<p>To the OP, re: studies,</p>
<p>Speaking from my own experience of having switched from a U.K. based system (pre-college) to a U.S. system (college), I’d say that in my college, there’s a core requirement that includes a broad range of subjects(micro/macro econ. sociology, psychology, calculus, etc…). One of which I find myself having to devote considerable time on was U.S. History. Although U.S. History is a short few hundred years, many of the local students here already learned about it since middle/high school. At the college level, they’ll just breeze thru it. For someone like me who learned it for the first time, it could be quite daunting to remember all the little facts & details. There was also a lot of readings involved, skipping class is unwise as the teacher will most likely test on the notes s/he gives during class. </p>
<p>Some colleges have different English requirements for native & non-native speakers of English. Since English is a required subject, everyone has to take it, & enrolling in popular classes are always a pain… try to get it out of the way asap.</p>
<p>In college level English or English literature classes, we learned mostly American literatures, supplemented with a few Br. classics: Chaucer/Shakespeare, most here already read about them in high school, if you’re not familiar with literatures by American authors, you’ll be playing catch-up…yeah, those were some of the few differences..</p>
<p>My husband teaches Physics & he’s seeing some students who come back to school after having worked a few years because they want a career change. It’s important to study the subjects that you really enjoy.</p>