Passage 1 Saving money for College on My OwnFinally, I entered the institution. Because of my careful savings, I did not have to work during the school year. Then, summer came and it was time to work harder than ever. I continued working as a waitress at night, instructed tennis camps several mornings a week and worked as a secretary for a few hours in the afternoons. Being a little overzealous, I also decided to take a class at a community college. This class at the community college saved me $650. it was an exhausting summer and made me anxious to return to my relatively easy life at college.During my second and third years of undergraduate schooling, I decided to work about five hours per week in the campus admissions office answering phones. This provided a little spending money and kept me from draining my savings. The overall situation looked hopeful as I approached my senior year as long as I could make as much money as I had the previous summer. I wanted to go to Israel to study for 3 weeks, but I hesitated in making this decision because it would cost me $1,600 more to get the credits in Israel. About two weeks later my Mom called to tell me that I had $1,600 in the bank that I had forgotten about! One of my concerns about this trip was not only the cost, but the loss of time to make money; however, I made as much that summer in the ten weeks when I was at home as I had made during the fourteen weeks when I was at home the summer before. The way everything worked together to make this trip feasible was one of the most exciting things that have ever happened to me.This experience has shaped me in many important ways. The first thing that I learned was the importance of a strong work ethic. Working long hours did a lot to mold my character and helped me learn the value of a dollar. It also made me learn how to craft creative solutions to difficult dilemmas.Whenever I am overwhelmed or afraid of the future, I can remember my $64,268 miracle.Passage 2 CompetitionIt is a plain fact that we are in a world where competition is going on in all areas and at all levels.This is exciting.Yet, on the other hand, competition breeze a pragmatic attitude.People choose to learn things that are useful,and do things that are profitable.Todays' college education is also affected by this general sense of utilitarianism. Many college students choose business nor computing programming as their majors convinced that this professions are where the big money is. It is not unusual to see the college students taking a part time jobs as a warming up for the real battle.I often see my friends taking GRE tests, working on English or computer certificates and taking the driving licence to get a licence.Well, I have nothing against being practical. As the competition in the job market gets more and more intense, students do have reasons to be practical. However, we should never forget that college education is much more than skill training. Just imagine, if your utilitarianism is prevails on campus, living no space for the cultivation of students' minds,or nurturing of their soul. We will see university is training out well trained spiritless working machines.If utilitarianism prevails society, we will see people bond by mind-forged medicals lost in the money-making ventures;we will see humality lossing their grace and dignity, and that would be disastrous.I'd like to think society as a courage and people persumed for profit or fame as a horese that pulls the courage.Yet without the driver picking direction the courage would go straight and may even end out in a precarious situation .A certificate may give you some advantage, but broad horizons, positive attitudes and personal integrities ,these are assets you cannot acquire through any quick fixed way.In today's world, whether highest level of competition is not of skills or expertise , but vision and strategy. Your intellectual quality largely determinds how far you can go in your career. Passage 3 college students' idolsSuccessful entrepreneurs have surpassed pop stars as college students' idols, a recent Fudan University survey has found.In the survey, which sampled 150 students from different grades and departments, 96 chose successful entrepreneurs as their idols, 91 added scientists and scholars to the list, while only some 75 opted for stars of stage and screen.The results toppled the old perception that young college students are most impressed by the stars of shows.Fudan's students seemed not to be influenced too much by popular TV shows and new stars, despite the latest Supergirl, Shang Wenjie having graduated from the university last year."It's normal for students to have traditional ideas about the qualities an idol should have. They think of idols as people who have made a great contribution to society. These kinds of ideas aren't easily changed by TV shows," said Zhen Zhiwei, a second-year post-graduate student who conducted the survey.But students do have new standards for selecting idols. Some students voted for ordinary people and even fictional characters, such as Harry Potter."It reveals the diversity of students' standards," Zhen said. "Under the influenceof pop culture, some students now view fictional figures as their idols. They see the same qualities in those fictional figures as in other real people."We are also delighted to see that more and more students are concerned with the roles ordinary people play in society. Wealth, social status and fame are not the only standards they use to select idols."The survey also revealed that 57% college students do not want to be idols for others."The result can be regarded as a good illustration for why most of them choose successful entrepreneurs and scholars as their idols," said Zhen. "They have high expectations for idols, so they believe that to be an idol means having to take on more responsibilities and pressure than other people, and they are not ready to take so much responsibility yet."Passage 8 Chinese Undergraduates in the USEach year, elite American universities and liberal arts colleges, such as Yale, Harvard, Columbia, Amherst and Wellesley, offer a number of scholarships to Chinese high school graduates to study in their undergraduate programs. Four years ago, I received such a scholarship from Yale.What are these Chinese undergrads like? Most come from middle-class families in the big urban centers of China. The geographical distribution is highly skewed, with Shanghai and Beijing heavily over-represented. Outside the main pool, a number of Yale students come from Changsha and Ningbo,swhereseach year American Yale graduates are sent to teach English.The overwhelming majority of Chinese undergraduates in the US major in science, engineering or economics. Many were academic superstars in their high schools - gold medallists in international academic Olympiads or prize winners in national academic contests. Once on US campuses, many of them decide to make research a lifelong commitment.Life outside the classroom constitutes an important part of college life. At American universities the average student spends less than thirteen hours a week in class. Many Chinese students use their spare time to pick up some extra pocket money. At Yale, one of the most common campus jobs is washing dishes in the dining halls. Virtually all Chinese undergraduates at Yale work part-time in the dining halls at some point in their college years. As they grow in age and sophistication, they upgrade to better-paying and less stressful positions. The more popular and interesting jobs include working as a computer assistant,math homework grader, investment office assistant and lab or research assistant. The latter three often lead to stimulating summer jobs.Student activities are another prominent feature of American college life. Each week there are countless student-organized events of all sorts - athletic, artistic, cultural, political or social (i.e. just for fun). New student organizations are constantly being created, and Chinese undergrads contribute to this ferment. Sport looms much larger on US campuses than in China. At Yale, intramural sports from soccer to water polo take place all year long; hence athletic talent is a real social asset. One of the Chinese students at Yale several years ago was a versatile sportsman. His athletic talents and enthusiastic participation in sporting events, combined with his other fine qualities, made him a popular figure in his residential college.10 September 11,at the firing moment for US studentsEvery generation has its defining moment, an event so extraordinary that people will forever remember exactly what they were doing at the moment it happened. For American college students, the morning of September 11, 2001 was such a moment.It was a bright, clear Tuesday morning in Lawrence, early in the fall semester at the school where I teach, the University of Kansas. My journalism students came to their 8:30 classes clutching radios for news about the airliner that had crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City.Even though Kansas is in the central United States, many university students have family members and friends in New York and Washington. "Are they safe?" was the first question: as the towers crumbled, it became clear that thousands had died. Suddenly no one felt safe.American universities quickly organized a support network for their foreign students. At the University of Kansas any student who felt unsafe or threatened could stay in the home of a Lawrence resident. Terrorists could topple American buildings, the implication was, but they could not shake the American spirit of tolerance, mutual respect and neighborliness.In the days that followed, college students did not wait to ask "What can we do?" -- they just did it. Many helped organize fund drives. Some gave blood, in fact so much that the blood banks were temporarily oversupplied. Several drove to New York City to help where they could. Everyone pulled together to help our nation get through the ordeal.The morning of September 11 wi ll live in students’ memories as "9-11" . The reality had dawned that life can end suddenly on a beautiful day. But Americans live in hope, not in fear. The lesson students drew from these events was not how dangerous the world is, but how peaceful nations of the world join together to help each other in times of need.The 9-11 tragedy will forever be this generation’s defining moment. American students now understand that terrorist attacks can take place anytime, anywhere. But just as tragedy can happen, so can peace, hope and kindness, whether shared by good people or by great nations.11 Tip for studying overseasPart oneBeing surrounded by an unfamiliar culture, environment and social norms, while being away from family and friends, is something which more and more Chinese students experience in the quest to gain a western education.based on my experience, the following five steps may prove useful in assisting prospective overseas students in their preparations to study overseas.Get to know your new home before you land in it .There is no substitute for good preparation. Arm yourself with background knowledge by researching information about the country you are going to. Learning about the history, culture, tradition, language and even details such as food, music, transport, weather and social activities of your new host country are all important. Thanks to the Internet, most of this can be found at the click of a button.Attitude is everything.Don't underestimate the power of the mind in determining how events turn out. Decide how to approach any situation, before you are placed in it. Positive thoughts about your new circumstances and a positive attitude toward your new home and hosts will bring positive results.Alternately, many people set themselves up for failure simply by talking themselves out of success. Don't sabotage your chances at being happy and successful in your future study and new life before they have even started. Maintain focus on one or two major goals (not too many) and work steadily and gradually towards these.Pack using your head and your heart.It's not easy being practical when deciding what to pack and there is always that temptation to bring cherished personal belongings such as books, letters or fluffy toys. Whatever you bring, make sure that is will be something that you think might help your chances of succeeding.This includes practical items such as study materials, old class notes, favorite textbooks or pens and even the contact details of previous teachers. It might also include some small luxuries such as study music or well-packaged snack foods. Items of sentimental value such as a flipbook with photographs of family and friends or a favorite item of clothing can help you feel closer to home.12 Tip for studying overseaspart twoRemember your roots.Contact people you care about before and after. You are a person with feelings and relocating overseas is a big event. Talk to your close friends and family about your thoughts, dreams and fears for your new venture before you leave and make sure you keep in regular contact after you arrive and during your time away. Sharing the experience always halves any burdens and doubles the excitement of any achievements. Besides, with the ease and convenience of communicating via the Internet nowadays, there is no excuse not to keep in touch!It is important to realize that while new and exciting things may be happening to you in your new environment, things and people back at home will also be changing. It is possible to feel isolated and experience "reverse culture shock" when you return home for a visit after an extended period of time away. The extent of this can be determined by such things as how involved you become in your new culture and how involved you stay in your original culture. Remember your roots, they are an important part of who you are.Take opportunities as they come.Learn from all experiences. Value both your achievements and disappointments as learning experiences that can be applied to future situations in life. Value all positive outcomes and more importantly, don't take negative outcomes at face value. Instead, try to see the lessons in mistakes and turn them intoopportunities for future improvement. Opportunities are present all the time, but often they go by unnoticed. Recognizing opportunities is a skill which anyone can learn through practice and patience.In summary, travelling overseas is an amazing opportunity for personal growth, which not everyone has the chance, or the inclination to take part in. By no means should my advice be taken as the only way to do things. The beauty of learning through experience is that it proves that there is no right and wrong way, instead preparing you for the best personal way in which you can deal with issues as they arise.17 I Want to KnowIt doesn’t interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.It doesn’t interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life’s betrayals or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain! It doesn’t interest me if the story you’re telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul. if you can be faithful and therefore be trustworthy.It doesn’t interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up after a night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done for the children.It doesn’t interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away. I want to know if you can be alone with yourself, and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.It doesn’t interest me who you are, how you came to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.I want to know if you can sit with pain, without moving to hide itI want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own, if you can dancewith wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic, or to remember the limitations of being human.I want to know if you can see beauty , if you can source your life from god’s presence. I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine, and still stand on the ed ge of a lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, “Yes!”18 The Choice of CompanionA good companion is better than a fortune, for a fortune cannot purchase those elements of character which make companionship a blessing. The best companion is one who is wiser and better than ourselves, for we are inspired by his wisdom and virtue to nobler deeds. Greater wisdom and goodness than we possess lifts us higher mentally and morally.“A man is known by the companion he keeps.” It is always true. Companionship of a high order is powerful to develop character. Character makes character in the associations of life faster than anything else. Purity begets purity, like begets like; and this fact makes the choice of companion in early life more important even than that of teachers and guardiansIt is true that we cannot always choose all of our companions, some are thrust upon us by business or the social relations of life, we do not choose them, we do not enjoy them; and yet, we have to associate with them more or less. The experience is not altogether without compensation, if there be principle enough in us to bear the strain. Still, in the main, choice of companions can be made, and must be made. It is not best or necessary for a young person to associate with “Tom, Dick, and Harry” without f orethought or purpose. Some fixed rules about the company he or she keeps must be observed. The subject should be uttermost in the thoughts, and canvassed oftenCompanionship is education, good or not; it develops manhood or womanhood, high or low; it lifts soul upward or drags it downward; it minister to virtue or vice. There is no half way work about its influence. If it ennobles, it does grandly, if it demoralizes, it doest it devilishly. It saves or destroys lustily. Nothing in the world is surer than this. Sow virtue, and the harvest will be virtue, Sow vice, and the harvest will be vice. Good companionships help us to sow virtue; evil companionships help us to sow vice.一个好友胜过一笔财富。
