The university of life
Feifei is stressed about her exams so Rob has some words of wisdom for her. Apparently he learnt them at a university that Feifei has never heard of. Find out where this University of Life is and what you can learn there.
Rob
Hello welcome to The English We Speak from BBC Learning English. I'm Rob.
Feifei
Oh hello…I'm Feifei.
Rob
What's wrong Feifei?
Feifei
I'm stressed—I've got an exam tomorrow—I hate exams.
Rob
Me too. What you need to do is plan your revision a bit more, take lots of breaks, and maybe go for a run.
Feifei
You seem to know a lot about preparing for exams. Where did you study?
Rob
Oh nowhere you would have heard of. It's called the university of life.
Feifei
The university of life. Is that in London?
Rob
It's doesn't actually exist—when someone says they've been to the university of life it means they are wise but not necessarily educated—they've learnt everything just from experiencing life.
Feifei
I see. Hmm, so no exams.
Rob
That's right. I've just got a qualification in life! Let's hear some more examples of this phrase…
Examples
I set up the business without any qualifications—everything I learnt was from the university of life.
The university of life taught me to be polite to everyone you meet; you never know when you might see them again.
Feifei
The university of life—it's where you learn from life not books. So I should learn a lesson from you Rob?
Rob
Yes, chill out—don't stress about exams—they're a waste of time.
Feifei
Really!!! Hold on a minute. If I remember correctly, you failed your exams and you were kicked out of university.
Rob
Well…err… maybe. But that was a life experience… and I learned that studying wasn't for me.
Feifei
Hmmm, it sounds like you've been to The school of hard knocks.
Rob
The school of hard knocks?
Feifei
Yes, it's an unpleasant experience that you learn from. Anyway, I'm off to revise for my exams—I'd rather stay at my university rather than go to yours!
Rob
Fair enough.
Both
Bye.