9 Lessons for Success in College-That Actually Make Sense

　　Most students know what it lakes to be successful in college because some genius cold themalready. But here's the news flash: The prescription probably won’t work. Why? Free advice isusually forgettable advice. And guess what I'm offering'? More advice. But guess what'? It issensible and forgettable.

　　Lesson l: Be honest about your abilities and goals.

　　If you don’t want to go to college, then don’t go. You will only be frustrated and miserable.Forcing yourself to attend college will kill your motivation, It fakes dedication and persistenceto finish. If you are dying to work as a poodle-groomer after high school, then do that. If youdo go to college, be sure you are prepared. The stunts you pulled in high school might not goover so well with college professors. If you were undisciplined before college, you will likely beundisciplined in college and you will likely not meet your main goal-which is to graduate onLime. Don't make a career out of being a college student. The pay is awful.

　　Lesson 2: Figure out the college zone.

　　There are many different types of colleges and universities from which you can choose. Thebetter your academic record, the more choices you have. Each college or university has aspecific mission or purpose. Knowing what that purpose is isn't vital. But you do need lo visitthe campus and talk to some professors and students in order to determine if that particularinstitution is right for you. The school you choose should fit you.You shouldn't try to fit theschool.

　　Lesson 3: Don't dig a big money pit

　　The cost of higher education continues to go up. n is likely that you will acquire debt in orderto finance your education, Fine. But be wise. (Getting admitted to a college or university doesn'tnecessarily mean you can afford it. The truth is that you can get a good education at a cheapschool. Prestige is beneficial; however, what really matters most is not the school itself but theprofessors who teach there. The job marker for college teachers has been saturated for years.It is not uncommon to find PhD’s from prestigious universities teaching at small state collegesand community colleges. So, it is very possible to get a first rate learning experience for afraction of the cost. Of course, you've probably heard that student loan debt is "good debt."If it is so good, try missing a few loan payments and sec what happens. It won't be all hugsand kisses.

　　Lesson 4: Know that the money is in the major.

　　Yes. You should major in something that you love. Sometimes, doing what you love does notpay the bills. If your first love is money, then preparing to enter a field that will provide you withopportunities Io make money is very pragmatic. The trick is to find balance. Major in somethingthat you love and that brings you the amount of money that will allow you to be comfortable, ifnot rich. By the way. capitalism requires only a few rich people and many not-so-rich people.Which group will you be in?

　　Lessons 5: Get the experience you need to get the job you want.

　　The degree that you earn will not be enough in today's competitive workforce, You will needexperience and you will not gain experience until you get a job. No one will offer you a jobbecause you lack experience. You know the cycle is cruel. However, there is something that youmight not know: While in college, you can offer your labor for Free as an Intern or volunteer.Your pay is the experience you gain and the relationships you establish with people in theworkforce, You become more employable when you know someone who knows someone whoused to work for someone who is now the boss at the place where you applied for a job.

　　Lesson 6: Learn how to fail.

　　The reason most people do not succeed is because they never learn the art of failing. When youaccept the fact that failing is a part of success,then you are, less prone to fear failure. The fearof failure makes you anxious about taking risks. You should not interpret these comments asan excuse to fail courses-although this does happen sometimes. I'm advising you to learn to beresilient in spite of the obstacles you encounter. No guts. no glory.

　　Lesson 7: Develop a critical imagination.

　　You should attend all of your classes-not because all of your professors will be live!y andinspirational teachers. Most of them won't be. You should go to class to learn how to thinkcritically and use your imagination. What do I mean? Learn to investigate, analyze and questionthe ideas that you encounter in the various courses you take. More importantly, learn tochallenge those ideas and try to discover new ways to think about them. How? All you have todo is use your imagination to develop those ideas. If your idea is different, quirky,weird, orwhatever, stick with it and be passionate about it. That idea distinguishes you from the crowd.Don't just think outside the box. Ask why a box is necessary and who does it belong to andwhy can't you have your own.

　　Lesson 8: Don't become an island.

　　The years you spend at a college or university will offer you opportunities to meet a variety ofpeople and develop lasting friendships. Use this time to your advantage. Every day you spendon campus provides you with a chance to network. Keep a list of the people you meet andwhere you met them. Catalog their contact information and keep chis information updated. Iknow you are probably thinking that most alumnae associations take care or this stuff. Don'tcount on it. Do it yourself. Always remember, an old acquaintance is better than noacquaintance at all.

　　Lesson 9: Don't graduate.

　　You will forget most of what you learn in college before you graduate. Knowledge that is notused regularly dies very quickly. Don't think that once you graduate that your education is over.The world of work changes constantly and you will probably find yourself being retrained onthe job or having to go back to college for refresher courses. The workforce will teach youeverything you didn't learn in school and much more. Don't be surprised at how embarrassinglydifferent these two worlds are and how much you have to learn and relearn. Life is aboutlearning, and it will never allow you to graduate. So don’t do it. Don't graduate. You can forgeteverything else, except that.

　　1.The author indicates that free advice is easy to ______________

　　A) forget

　　B) apply

　　C) recall

　　D) learn

　　2.When one decides to go to college, his main goal is to______________.

　　A) change himself

　　B) become knowledgeable

　　C) graduate on time

　　D) be prepared for a career

　　3.According to the author. you should choose a school that____________.

　　A) you can adjust yourself to

　　B) is suitable for you

　　C) is prestigious

　　D) has a specific purpose

　　4.What moist matters for a school is its________________.

　　A) teachers

　　B) reputation

　　C) principals' leadership

　　D) teaching syllabus

　　5.If you are most interested in money, you should choose a major that___________.

　　A) is related to business

　　B) studies capitalism

　　C) makes your employment easy

　　D) benefits money-making

　　6.By being an intern or volunteer while in college, you can gain___________.

　　A) a higher scholarship

　　B) more course credits

　　C) more experience

　　D) a degree sooner

　　7.One may try to avoid taking risks when he_______________.

　　A) is close to success

　　B) is afraid of failure

　　C) is weak-minded

　　D) is discouraged

　　8.In order to learn to develop a critical imagination, you are suggested to___________.

　　9.It is commonly believed that fellow students' contact information is dealt with by__________.

　　10.The only thing in your life that you should not forget is________________.

　　1.[A][定位]根據題干中的advice查找到首段第4句。

　　解析：原文該句中的forgettable表明作者認為free advice是一種“容易忘記”的忠告，因此，本題應選A。

　　2.[C][定位]根據題干的main goal等詞查找到第1個小標題Lesson1：Be honest about your abilities andgoals.下第2段第3句。

　　解析：原文該句中的破折號后的內容表明本題應選C。

　　3.[B][定位]根據題干中的choose, school等詞查找到第2個小標題Lesson 2：Figure out the collegezone。下最后兩句。

　　解析：原文該部分最后兩句表明，在本題中選項B是正確答案。選項A與原文內容相反，選項D的內容雖有提及，但不是該段所強調的觀點。

　　4.[A][定位]根據題干中的most matters等詞按其意思查找到第3個小標題Lesson 3：Don't dig a bigmoney pit.下下首段第7句。

　　解析：原文該句中的not.., but...的結構表明對一個學校最重要的是教師的素質，由此可見，本題應選A。

　　5.[D][定位]根據題干中的money和major等詞查找到第4個小標題Lesson4：Know that the money is inthe major.下第4句。

　　解析：原文該句建議喜歡錢的人選擇一個能提供賺錢機會的專業(yè)，選項D是對此建議的近義改寫，為本題答案。

　　6.[C][定位]根據題于中的intern or volunteer等詞查找到第5個小標題Lesson 5：Get the experienceyou need to get the job you want下第5、6句。

　　解析：原文該部分的主題是experience.其中第5句和第6句指出通過做實習生或志愿者就可以獲得經驗，因此本題應選C。

　　7.[B][定位]根據題干中的avoid taking risks查找到第6個小標題Lesson 6：Learn how to fail。下第3句。

　　解析：題目要求查找讓人害怕冒險的原因，而原文該部分第3句…makes...的句子結構表明該句主語為原因，賓語為結果，因此該句主語the fear of failure符合題目要求，而選項B是對此內容的近義改寫，為本題答案。

　　8.[attend all of the classes]

　　[定位]根據題干中的critical imagination查找到第7個小標題Lesson 7:Develop a critical imagination.及其下開頭3句。

　　解析：空白處應為動詞詞組，與to構成不定式。原文第7個標題提出了目的，而該部分第1句就是達到該目的的途徑，第3句再次強調了該目的和途徑之間的關系，由此即可確定本題答案。

　　9.[alumnae associations]

　　[定位]根據題干中的fellow students contact information查找到第8個小標題Lesson 8：Don't becomean island.下第5句和第6句。

　　解析：空白處應為名詞詞組。原文該部分第6句中的this stuff指的就是第5句有關contact information的內容，第6句明確表明人們通常認為this stuff是由alumnae associations處理的，因此alumnae associations是本題答案。

　　10.[not to graduate]

　　[定位]根據題干中的only thing in life和forget等詞查找到末段最后兩句。

　　解析：空白處可為名詞詞組或動詞不定式。本題的關鍵是找出末句中that的所指。結合上文可知.that指的是倒數第2句Don’t graduate。由此可見，只要將Don't graduate改為不定式形式就符合題目要求了。