名校热背后的冷思考

Frank+Bruni

Over recent days the notices have gone out1）， an annual ritual of dashed hopes.

Brown University offered admission to the lowest fraction ever of the applicants it received： fewer than one in 10. The arithmetic2） was even more brutal at Stanford， Columbia， Yale. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill had a record number of students vying3） for its next freshman class—31，321—and accepted about one in six who applied from outside the state. Notre Dame took about one in five of all comers.

And right now many young men and women who didnt get in where they fervently4） longed to are worrying that its some grim harbinger5） of their future， some sweeping judgment of their worth.

This is for them. And its intended less as a balm6） for the rejected than as a reality check7） for a society gone nuts over the whole overheated process.

If you were shut out of an elite school， that doesnt mean youre less gifted than all of the students who were welcomed there. It may mean only that you lacked the patronage8） that some of them had， or that you played the game9） less single-mindedly， taking fewer SAT courses and failing to massage10） your biography with the same zeal.

A friend of mine in Africa told me recently about a center for orphans there that a rich American couple financed in part to give their own teenage children an exotic charity to visit occasionally and mine11） for college-application essays： admissions bait12）. Thats the degree of cunning that comes into this frenzy13）.

Maybe the school that turned you down ranks high in the excessively publicized “College Salary Report” by PayScale.com14）， which looks at whose graduates go on to make the most money.

What a ludicrous15） list. Its at least as imperfectly assembled as the honor roll that U.S. News & World Report puts together every year. And even if you trust it， what does it tell you？ That the colleges at the top have the most clout16） and impart the best skills？ Or that these colleges admit the most young people whose parents and previously established networks guarantee them a leg up17）？

Maybe it tells you merely that these colleges attract the budding plutocrats18） with the greatest concern for the heft of their paychecks. Is that the milieu19） you sought？

About money and professional advancement： Shiny diplomas from shiny schools help. Its a lie to say otherwise. But its as foolish to accord their luster more consequence than the effort you put into your studies， the earnestness with which you hone20） your skills， what you actually learn. These are the sturdier building blocks of a career.

In David and Goliath21）， Malcolm Gladwell makes the case22） that a less exclusive university may enable a student to stand out and flourish in a way that a more exclusive one doesnt. The selectiveness of Gladwells science doesnt nullify23） the plausibility of his argument.

Corner offices24） in this country teem with25） C.E.O.s who didnt do their undergraduate work in the Ivy League. Marillyn Hewson of Lockheed Martin went to the University of Alabama. John Mackey of Whole Foods studied at the University of Texas， never finishing.

Your diploma is， or should be， the least of what defines you. Show me someone whose identity is rooted in where he or she went to college. Ill show you someone you really， really dont want at your Super Bowl26） party.

And your diploma will have infinitely less relevance to your fulfillment than so much else： the wisdom with which you choose your romantic partners； your interactions with the community you inhabit； your generosity toward the family that you inherited or the family that youve made.

If youre not bound for the school of your dreams， youre probably bound for a school that doesnt conform as tidily to your fantasies or promise to be as instantly snug a fit.

Good. College should be a crucible. Its about departure， not continuity： about turning a page and becoming a new person， not letting the ink dry on who， at 17 or 18， you already are. The disruption of your best-laid plans serves that. Its less a setback than a springboard27）.

A high school senior I know didnt get into several of the colleges she coveted28） most. She got into a few that are plenty excellent. And Ive never been more impressed with her， because she quickly realized that her regrets pale beside29） her blessings and she pivoted30） from letdown to excitement.

That resiliency and talent for optimism will matter more down the line31） than the name of the school lucky enough to have her. Like those of her peers who are gracefully getting past this ordeal that our status-mad society has foisted on them， shell do just fine.

最近几天，大学录取通知书纷纷寄出，年度“希望泡汤”仪式也拉开了序幕。

布朗大学给该校申请者发出的录取通知书比例不到10%，创下历史最低点。而斯坦福大学、哥伦比亚大学和耶鲁大学的录取率甚至更加惨不忍睹。北卡罗来纳大学教堂山分校的新生申请人数创下了纪录，多达31，321人，该校只录取了六分之一的州外申请者。圣母大学则只录取了约五分之一的申请者。

而现在，许多未能进入自己强烈向往的大学的年轻男女都在担心，认为这个结果是对自己前程的某种不祥预兆，是对自身价值的某种影响深远的评价。

这篇文章就是写给他们的。本文与其说是给被拒学生的安慰剂，不如说是一个对社会的现实反思，这个社会对已然过热的大学申请全过程着了魔。

如果你被名校拒之门外，这并不能说明你比被那些学校录取的所有学生天资差。可能仅仅意味着你没有他们其中一些人所享有的优待，也可能意味着你在按规矩办事时没那么专注：你上的SAT （译注：学术能力评估测试，俗称“美国高考”）课程比别人少；你没有投入同等的热情去修改自己的简历。

最近我的一个在非洲的朋友告诉我，一对有钱的美国夫妇资助了一个非洲的孤儿中心，其中一部分原因就是为他们十几岁的孩子们提供一家能偶尔拜访的国外慈善机构，为大学申请文书搜集有价值的资料：那就是录取的诱饵。由此可见，其煞费思量竟已达到如此疯狂的地步。

将你拒之门外的学校也许在PayScale网站发布的“美国大学薪酬报告”中名列前茅，这份传播格外广泛的报告研究了哪所大学的毕业生挣钱最多。

这是一个多么滑稽可笑的榜单呀！它至少与《美国新闻与世界报道》每年整理的排行榜一样汇总得并不完美。而且即便你相信这个榜单，它又能告诉你什么呢？告诉你名列前茅的大学影响力最强，并且能够传授最好的技能？还是这些学校录取了最多这样的年轻人：他们的父母和之前已建立的关系网能保证其顺利过关？

也许它只不过能告诉你，这些大学吸引的都是崭露头角的富豪，他们最关心自己钱袋子的大小。难道这就是你所追求的环境吗？

说到金钱和职业发展，名牌大学闪闪发亮的毕业证书当然有用。不承认这一点就是在说谎。但是如果你认为学校的名气比你在学习过程中付出的努力、锻炼自身技能时的认真态度以及真正学到的东西更重要，那你一样很傻。因为这些才是你职业生涯更为坚固的基石。

在《大卫与歌利亚》一书中，马尔科姆·格拉德威尔论述了这样的观点：一所门槛更低的大学反而能够通过一所门槛更高的大学所不具备的方式使学生出类拔萃，走向成功。格拉德威尔的研究虽然具有选择性，但并不能说明他的观点无可信度而言。

在这个国家，很多“角落办公室”里的首席执行官并不是在常青藤名校完成本科学业的。洛克希德·马丁公司的首席执行官玛丽琳·休森就读的是阿拉巴马大学。而全食公司的首席执行官约翰·麦基就读的是得克萨斯大学，并且一直没能毕业。

你的学历证书是（或者说应该是）最不能定义你的东西。告诉我有谁的身份会来源于他/她上过的大学。那么我将找出这样的一个人——你肯定不想邀请他来参加你的超级碗聚会。

对于你的成就而言，学历的影响远远比不上其他很多东西，比如：你用于挑选浪漫伴侣的智慧；你与自己居住的社区进行的互动；在对待你所继承的家庭或你所组建的家庭时表现出的慷慨大度。

如果你注定无法进入自己梦寐以求的学校，那你也许会去一所不合乎你想象的学校，又或是你无法立马适应得特别好的学校。

这样也挺不错的。大学就应该是一个大熔炉。它关乎告别过去而非延续从前：翻开新的一页，成为一个崭新的自己，别停滞于你现在十七八岁的样子，要继续书写你的人生。你的最佳规划被打乱则有助于此。这与其说是一个挫折，倒不如说是一个好的起点。

我认识一个高中毕业生，她没有被自己最向往的几所大学录取，但她还是成功申请到了一些优秀的学校。我对她的印象从来没有现在这样深刻，因为她很快就意识到，相比自己的幸运，被拒绝的遗憾不值一提，于是她不再失望，转而兴奋起来。

在将来，她的适应能力和乐观天性要比那个有幸录取她的大学的名字更加重要。她照样会做得不错，与其他能够从容度过这场磨难的同龄人一样优秀——而这场磨难是我们这个对地位趋之若鹜的社会强加在他们身上的。

1. go out：寄出

2. arithmetic [??r?θm?t?k] n. 数字

3. vie [va?] vi. 竞争，相争

4. fervently [?f??（r）v（?）ntli] adv. 热烈地，强烈地

5. harbinger [?hɑ?（r）b?nd??（r）] n. 预示，前兆

6. balm [bɑ?m] n. 安慰（物），慰藉（物）

7. reality check：面对现实；反思现实

8. patronage [?p?tr?n?d?] n. （以恩赐态度施予的）恩惠，优遇

9. play the game：遵守规则，照章办事

10. massage [?m?sɑ??] vt. 修改，改动

11. mine [ma?n] vt. 在……中寻找有价值的资料

12. bait [be?t] n. 〈喻〉诱饵，诱惑

13. frenzy [?frenzi] n. 癫狂，疯狂

14. PayScale.com：世界雇员薪酬数据库信息网，拥有世界上最大、最完善的雇员薪酬数据库。

15. ludicrous [?lu?d?kr?s] adj. 荒唐可笑的

16. clout [kla?t] n. 〈口〉影响力，权势

17. guarantee sb. a leg up：保证某人渡过难关

18. plutocrat [?plu?t?kr?t] n. 富豪，财阀

19. milieu [mi??lj??] n. 环境

20. hone [h??n] vt. 磨练，训练，提高（技艺）

21. David and Goliath：《大卫与歌利亚》，由加拿大作家马尔科姆·格拉德威尔（Malcolm Gladwell， 1963～）所著，该书从小牧童大卫与巨人歌利亚以弱胜强的故事讲起，阐述了一个观点：处于劣势的人通过分析自身所处的环境，也能走向成功。

22. make the case：论证观点，提出理由

23. nullify [?n?l?fa?] vt. 使无效，取消

24. corner office：角落办公室，指企业最高领导者的办公室。

25. teem with：充满

26. Super Bowl：超级碗，美国全国橄榄球联盟每年举行的锦标赛

27. springboard [?spr???b??（r）d] n. （有助于开始做某事的）起点

28. covet [?k?v?t] vt. 贪求，垂涎，觊觎

29. pale beside：与……相比相形见绌

30. pivot [?p?v?t] vi. 转移

31. down the line：往后，未来