most universities
have special admissions exams. When I first applied for college in Guayaquil, I
did not have to take any tests, I simply went to the register’s office and
signed up. This change to the process came after many years where universities
had an open system. This policy was set by the government starting in 2013 by
the Ministry of Higher Education. Now the exam is taken by a
national agency called Senecyt, it is open to any senior high school studentand it is required to
attend any state sponsored university. People interested in attending private
institutions must take the exams these institutions administer over seen by the
ministry of education. In the United States, students must first take
standardized tests like the SAT or ACT and then apply individually to most
universities though some state universities have unified application system. These
applications sometimes need to include essays and recommendation letters from teachers
as additional material. As an international transfer student, I only had to
take a TOEFL to apply and also include a complete transcript of my academic
history including grades and class syllabus. Since each university has its own
academic acceptance standards, students are encouraged to apply to more than
one school to make sure they are accepted at least into one of them. The social
and economic realities of each country play an important part in these
differences; while the United States has a large population and greater
competition between academic institutions, Ecuador has a limited number of
institutions that require a filter for admittance. So each country has tailored
the process to fill their needs.
After applying and being accepted
into a program, a prospective student will also encounter differences in paying
for an education. Ecuador offers free university education in most state run
institutions for any citizen who has passed the required entry exams; students
do have to pay for some things like transportation or certain class utensils.
Those who wish to study in private institutions have to pay for their own
tuition, but most of these institutions offer financial aid to students who
need it. A form of financial aid is differential tuition this means that
students are charged in accordance to their economic capabilities. When I
studied I was fortunate enough to count with my parents support to help me pay
for tuition. Though for the last few years the state has begun to offer state
sponsored loans and scholarships for students to pursue their education in
foreign universities. This is what helped me make the decision to pursue an
education here at WSU. The United States offers state financial aid for
students to pay for their education in public or private institutions. Federal
government offers financial aid by issuing grants or loans to students depending
on several factors. This helps students have more freedom to choose where to
attend college and what to study. These differences can be seen as a reflection
of national values, whereas the USA encourages freedom to choose an institution
and have a college education, Ecuador sits content with merely providing the
option for that education but limiting the student’s choices.
After figuring out how to finance
your education you must register for classes and each country has its own
system for creating a student curriculum. Undergraduates in Ecuador must first
choose a career which the wish to receive a degree in even before taking a
single class. This makes it very hard for some students like me who do not know
exactly what future career we want. We do not have the possibility of taking
credits to find out what major we like. Once the student has made his or her
choice, the registration process is very straight forward. The universities
have a set curriculum for each degree they offer, though some give the student
the latitude to take two or three optional classes, but the choices are
limited. In the United States, students are not expected to choose a major
during their freshman year, and instead of a set curriculum, they have the
freedom to choose the subjects the wish to study, sticking to a set of rules
each university has in place and also aided by an academic advisor. This
practically allows students to create their own major. However they do have similarities, like both
systems require students to learn at least one foreign language, certain
liberal sciences classes, and some form of physical education or a sport. Both
system are different, so they each work better for different kinds of students.
Personally I have found it much more rewarding to be given the choice to
explore your interests through your education by taking different classes.
After sorting out class schedules
and registering for classes, students are ready to inmerse themselves in
college life which can vary a lot from country to country. For example in
Ecuador, the university centers student life on political participation and
sports events. Political participation includes student government at school
and general university level. Most universities in Ecuador have no university
athletic teams, but instead have many intramural soccer or basketball
tournaments for students. Since most people commute from smaller cities to big
cities and live far away from campus it is just harder to be a more active part
of campus community. Also students take most of their classes with fellows from
the same program or people working towards the same degree as them, which makes
them closer to those who will be their classmates for the duration of their
college years. I lived somewhat far from campus, about a thirty minute drive,
so I was not the most involved person. Especially because I hated university
politics and was not very good at sports, my campus life involved drinking beer
or whiskey between classes with my friends. On the other hand, colleges in the
United States offer a wider range of school related or student involvement
activities. With people living on campus it becomes necessary to offer them
options to get involved. Some examples of these are: student clubs, Greek
societies, and collegiate athletics. Student clubs are wide ranging from
community service organizations, to religious groups, and even hobby sharing
clubs. Most of these organizations are student run with minimal university
participation, just input and imposing of certain guidelines to maintain a
group’s status. Greek societies are called fraternities for men, and sororities
for women. These groups are connected to large national societies in a loose
way, but they offer a more close type of relationship for fellows who belong to
them. Students sometimes even live with their fraternity or sorority brothers
or sister near campus in special houses. Here at WSU I have been involved in
many ways I would not have been back home. I have become a member of a
community service group and regularly attend school functions. Living on campus
has made it easier for me to do this. And then there is college athletics which
can be divided in two distinctive areas: intercollegiate and intramural. The
second just like in Ecuador, has students from the same university compete in
small events in a variety of sports in a more amateur and relaxed environment.
Intercollegiate athletics is a huge part of many campus’ lives, not only
because it brings students together to root for their schoolmates playing
sports against other colleges, but because it is a big source of revenue for
some colleges. While most sports are played at intercollegiate level, there are
three that produce the most revenue for colleges: American football,
basketball, and baseball. This is due to each of these three having a major
professional league in the United States. So while in Ecuador universities
focus more on academics and do not offer many possibilities for students to
have an active campus life; in the United States universities understand that
having many students on or close to campus requires offering them opportunities
to participate in different activities while also using it in some cases as a
form of creating additional revenue.
After comparing the differences and
few though existing similarities of both systems due to the nature of the needs
of each country, I can conclude that they both have their advantages and
disadvantages. Ultimately it is up to each person’s preferences to choose which
educational system better serves their needs. While in the United States the system
is much more competitive in the long run, the Ecuadorian system favors the
country’s limited availability of higher learning academic institutions. For
many students the strict academic curriculum of Ecuadorian universities would
be a reprieve from having to build your own, on the other hand the United
States system offers much more liberty for students to pursue different
interests and still receive a degree. And the student life of most United
States colleges is much more engrossing if you wish to participate in it. For
me it has been a learning experience to study and live in both countries, and
while I do not believe one is strictly better than the other, it has been much
easier for me to adapt to life here in Wichita.
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