芝加哥大学录取女孩拒绝平庸我超越了所有人的预期

编者按：

为什么用双语？因为比起中文，F同学接触英语的机会更多，她对英文更“精通”。她现在在加拿大读高中，继Warwick、Western、Rotman、Durham的offer后，她又收到了芝加哥大学的offer。除却她的“海外高中”背景，她的申请过程包含的想法、抉择可以给你启发，尤其征服芝加哥大学招生官的一大亮点——文书，她是如何完成的，我们一起来聆听一下~

笔者│F同学

The start of my adventure began with a fit of ambition. I still remember the dark wooden surface, lit sporadically by light shining through the leaves, on which I wrote my first ACT. The result was surprisingly good and consolidated my decision to apply to the states, so that I may achieve accomplishments beyond of the expectation anyone had of me — at the time, and I still am, immature and lost.

我的探险旅程始于坚定人生志向。我仍记得当我第一次开始准备写ACT作文的时候，光线零星地穿过树叶，照射在深色木桌子的表面。ACT的结果出乎意料，并且我更加坚定了要在美国读大学从而取得超出别人预期的成绩——即便此刻，我仍旧是我自己，一个不算成熟的迷路的小孩。

I had a late start for university rat race: only at the end of grade 10 did I really start preparing myself for admission into Ivy leagues and other top schools, which I had set my goals upon. I started seeking various opportunities, like joining my local youth cabinet, starting a literature club, which evolved into a creative writing magazine, and participating in student government. A key to finding opportunities in a relatively barren or nonacademic environment is to know people who share your intellectual interests, and to take initiative and explore opportunities not only available to students but also to the wider audience.

我准备得较晚，10年级下才决定把申请目标设定为竞争激烈的常春藤学校和美国的名校。那个时候，我寻求各种各样的机会锻炼自己的能力，比如加入当地的内阁会议，创办文学社和创意写作杂志和参加学生自治会。我觉得最关键的是要在一个荒芜的不算学术的环境去多认识志同道合的人，去主动探索机会——而这些机会不只是给学生开放，也对更广泛的大众开放。

Summer of 2015, my family officially determined to support me in my pursuit of higher education and we went to the renowned New Oriental Vision Overseas. There, I was introduced to a program which I initially was not very interested in, for it was about environmental science, an area which I previously had no interest in. However, during my first lab and lecture I leaned so much about environmental science, the various ways of treating pollution, and the extent of academic research in this area. I was extremely fascinated by the topics as well as the experiments; they were unlike anything else I’ve done in school. I started texting my professor, who kindly answers my questions and discussed with me the ideas I have had. A few weeks into the program I was offered an opportunity to do research (research!) for a talentless high school student like myself, with no academic accomplishments in chemistry or environmental science whatsoever. It was beyond all my expectations and I unhesitatingly took on the challenge. Through struggling through the dense research articles, following the instructions of a senior student, and gradually contribution my own ideas, I learned so much about the life of an academic and the occupations involved in leading such a life. This experience corroborated my passion in physics and my desire to pursue it as a career.

2015年的暑假，我的家人正式支持我美国本科的申请，找到了新东方前途。在前途，我参加了环境科学的志领Track课程。我原本对于环境科学并不十分感兴趣。但是从第一天的讲座和实验课开始，我学习了丰富的环境科学的知识，了解了治理污染的一系列方法。讲座和实验激发了我的思考和学术热情，和高中课堂相比，是完全不同的崭新体验。我给教授发送消息，探讨问题和我的想法。几个星期以后，我这个天赋平平的高中生居然得到了在实验室真正做实验的宝贵机会。我毫不犹豫地接受挑战，投入颇有难度的学术阅读、跟着高年级学生做实验、逐步贡献自己的见解。从中我学会了许多学术知识，也了解了围绕学术生涯的林林总总。这次的科研经历更加坚实了我的物理热情，使我想要把物理作为事业来追求。

Throughout my junior year I also read extensively on the subject of physics. A few books I would recommend for anyone who’s genuinely interested in the theoretical aspect of the subject are Thirty Years that Shook Physics (quantum mechanics), Euclid’s Window (mathematics), and QED (by Feynman on quantum electrodynamics). I would also occasionally flip through the more accessible articles of Nature and Science, to be informed on recent progress in academia. Through my explorations within books I’ve developed a deeper understanding of the subject and also my own philosophy, which I think successfully showed in my essays.

在我高中10年级的时候，我还广泛阅读了物理书籍。对于物理抱有真诚兴趣的人，我推荐阅读这几本书籍：《震撼物理学的三十年》（量子动力学）、《欧几里得的窗》（数学）和费曼的《量子电动力学》（量子电动力学）。 我还时常翻阅《自然》和《科学》杂志中俯拾皆是的论文，以便获得学术的最新动态信息。 在书海探索使我逐渐形成了对于学科的深刻认知，培养了我自己的哲学观念，这也在我的文书当中充分显现出来了。

Early 2017, I started getting offers and rejections. First, offers from Warwick, Western, Rotman, Durham, and a rejection from Oxford because I flunked my interview. Just when I was feeling despair from the Oxford rejection and preparing myself for a mediocre undergraduate life, a congratulations from U Chicago came. I felt like I finally have a destination; I have found a place to belong to.

首先是Warwick、Western、Rotman、Durham的offer，而后是牛津大学的拒信因为我自知面试不佳。就在我快因牛津陷入绝望，准备读一所普通本科的时候，芝加哥大学的录取信来了。我感觉自己的大学申请之路终于找到了归宿，觅得一个让我有归属感的地方。

【文书篇】

My essays are I think the highlights of my application — as the case for probably every other UChicago applicant. Instead of focusing on grades and extracurricular, (well, you do have to have presentable grades and standardized test results) U Chicago looks for students who are intellectual, chill, and most of all, interesting. Find the interesting part about yourself and your thoughts, and demonstrate that in your application through your essays and interviews.

我觉得我的文书是申请亮点，就像很多芝加哥大学的申请者一样。除了学校成绩和课外活动优秀（当然学校成绩和标准化考试过硬是必须的）以外，芝加哥大学偏好富有学术性、淡定从容并且有趣（很重要）的学生。可以试图发掘自己和自己的思想有趣味的地方，然后在文书和面试当中充分呈现出来。

My U Chicago essay was on the question of order and disorder. I discussed my conception of what science is: an instrument for finding order in disorder. I chose this question to respond to because, as soon as I read it, I knew what to write about: the history of science, its various forms, and how they were all guided by the one ideal of an organized world.

我的第一篇芝加哥补充文书写的是在无序当中寻求秩序。文中我讨论了我认为科学是什么样子——在我看来，科学就是在无序中求秩序的工具。我选择了这个问题是因为我一看到题目，就想到了我想写什么：科学的历史，科学的不同形式以及它们是怎么被一个有序世界的理念所指引。

My second essay discussed at length the books I’ve read. The exact prompt is as follows: “Share with us a few of your favorite books, poems, authors, films, plays, pieces of music, musicians, performers, paintings, artists, blogs, magazines, or newspapers. Feel free to touch on one, some, or all of the categories listed, or add a category of your own.” I am a fervid reader and I talked about books of all genres, from Feynman’s autobiography (surely you’re joking, Mr. Feynman) to Hesse’s Demian. I talked about the insights these books provided with me.

第二篇补充文书我深度探讨了我所阅读的书籍。一直以来我是一个狂热的书虫，阅读广泛。在文中我涉及我所涉略书籍的各个种类，从费曼的自传（我没有在开玩笑，就是量子电动力学的费曼先生）到赫尔曼·黑塞的《德米安》。我不仅探讨了书籍本身，更表达了这些书怎么影响了我本人和我的思考，怎么给了我洞见和领悟，成为现在的自己。

At last, I recommend everyone who feels their application an inadequate representation of who they are (determine this by reading your entire Common Application once and trying to visualize the image your application gives to the reader) to discuss whatever you feel is important part of you in the additional information section of Common Application. I myself wrote about my passion for physics, the books I’ve read in the field, the accomplishments I have had, and the extenuating circumstances for those accomplishments (e.g. poor support from school). This section is really not restricted to describing extreme circumstances like sickness or family incident, but for a much wider range of events and discussions.

最后，我建议每一个申请者先仔细阅读自己的在Common Application所有的申请材料，把自己希望呈现给招生官的形象可视化；如果觉得这份申请表单还无法完整地呈现自己，可以在Common Application的补充信息（additional information）栏添加任何你觉得对你来说觉得至关重要的东西。 我自己在补充信息栏写了我对于物理学的热情，我在物理学方面的阅读书籍，我所有获得的成绩以及期间所面临的困境（比如学校支持的匮乏）。这一栏不止可以写自己面临的挑战（如疾病、家庭事故），也可以写更广泛的活动以及自己的思考和论述。

Finally, I’d like to thank New Oriental, my dad and my mom, and my more intimate friends for supporting me and helping me find the way to my passion. To those of you reading this article, good luck finding your way and wherever you will end up, having lots of fun! Again, good luck on your studies!

最后，我要感谢新东方、我的爸爸、我的妈妈，和更多支持帮助我完成梦想的亲密朋友。祝愿阅读此文的朋友，圆梦的路上好运并且享受其中乐趣！祝大家好运！

导师寄语

美国大学申请充满了变数。F同学的芝加哥offer是在牛津的拒信之后来的。但是F同学从来没有放弃自己努力的脚步，性格顽强坚韧，抱着克服一切困难和质疑的决心，加上脚踏实地地辛苦付出，认真参与整个申请过程，扬长避短、积极进取，最终功夫不负有心人，斩获芝加哥大学的offer。

——程祺老师

F同学，非常热爱阅读和写作。初识她时，你可能被她的各种不着边际的问题“挑战”和“冒犯”，但通过慢慢的交流和沟通，你会发现她非常会思考，能静下心来踏踏实实做事，于是被她复古的学者气质、孜孜以求的探究精神吸引和感动。

——杨铃燕老师

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