Improve Your English: English in Everyday Life

Edu
cation
65
liberal arts education:
A college education off ered by 
some institutions in the United States, in which under-
graduates are required to take a wide range of courses 
in addition to specializing in one specifi c area of study, 
before they are awarded a degree.
magnet schools:
A kind of secondary school that off ers 
a specialized curriculum or courses.
major:
Th
e fi eld or subject that a student has chosen as 
his or her primary area of study.
major in:
To pursue a specifi c fi eld of study.
med school:
Short for 
medical school
. An educational 
institution where students study medicine in order to 
become doctors.
nursing school:
Th
e speaker probably means “nursery 
school,” a school for children under fi ve years of age.
opened a lot of doors:
Provided or created 
opportunities.
pasteup:
In printing or journalism, the process of prepar-
ing a sample of how the fi nished printed page will look. 
Th
is was originally done by actually pasting samples of 
articles or pictures onto a sheet of paper or cardboard. 
Th
is process has largely been superseded by computer-
ized page design.
Philly:
Common nickname for the city of Philadelphia.
phys ed:
Short for 
physical education
. A class in school 
devoted to physical activity such as sports and physical 
fi tness.
Plan B, Plan C:
Expressions that mean “a backup plan 
(B for secondary; C for tertiary) or method for doing 
something.”

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