CRI English Unit 22:Studying Abroad 留学海外

Part 1 Helpful Tips for Choosing a US School   如何选择学校 

    For most Chinese university students, the US is a favorite destination for further education. But apart from obstacles such as the GRE and TOFEL exams, choosing a good graduate school is no easy take. Admission is very competitive for international students, so it's important to apply to a number of institutions to have a reasonable chance of acceptance. Since the application to most universities requires a certain fee, Chinese students usually choose 7 to 15 universities according to their financial circumstances.

    To broaden one's chances, at least one third of the applications should be to less selective schools. Applicants shouldn't limit their choices to the most renowned institutions. Furthemp3ore, one shouldn't rely too much on college rankings. The right school is the one that best meets your own personal needs and interests, rather than someone else's assessment of an institution's prestige.

    Usually choices are based on one's personal interests and academic background, but it's important to make sure that one's chosen subject it catered for. Those who want to transfer to a new field must pass certain exams on the subject first. 　

    It is important to make sure that the department has at least some recognition, in the specific field. a well-known professor will be helpful to one's study as well as personal development.

    Sometimes it helps to limit the search to one region of the US, such as the east or the west coast, before looking for schools that match other requirements. The most important factors in choosing a location are climate and living costs.

    Costs are higher in large cities like New York and Boston. In contrast, they are much lower in the south and in cities like Pittsburgh and Seattle.

    The most popular states for international students are New York, California, Massachusetts, Ohio, Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, and Texas.

    选择学校可以说是申请出国留学这万里长征的第一步，是否走对这第一步直接关系到整个申请过程是否顺利，选择学校的失误可能会使有着很强的Qualification的人申请几年仍旧滞留国内，相反条件并不优越的人却所向披靡。下面所提的建议也许会对你有所帮助：
a.首先要正确估计自己的英语水平，根据自己的英语情况选择合适的学校。
b.了解所选学校的教学、科研水平及专业设置情况是否与自己所学专业和所从事的研究相近，从而避免因专业不对口所带来的诸多麻烦。
c.了解学校的入学要求、录取标准、竞争情况及申请的截止日期等，客观地估计自己是否符合该校的录取标准及条件，有无较强的竞争力等。美国的许多大学对外国学生入学都有具体的要求，要注意各校的不同要求。
d.了解学校的各种费用及经济资助情况，即你的经济情况是否能够支付你在该校的学习、生活费用。同时，还要注意申请经济资助的条件和要求，以衡量自己的实力。e.还要注意学校所在地的气候、风俗习惯等自己能否适应。

    要想到美国留学，第一步自然是要找到美国大学和研究院所的基本信息和有关资料，否则申请留学的一切事宜均无从谈起；第二步则是在众多的美国学校和研究院所中，选择自己比较喜欢并且条件也较合适的进行申请。所以，要到美国留学，首先要做的工作，一是“找”、二是“选”。比起以前，现代信息社会使找选美国大学和研究院所的工作容易得多、快速得多。

    不过，最现代、最快捷的途径，是到电脑网站去查找。美国的许多电脑网站都提供美国大学和研究院所的资料，查找起来非常快速方便，而且分类科学、资料详尽，很受人们欢迎。我们在网站上为大家列出了一些较为著名的美国院校资料网站，有这方面需要的朋友们可以到上面查询。

美国院校资料网站：

（1） Yahoo.com(http://www.yahoo.com/edu)网站有大量美国大学和研究院所的资料。到该网站上查询，几乎美国所有的高等院校和研究院所都可查到。不过，在该网站搜索引擎进行查找，必须逐级搜索，比较繁琐，以下电脑网站更专业化，查找效率更高，不妨一试。

（2） U.S.NewsOnline(http://www.usnews.com/edu)网站提供有非常详尽的美国大学资料，包括全美大学的最新排名，各个大学的链接网址，从中可以查到各学校的专业介绍、入学日期、奖助学金提供情况，以及与校方取得联系的方法等。同时，该网站还提供美国大学生学习与生活的介绍。申请者可以根据学校名称、专业或希望就读的州展开搜索。

（3）Gradschools.com（http://www.gradschools.com）网站是专门用来查找美国大学研究生院的。它按具体的研究专业、学科类别和专业目录三种分类方式进行搜索。对想去美国读研究生的申请者来说，该站点可以帮助找到希望的留学院校。

（4）Collegeboard.com（http://www.collegeboard.com）网站资料丰富，无论想去读哪类大学，该网站都能给于满意的结果。查找者可根据希望攻读的学位、专业、学校所在地，选择所要就读的学校，并可以在网上索取与填写申请资料表格。

（5）study in theUSA（http://www.studyusa.com）网站是专为留学生提供服务的站点，可以按字母的种类或地理位置两种分类方法对学校进行搜索。同时，该网站还有美国大学的专题报道，介绍各大学的情况，对选择学校很有帮助。

（6）American Education Magazine（http://www.iesed.com）网站的内容相当丰富，主要提供留学辅助性知识，如怎样选择大学、奖学金申请办法、住宿情况、医疗保险等，非常有助于事先了解美国大学的学习与生活状况。

（7）Student.com（http://www.student.com）网站主要介绍美国大学生的学习与生活，发布美国大学校园的最新消息、美国政府的教育政策，以及美国教育人士的观点等。

（8）Peterson's Guide（http://www.petersons.com）教育服务公司网站，主要内容包括美国大学的清单、校园新闻、专题讨论、条件查询等。

（9）Colleges and Universities（http://www.mit.edu）网站提供全球八十多个国家的三千多所大学信息。该网站按地理分类，详列各国大学名单，并以链接到各校主页的方式，提供查找各大学的信息服务。在实际操作中，只要选择国家，如美国，便可查询到全美大学的网址。

Part 2 Visa 留学签证 

    Almost every Chinese applicant ahs experienced “standing kungfu”, that is to say, having to stand in the visa hall for two hours while waiting to be interviewed. Although there are some chairs and a water cooler, most applicants have to stand in line with a certain color card in front of a certain window. Why not provide chairs for all, or at least benches? When queried, an American embassy official pointed out that at that very moment some 200 applicants were waiting to be interviewed. If people were seated, they would move slowly. Besides, there is not enough room for a lot of furniture. “Nonetheless, you will notice that people here are well behaved. It’s not as crowded as a typical train station. Of course, we have two staff members to keep order,” he said. Even the rudest people pull in their horns under the strain of uncertainty. Those who get visas seem instantly to forget their exhaustion, whereas those who are rejected succumb to it completely.

    The visa officers are frequently criticized for not explaining why applications are rejected. To this the American embassy official replies: “We actually do tell applicants why they don’t qualify for a visa. In order to help them we also have written explanations. Sometimes they want to know more, particularly about what they can do, what documents they can show to qualify for a visa. But it’s not our policy to make suggestions. Our rule is that the applicants themselves must persuade us that they have a situation here in China which would lead them to return.”

    Some Americans feel that their Chinese friends have been refused without good reason and want to come to the embassy to complain. Is this useful? “Since most American citizens are not familiar with US visa laws, their coming here is useful in the sense that we can take the opportunity to explain the law” said the embassy official.

    说起办理赴美签证，不少人都会摇头说难，赴美签证难办已经成为人们的共识。有人开玩笑说现在拿到赴美签证比登月还难。那么到底办理赴美签证难在哪儿？如何才能顺利获得签证？　首先，接受面谈很重要。中国是赴美留学的第三大国。中国人去美国留学必须办理赴美非移民签证，签证程序中的面谈是所有申请人最为关注的一个环节，面谈不通过就无法前往美国。几乎每个申请赴美签证的中国人都体验过“站功”，就是在签证大厅里站上两个小时面谈。

    有些人认为美国的签证面谈很严，要从签证官手上拿到签证不是一件容易的事。有的人觉得很容易，而且现在通过签证面谈之后，立刻就能够拿到签证了。 不少人认为，拿到美国大学签发的I-20入学证就表示可以进入美国大学了。但美国大学并不能决定你是否符合到美国的条件。I-20入学证只是表示美国大学邀请你去念书。并非所有来申请的人都能获得签证，大概有将近70%的人都能得到学生签证。 　

    美国的研究显示，到美的中国留学生有85%到90%的人最后留在美国找工作。如果在面试时，他们被发现、认为有这个意图，就一定会被拒签。根据美国移民和国籍法规定，留学签证申请人必须证明他在美国完成学业后会离开美国。如果签证官相信他们留美的目的是念完书就回中国的话，那就会批准签证。 　　

    申请签证时千万不要编造文件和理由。否则可能会让你永远丧失拿到签证的资格。如果你的真正目的就是去迪斯尼乐园玩一趟或探望亲戚，那就不要编造什么商业理由去美国。按照规定，每位外国人在申请入境时，必须能使领事官员确信申请人有非移民的资格，否则将视为移民。

   
下面我们给大家总结了一些签证常见术语：
surname 姓，也就是last name；
first (given) name 名；
sex 性别；
birth date 出生日期；
nationality 国籍；
expiry date ( 或 before) 失效日期(或必须在...日之前入境)；
for stays of 停留期为......
passport No. 护照号；
control No. 编号；
Issue At 签发地；
Issue Date (或On) 签发日期；
visa type(class) 签证种类。

    拿到签证以后可别光顾着高兴，别忘了一定要核对上面所说的签证内容，发现问题及时解决。

 Part 3 Guide to studying Abroad 留学指南 

Dialogue Script 1  对话原文 1

Brown: Hello, there. You must be Li Ming. Please come in.
Li: Hi, Mrs. Brown, nice to meet you.
Brown: All right now... Let's see. Now, you're interested in attending university in the USA, is that right?
Li: Yes, and I have a lot of questions to ask you.
Brown: Okay, but before I begin to answer your questions, I need to ask you a few questions first. Hmm...now, your major is...
Li: Engineering, Mechanical Engineering.
Brown: OK, I see. And, where did you graduate?
Li: I graduated from Xi'an Jiao Tong University in July 2000. I completed my bachelor's degree. And I got my certificate of CET-4.
Brown: Alright. Now, I'm assuming you want to continue studying in your major. Am I right?
Li: Actually. I'd prefer to do an MBA if possible. But if I have no other choice, I'll go on with my major.
Brown: Okay. Now, are you familiar with the requirements for an MBA degree?
Li: Yes, I'll have to do well on the GMAT, and I'll definitely need to take TOEFL or IELTS, right?
Brown: You're right. You'll need at least 600 on the TOFEL or 6.5 on IELTS. In addition, you need to have completed a bachelor's degree, too. Have you taken the GMAT yet?
Li: Not yet, but I plan to do it in August.
Brown: The requirements for a Master's degree in Engineering are a little different. You'll need to take GRE and of course the TOFEL or IELTS.
Li: I see. When do I start to apply?
Brown: The best time to start the application process is in November or December of the year prior to your intended year of study. Application fomp3s are available in September and October.
Li: Which schools in Canada offer the MBA degree?
Brown: About twenty. Here's a small booklet summarizing Canadian university programs. You'll find the infomp3ation you need on page 22.
Li: Great! Thanks a lot. By the way, how about the tuition and scholarships?
Brown: Tuition for MBA programs has been steadily increasing. Some of the universities now charge the full tuition, which means there is no government subsidy. Those universities cost about $10,000 per year-and it's a two-year program. Other universities are still government subsidized, so the tuition is $4,500 per year. In temp3s of scholarships, usually the top 5 students entering the MBA program are given a generous scholarship. All other students have to pay the full fees. International students have to pay the full tuition-that's $10,000 per year.
Li: Oh. Is it very difficult to get into an MBA program?
Brown: Yes, actually the competition is very tough. MBA students have a pretty easy time finding a good job. So , many students are eager to do the program thinking it will guarantee them success in their careers.
Li: Well, it sure does sound like an excellent way to start a promising future. Um..What is the school year like?
Brown: Classes begin in September each year and finish before Christmas. They resume after New Year and finish at the end of April.
Li: And after April?
Brown: Why, that's your summer holiday.
Li: Sounds great! Thank you very much. I really appreciate for your help.
Brown: You'e welcome. And, if you have any other questions, please feel free to contact me. You know my number, right?
Li: I sure do. Thanks a lot.
Brown: You'e welcome, bye.

讲解：

1.对话中，李明在跟Mrs. Brown咨询到美国留学会面临的各种问题。attend university, 上大学，我们也学过go to college这个说法，也是可以的。college一般指专科学院或综合性大学中的一个学院，在美语中college也用来指大学，而univer sity一般是指综合性的大学。

2.下面再来说说attend这个词，这里表示“参加；出席，到场”，例如：attend chool 上学；attend a lecture 听讲课；attend church 去教堂attend (at) a wedding 出席婚礼；attend a meeting出席会议，等等。还可以表示“关注，注意”，常和介词to联用。例如：We'll attend to that problem later. 稍后我们将关注那个问题。

3. 李明 2000年毕业于西安交通大学的机械工程系，获得了学士学位，并且通过了国家英语四级考试，看来他还是有一定英语基础的。CET就是我们平常所说的大学英语等级考试，是College English Test的开头大学字母缩写。CET是针对非英语专业考生的一种考试，而针对英语专业考生的考试是TEM，也就是Test for English Majors的开头大写字母的缩写。

4. 李明想到美国读MBA课程，他说I'd prefer to do an MBA if possible. do an MBA，是指“读MBA课程，碰巧的是，这里的动词do跟汉语的动词“读”发音一样，这样大家就好记了。if possible，如果可能的话，是一个固定短语，大家可以拿过来直接用。

5. go on with something，继续做某事，如果读不了MBA，那就继续读本专业的研究生。Mrs. Brown问李明对MBA课程的要求熟不熟悉呢？be familiar with something，熟悉某事，那么我们在familiar前面加一个前缀，就变成be unfamiliar with something，不熟悉某事，例如：I'm unfamiliar with the roads here. 这的路我不熟。

6. 李明对就读MBA课程的要求很熟悉，首先要靠好GMAT，并且一定要通过托福或雅思考试。GMAT是Graduate Management Admissions Test的开头大写字母缩写，就是研究生管理学入学考试，美国、英国、澳大利亚等国家的高校都采用GMAT考试的成绩来评估申请入学者是否适合于在商业、经济和管理等专业的研究生阶段学习。托福考试大家都很熟悉了，是Test of English as a Foreign Language，是为赴美国、加拿大等国学习的非英语国家学生提供的英语能力考试。

7. GRE是Graduate Record Examination的开头大写字母缩写，就是美国研究生入学考试，它适用于除了法律与商业以外的各种学科与专业的研究生考试。IELTS，全称International　English　Language　Testing　System，国际英语水平测试系统，是为到英语主导教学语言国家的高等教育机构就读而设的语言测试制度，也用于测试赴英语母语国家（主要指英联邦国家）定居人士的英语水平。

8. 不仅仅要通过托福或雅思的考试，还要达到一定的分数线，You'll need at least 600 on the TOFEL or 6.5 on IELTS. 就是你的托福考试成绩至少要考到600分以上，雅思最低要考到6.5分。某种考试得了多少分，这里用的是介词on。complete a certain degree，获得了某种学位。

9. 李明打算8月份去考GMAT，这里用的也是动词do，表示“参加某种考试”，看来这个do真是万能动词阿。大家在平常的学习中一定要注意积累。参加考试也可以用动词take。

10.那么什么时候开始申请学校呢？Mrs. Brown的建议是The best time to start the application process is in November or December of the year prior to your intended year of study. 开始申请程序的最好时间是你计划出去学习前一年的11月或者12月。prior to是一个介词词组，表示在...之前。

11.李明又问道加拿大有哪些大学提供MBA课程呢？Mrs. Brown给了他一本小册子，囊括了加拿大大学的课程设置。还有就是关于学费和奖学金的问题，这可能是出国留学的人最关心的问题之一了。

12.读MBA的学费呢一直在涨价。甚至有些大学现在收全额学费，也就是说没有任何政府补助。这样的大学每年收费大约1万美元，而这些大学的学制是两年。Those universities cost about $10,000 per year-and it's a two-year program.

13.至于其他的大学呢仍由政府来资助，所以他们的学费就要少很多，大约每年是4500美元左右。subsidize，指“资助，给予津贴”，名词是subsidy. scholarship是奖学金，那这些大学都对奖学金有什么规定呢？通常是申请读MBA课程的学生中的前5名获得一大笔奖学金，其他的学生得付全额学费，国际学生也得支付全额学费，大概每年要1万美金。in temp3s of 这个习惯用语表示“在…方面，就…而言”。

14.那申请就读MBA课程很困难吗？Is it very difficult to get into an MBA program? get into a program，就读某个课程，参与某个计划。实际上申请就读MBA课程的竞争很激烈，因为拿到MBA学位的学生找工作非常容易，所以很多学生都渴望能得到这种学习的机会，他们认为这种学习会保证自己将来在事业上的成功。guarantee 这个词是“保证, 担保”的意思。例如：The rain guarantees a good crop this year. 这场雨保证了今年有好收成。I can't guarantee you anything for now.现在我还不能跟你承诺任何事情。

15.那么学年是怎么划分的呢？上课时间是每年从9月份开始，圣诞节前结束。新年之后继续上课，四月底结束课程。resume，做名词是“简历”的意思，作动词，表示“再继续, 重新开始, 恢复”，例如：We resumed our work after a rest. 休息之后我们重新开始工作。一般美国的大学在四月底结束课程后，会开始一个summer temp3，也就是夏季学期，学生们也可以在这个期间选课进行学习。