美国高端导师：中国学生普遍缺失C-S-I，该如何规划？

澳际美国高端导师 Alec-Pinero

　　My name is Alec, and I’m the assistant general manager of Aomeida. I guess I’ll introduce myself on three fronts: academic, professional, and personal. Academically, I went to the Trinity School in New York, the #1 private school in the U.S., and then to Harvard where I studied psychology and got a minor in “mind, brain and behavior.” Professionally, I’ve worked in different industries such as education, advertising, and real estate, and have been doing study abroad mentoring for a few years now. In my personal life, I very much enjoy being active physically and mentally; I do sports like basketball and boxing, am a personal trainer, and like to play chess (国际象棋 and 围棋) and studying different languages. Also, I’m a total 吃货.

　　大家好，我是Alec, 澳际美国名校——傲美达的副总经理。我将从学术、职业及个人兴趣爱好三个方面介绍我自己。首先我高中就读于美国最好的私立高中，三一学院，本科就读哈佛大学的心理学专业，辅修精神，头脑和行为。我先后在教育、广告、房地产等不同领域工作过，从事辅导留学申请工作已有几年的经验。至于个人方面，我喜欢篮球、拳击等活动，同时是一名私人健身教练，也喜欢下国际象棋，围棋，此外我还对不同语言感兴趣。对了，我是一个名副其实的吃货。^~^（跟他交流）

　　1. Alec，作为哈佛的高才生，您是在什么时候开始规划申请的，当时您多大?做了哪些准备?除了平时成绩、SAT，是否有其他方面的表现为申请哈佛加分?

　　The long answer is: At the most basic level, you could say that I began preparing for college as soon as started growing up, and while that sounds insane, let me assure you that my parents did not put an SAT book in my right hand and international public policy book in my other hand as soon as I started talking. Rather, they encouraged me to pursue things I was interested in, so by the time I got into high school I was confident in those interests, and knew that if I chose to do something I liked then I was making the right decision. I played water polo and basketball; I started an alumni relations club; I volunteered; I played chess; and I got to know my classmates and my teachers. What kind of student does a school like Harvard want? They want a student who is passionate, who pursues his or her interests in a unique way. End. Of. Story. To be perfectly honest, by the time I took the SAT and even started thinking about my school list my senior year, my application was basically writing itself. The short answer is: It’s never too early to start.

　　我的回答可能会比较长哦，可以说我在成长伊始即开始为大学申请做准备，这个听起来有些难以置信。可以特别肯定的一点是我的父母并没有在我刚刚开始学会讲话就把SAT书籍塞到我的右手，把国际公共政策书籍塞到我的左手，他们反倒一直鼓励我发现和追寻自己感兴趣的事情。在进入高中时，我对自己很有自信并认定只要我所做的事情是我喜欢的，那就是正确的决定。我打水球，篮球，创建了校友关系俱乐部，做志愿者，下国际象棋，了解我的老师和同学们，等等。哈佛大学到底喜欢什么类型的学生呢，那就是有激情，能以其独特的方式追寻自己的兴趣和理想并努力去实现。坦白讲，我高三才准备SAT和选择学校，申请也是讲述我自己。简而言之，早开始有百利。

　　2、但是对于准备出国的学生来说，通常提前1年或更长时间来做准备工作，傲美达导师如何帮助学生进行这类长期规划，并在竞争激烈的申请过程中脱颖而出?(马上向他咨询)

　　Perfect timing! Let me build off my answer to the previous question here. The whole idea of the Advanced Planning (长期规划) work is to provide students with a timeline and actionable steps to develop their interests into creative, leadership-oriented, outward-facing (remember #CSI?) projects and achievements. Anyone can study for SATs, APs, TOEFLs, and do homework, but our job is to help you distinguish yourself from all the 学霸’s running around. Let’s dig in to that for a second. Have an interest in model rockets? Let’s turn that into a club that competes at the national level. Play basketball? Let’s develop a youth league that coaches younger players and provides volunteer opportunities. Can’t stop cooking? Let’s find a way to teach others first locally, then nationally, then globally! And that’s only the beginning…

　　时间很重要!对这一问题的回答也是对上一个问题进一步的阐述。长期规划的意义在于帮助学生制定时间规划及可行方案，来把他们的兴趣爱好演变成为更具有创造性、领导力导向和外向性的事情与成果。任何人都可以学习SAT，AP课程和TOEFL，我们的工作是把你和周围的学霸区分开来。举例来说，假如对模型火箭感兴趣，可以建立一个俱乐部，参加地区或国家级的比赛;喜欢篮球，可以做一个青年篮球联盟，培训年轻的选手并做一些志愿者类活动;喜欢烹饪，可以教其他人，若有国家级范围的活动，甚至是国际级别的活动也可以积极参加。

　　Preparing a student to apply to top schools can seem very overwhelming; where do you even start? Actually, we help students develop three key components of their application: C-S-I. These three letters, C-S-I, each stand for something that American admissions officers assume Chinese students lack: Creativity, Soft skills, and International perspective. Creativity is pretty straightforward, it’s the ability to think of new solutions to old problems, or see solutions where no one even knew there was a problem! Soft skills are all about communication, and leadership. International perspective means recognizing that the world is very, very big and has many, many people with different backgrounds and experiences. Since admissions officers expect to not see any evidence of CSI, we make sure it shines through.

　　帮助学生准备顶级大学的留学申请是一项工程浩大的工作，究竟要从何处开始着手呢?实际上，我们主要帮助学生从三个非常关键的方面即 C-S-I做准备。这三个字母所代表的是美国大学录取委员会认为中国学生所缺少的关键内容：创造性，软性技能和国际视野。创造性，就是能想出解决问题的新方法的能力，或是发现未被其他人所认识到的问题的解决方法;软性技能和沟通、领导力息息相关;国际视野，简而言之就是能够认识到世界非常广博，不同的人有着不同的背景和经历。

　　3、SAT是美国大学申请看重的意向成绩单，能否给出一些备考建议呢?（关于SAT你必须知道的事项）

　　Here are some quick and easy tips for studying for any standardized test, particularly the SAT: 1) DON’T just memorize vocabulary words; instead, use them in sentences, practice them in context; learn prixes, suffixes, and roots. You only need to get familiar with the types and categories of words rather than every single word. 2) TAKE A PRACTICE TEST. Chinese students spend way too much time memorizing individual problems and taking individual practice sections, and rarely know what the actual test will be like bore they go in and take it for the first time. Instead, take a practice test once a month, and as the test date approach increase the frequency. Simulate the real test conditions and you will be ready to take advantage of all the preparation you’ve done come exam time.

　　对于任何一类标准化考试，尤其是SAT的建议是酱紫的：1. 不要死记硬背单词，而是通过词所在的句子来理解和记忆词义和用法，在语境中练习使用，学习一定的前缀，后缀，词根等。这样你只需要记住某一类型的词就能够举一反三。2. 模拟考试练习(真题练习)，很多中国学生只是背诵单词和练习单项测试，直到真正考试时才了解到实际考试情况，这是不够的。坚持每月一次模拟(真题)练习，而随着考试的临近，更要加大练习频率。不断模拟真实的考试环境，有了充分准备，在正式考试时会有更好的发挥。

　　4、Alec，一些中国学生对留学比较迷茫，不清楚哪些学校适合自己，傲美达导师会如何跟他们进行沟通?（留学选校方案知多少？）

　　It’s very easy to get caught up in rumors and stories and “my mother’s friend’s son’s classmate’s aunt said that…” and as such there’s a lot of misinformation out there. The good thing is, each component of the application has very clear steps associated with it, so whether it’s brainstorming for the essay, selecting schools to apply to, or preparing for the interview, we have very clear timelines and processes that we follow with our students; it doesn’t matter what they think they do or don’t know!

　　学生很容易被来自所谓的妈妈的朋友的儿子的同学的阿姨所讲的故事或经历所搅乱，因为这其中有很多不准确的信息。所幸的是，美国大学申请的每一部分都有很清晰的方法来操作完成。至于文书写作的头脑风暴，选校，及准备面试等，傲美达导师会制定清晰的时间表和流程来指导学生。所以学生对定位，选校了解或不了解都不成问题。

　　5、美国留学低龄化，初中生打算去美国读高中，该如何准备?傲美达导师能够给予的帮助都有哪些?（美国高中留学到底就多火？）

　　Applying to American high schools, just like applying to colleges or graduate schools, can be easy… if you don’t care what kind of school you go to. However, if a student wants to go to a good American high school, then we work with them largely on developing their communication and self-expression skills. Social skills are extremely important when it comes to succeeding in American high schools, so we make sure that students are aware of the expectations their teachers and classmates will have for them, and introduce them to contexts and assignments they will encounter while there.

　　美国高中申请与美国大学或研究生申请类似，如果学生对学校要求不高，高中申请并不难。但如果学生目标是进入优秀美国高中，傲美达会注重提升学生的沟通和自我表达能力。此外，学生的社交能力对于美高留学也是非常重要的，傲美达会注重帮助学生清楚了解美国高中实际情况，如何更快融入学校生活，如何更好地与老师和同学相处，并详细介绍他们在留学中可能会遇到的问题、情况以及如何应对等等。

　　6、傲美达是澳际旗下的高端品牌，但就整个中国而言，这样的高端申请机构不少，您认为是怎样的魅力吸引众多同学来到傲美达的呢?（你与美国名校之间只差一个TA）

　　We at Aomeida are first and foremost mentors. We look at students not as numbers or products to fit into a formula, but as individuals that are coming from different backgrounds with different needs and interests. We take these backgrounds, needs, and interests and help students develop into more than just strong university applicants; we get them ready to succeed, to go above and beyond just getting into college. All of our students are trying to get into top universities, so what should we rerence when we work with them? That’s pretty obvious: our own experience at these universities (Princeton, NYU, Yale, Columbia, Harvard).

　　对于我们，学生并不是可以套用公式或模具的数字或产品，他们是具有不同背景，不同需求和不同兴趣的个体。这些都为我们所重视并以此来帮助学生，辅导他们成为具有竞争优势的申请者，进入顶级大学，并且为今后的成功做好准备。是怎样的魅力吸引众多同学来到傲美达的呢?答案就是傲美达导师们在普利斯顿大学，纽约大学，耶鲁大学，哥伦比亚大学，哈佛大学等名校的自身经验。

　　Aomeida’s competitive advantages can be broken down into three distinct components:

　　1) Our Team. Our highly-talented team of experts have the academic and experience pedigree to not only “talk the talk” but to “walk the walk.” Aomeida mentors graduate from top schools (see: Question #2), are experts in their fields, have extensive education and mentor experience, and view each student through the eyes of an admissions officer. They know what it takes to get into #1 programs in the U.S., or they wouldn’t be here.

　　2) Our Approach. Our work with our students is encapsulated in our core values: honesty, transparency, commitment to excellence, compassion, grounded in context. What does this mean for our day-to-day work? It means that we work with our students, with each plan and decision customized (量身定制) for them and their particularly situation; when you’re applying to top U.S. schools, there’s no other way to do it.

　　3) Our Success. Where does our approach get us? A 96% acceptance rate into Top 50 schools at the high school, college, and graduate levels. We’ll let the statistics speak for themselves.

　　傲美达的魅力主要体现在以下三个方面:(联系傲美达导师)

　　1) 团队优势：傲美达的精英导师均有实际的申请经验，毕业于美国顶级大学，是其领域的佼佼者，且拥有丰富的学术和辅导经验得以从录取委员会的角度审视学生，并判断其是否具有进入美国顶级大学的潜力。

　　2) 方法优势：傲美达帮助学生的方式在我们的核心价值观得以体现: 诚实，透明公开，追求卓越，同情心和立足实际。这在我们的工作中是如何得以体现呢?那就是我们根据学生的背景、特性为其量身定制申请方案，并依此来开展学生的申请工作。申请美国顶级大学，没有其他方法可寻。

　　3) 丰富的成功经验：傲美达申请方式所取得的成果如何呢?傲美达的客户96%都被美国top50的优秀高中，大学(文理学院)及研究生项目录取。我们的数据很好地证明了这一点。