Martina: No. No, really. I just liked the teacher. He was French and had an amazing accent. My favorite subject was _Q22 history, but I couldn’t see what career that would give me.

George: All right, So what did you choose?

Martina: Well, I found it really difficult to decide. I was really good at science, but I must admit, I never really enjoyed studying it. So in the end, I decided to opt for _Q21 English, which was my second favorite subject and I thought it would be more useful to me than studying anything else. So that’s what I’m doing. And how are you finding university?

George: Well, it’s a bit of a challenge, I suppose.

Martina: Are finding it difficult?

George: Well, some of it. I’m doing mechanical engineering, which is really interesting, but it covers quite a lot of areas like materials, science, machine design, physics, and, of course, mechanics. And they’re all fine. But it’s _Q23 maths that I’m struggling with. It’s a lot harder than it was at school.

Martina: I can believe it although it sounds very difficult to me, then I never was very good at mechanical things. I suppose it must involve some practical work.

George: Well, not at the moment. Currently, it’s nearly all _Q24 theory, so it’s a bit heavy going.

Martina: I guess you need to start with that so that you can get a grasp of the concepts to learn a few facts before you start putting it into practice. It must be a lot different to the course the time taking.

George: Yes, but in a few weeks will be having a lot more practical experience. In fact, I’ve got a great assignment this term working on _Q25 jet engines, which means I’ll be going on a few field trips to nearby airports.

Martina: Oh, that’s great. It sounds like you’re going to be very busy.

George: Yes, I’m not sure how I’m going to cope with the work. We have a lot of lectures on That’s fine. The lecturers a very knowledgeable on. I learn a lot from them. But we also have a lot of _Q26 seminars, and I find with so many people expressing their views, it can get quite frustrating. It would be better if we didn’t have so many of those.

Martina: Yes, it’s the same for me. And how are the students at your place?

George: Well, I haven’t really met anyone yet. They all seem a bit quiet.

Martina: Perhaps they’re working hard. They don’t appear to be very studious here, but they are _Q27 very friendly. I must say, I’ve been doing a lot of sitting around and chatting over the last week or so.

George: Well, that’s good. The only person I’ve spoken to really is my tutor. _Q28 He’s very approachable and seems to understand how difficult it can be starting university.

Martina: It’s good to have someone you can talk to and he may help you meet other students.

George: Actually, that doesn’t bother me. I’m bound to get to know some people sooner or later. It’s more a question of finding out what I need to do, where to go, and so on. I hope he can help me with that.

Martina: Oh, I would have thought so. Well, we certainly have a lot of work ahead of us. It seems like a long time, doesn’t it? Studying for three years.

George: Yes, it does, but I’m sure it’ll go quickly. You know, I’m really dreading the first assessment.

Martina: Yes, for the course I’m doing. _Q29 We have to hand our 1st one at the end of next month.

George: Really? So have you got the topic yet?

Martina: No, but we’ll get it soon. I’m not sure how much we have to write yet not too much I hope.

George: I know what you mean and it’s hard to study, especially where I am now.

Martina: Oh, were you living?

George: I’m living in a hall of residence. I thought that would be a good idea, as there’d be a lot of people around, but I’m finding it a bit noisy. I can see that I’m going to have problems when I really need to get down to some work.

Martina: So I guess you need to be somewhere on your own then.

George: Yes. Well, I do like to have some people around me, so _Q30 I’d prefer to live with a family somewhere in a house not too far from the university.

Martina: Well, good luck with that.

George: Yes. Thanks. Good luck to you as well. Oh, I have to dash now. I’ve another lecture in 10 minutes. Bye for now. Bye.

Attempt full listening test…