After Reading

Useful Expressions

1. 模拟面试                                   mock interview

2. 采取进一步行动                  follow up

3. 在某人手中，为某人所拥有      in sb’s hands

4. 亲手送交的                          hand-delivered

5. 可能的客户                          prospective customers

6. 在我看来                                   as I see it

7. 俗话说                                      (as) the saying goes

8. 极有可能                                   the odds are good that

9. 一生中仅有一次的经历               a once-in-a-lifetime experience

10. 事先做好准备                        do one’s homework

11. 努力争取，追求                      go after

12. 交换场地                                   switch sides

13. 发扬长处                              develop one’s strengths

14. 尝试                                        take/have a crack (at)

15. 奇迹中的奇迹                           miracle of      miracles

16. 实现你的目标                   accomplish your goals

17. 改变现状或观点；产生影响      make a difference

18. 大约                                        in the neighborhood of

19. 做梦也想不到的                       beyond      one’s/anyone’s wildest dreams

20. 从……的观点来看                   from one’s/the standpoint (of)

 Sentence Translation

When a recent college graduate came into my office not too long ago looking for a         sales job, I asked him what he had done to prepare for the interview.

(=不久前一个新近毕业的大学生到我办公室来谋求一份销售工作。我问他为这次面试做过哪些准备。)

When I graduated from college, the odds were good that I would have the same job for the rest of my life. And that's how it worked out. But getting hired is no longer a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

(=我大学毕业时，极有可能终身从事同一个工作。当时情况也的确如此。但如今已不再是一生被聘去做一个工作了。)

Don't ever let anyone tell you that you can't accomplish your goals. Who says you're not tougher, harder working and more able than your competition? You see, a goal is a dream with a deadline: in writing, measurable, identifiable, attainable.

(=别听旁人说你不能实现自己的目标。谁说你不比你的竞争对手更坚强、更努力、更能干？要知道，所谓目标就是有最后限期的梦想：写成文字，可测量，可确认，可实现。)

But clenched teeth, decision tearing my bowels, were not enough; there was no money, no money, my mother said it, said it until I felt as if every scrap of food I ate was wrenched off my father's body.

(=可是，咬牙切齿痛下决心是无济于事的；家里没钱，根本没钱，母亲说的，整天这么说，让我觉得自己吃的每一小口东西仿佛都是从父亲身上撕下来的。)

在我看来，这些正是关键之所在。准备去赢。永不中断学习。相信自己，哪怕没人相信你。想方设法显得与众不同。然后就出发，在雪地上留下你自己的足迹。

(=From my standpoint, that's what it's all about. Prepare to win. Never stop learning. Believe in yourself, even when no one else does. Find a way to make a difference. Then go out and make your own tracks in the snow.  )

我们穿过大理石庭院，走上正中雕有蟠龙的台阶，来到前厅，看见精致的雕梁画栋，丹漆柱子，还有高高大大的灯台。青石地面上铺着软木垫。

(=We crossed the marble courtyard, walked up the steps with their carved dragons coiling in the middle, into an entrance hall, with painted beams and intricate painted ceiling, red lacquered pillars, huge lamps. There was cork matting on the stone floor.)

哈内德先生高高瘦瘦，小小的秃脑袋，尖尖的下巴，那副眼镜奇大。我一下子害怕得哆嗦起来。他的脑袋就像是山顶上的庙宇，就像北海公园山上的白塔。

(=Mr. Harned was very tall, thin, with a small bald head, a long chin, enormous glasses. I immediately began to quiver with fright. His head was like a temple on top of a mountain, like the white pagoda on the hill in the North   Sea Park.)

Listening Comprehension

   Directions: In this section, you will hear a passage Three times. When the passage is   read for the first time, you should listen carefully for its general idea. Then listen to the passage again. When the passage is read for the second time, you are required to fill in the blanks numbered from S1 to S8 with the exact words you have just heard. For blanks numbered from S9 to S11 you are required to fill in missing information. You can either use the exact words you have just heard or write down the main points in your own words. Finally, when the passage is read for the third time, you should check what you have written.

    At least 5.59 million students will graduate from colleges this year, 13 percent more than last year, the Ministry of Education has said.

   They face ___S1__(=unprecedented) pressure in the job market as about 700,000 graduates, who could not find work last year will ____S2_____(=compete) with them for employment, the People's Daily website has ___S3____(=quoted) the minister of human resources and social security, as saying.

   But this could mean a windfall of graduates in __S4__(=rural) areas and small towns. About 20,000 graduates have __S5____(=signed) up to work in the countryside, in fields such as education, agriculture, and _____S6___(=poverty)-alleviation. And many others, including 200 from Tsinghua  University, have opted to work in the regions ___S7__(=hit) by the May 12 quake. College graduates are encouraged to work in western areas where many jobs are ___S8_____(=available), Ministry of Education spokesman said.

  _____S9_____(=Those who have worked in those areas for two years enjoy favorable treatment in recruitment ) for government organs and State enterprises, and get bonus points if they take the civil service exams.

  "________S10_______(=We encourage college graduates to start their own business, too, and get better treatment)," said Wang Yadong, deputy director of the training and employment department of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.

_____S11_______(=Such graduates enjoy a 20-percent income tax cut for start-ups, and the government offers small loans to them to start a business)。

   At least 5.59 million students will graduate from colleges this year, 13 percent more than last year, the Ministry of Education has said.

   They face unprecedented pressure in the job market as about 700,000 graduates, who could not find work last year will compete with them for employment, the People's Daily website has quoted the minister of human resources and social security, as saying.

   But this could mean a windfall of graduates in rural areas and small towns. About 20,000 graduates have signed up to work in the countryside, in fields such as education, agriculture, and poverty-alleviation. And many others, including 200 from Tsinghua University, have opted to work in the regions hit by the May 12 quake. College graduates are encouraged to work in western and rural areas where many jobs are available, Ministry of Education spokesman said.

  Those who have worked in rural areas for two years enjoy favorable treatment in recruitment for government organs and State enterprises, and get bonus points if they take the civil service exams.

  "We encourage college graduates to start their own business, too, and get preferential treatment," said Wang Yadong, deputy director of the training and employment department of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.

Such graduates enjoy a 20-percent income tax cut for start-ups, and the government offers small loans to them to start a business

Discussion

1. In your opinion, what should the college graduate have done before the interview? 

2. What do you think of the writer’s four suggestions about job application? Can you add anything?

3. Think of as many occupations as possible and write them down on a piece of paper. Try to classify them into categories. Evaluate each job from different perspectives. After comparing, choose your favorite kind of job.

Tips: You may consult the following table or work out your own one.

1.    Can you think of any questions the interviewer might ask during your job interview? Look at the picture. What would you do if asked those questions? Is this phenomenon common these days?

2.      (=Tips: Some of these questions are irrelevant, improper, racial/sexual discriminative and sarcastic.)

Talk about the Pictures

Writing Practice