新标准大学英语综合教程2课文翻译U8R1
Are you the right person for the job
你适合做这个工作吗
1 In the old days it was easy. They were going to be the best three years of your life, and you knew it. You spent your time chatting late into the night with new-found friends in coffee bars and pubs, playing your heart out in the squash courts and on the cricket field, or strutting across the stage as a leading light of the university dramatic society. Whatever your interest, university life catered for it. And, let's not forget, you would usually manage to keep up with the work too, by doing the required reading and dashing off the week's essay at the last minute. The only thing you didn't find time for was thinking about what came afterwards, at the end of those three exciting years. But you didn't need to, because whatever your chosen career, the companies were all lining up to offer you a job.
过去，大学生活很轻松。那将是你一生中最美好的三年，你知道这一点的。你是这样消磨时光的：在咖啡馆和酒吧里与新结交的朋友聊到深夜，在壁球场和板球场上尽情地挥舞球拍，或是作为大学戏剧社的大腕在舞台上昂首阔步。不管你有什么爱好，大学生活都能为你创造条件。而且，别忘了，你的学习还总能跟得上，能完成指定的阅读，并在最后一分钟匆忙写完那一周的文章。你唯一没有时间考虑的是过完这激动人心的三年后要做什么。不过这个问题并不需要考虑，因为无论选择什么职业，都有一大堆公司排着队来聘用你。
2 That was what it was like in the old days as a student in the UK. But things have changed. A recent study of Britain's major multinational companies reveals that even with a good degree graduates can no longer walk into the top jobs. Today there are twice as many universities as there were just 30 years ago, and 40 per cent of young people now go on to higher education. So with no shortage of graduates, a good degree has become vital in the search for a job. Competition is tough, and today's students are spending more time than ever preparing for those dreaded final exams, or doing low-paid part-time jobs to pay off debts.
那是过去英国大学生校园生活的情形，现在情况已经改变了。最近一项对英国各大跨国公司的研究表明，即使拥有一个不错的学位，大学毕业生也不再可能轻而易举就得到最好的工作了。今天的大学数量比30年前翻了一番，40%的年轻人接受高等教育。由于并不缺少大学毕业生，拥有一个不错的学位对找工作就变得尤其重要了。竞争很激烈，结果是如今的大学生花了比任何时候都要多的时间来复习功课，为那些可怕的期末考试做准备，做报酬低的兼职以偿还债务。
3 But that's just the problem. In the opinion of managers from more than 200 British companies, students are spending too much time studying, or worrying about making ends meet, instead of joining clubs and acquiring basic skills such as teamwork and making presentations. The managers also said that they were prepared to leave jobs unfilled rather than appoint graduates who didn't have the necessary skills to get ahead in the global market.
然而，这恰恰是问题之所在。英国两百多家公司的经理认为，学生花在学习或挣钱维持生计上的时间太多了。他们本应该去参加各种俱乐部，学习一些基本的技能，如团队合作和现场演示。这些经理还说，他们宁可让职位空缺，也不愿意聘请那些缺乏必要技能、无法在国际市场上占领商机的毕业生。
4 But what can be done about the problem The solution, the managers believe, is to include social skills in degree courses; and some universities are taking the advice. At the University of Southampton, for example, history students have to do a 12-week project – frequently related to the local context – working in teams of six. This includes making a presentation, writing a group thesis, and carrying out a public service, which might involve teaching schoolchildren or making a radio programme about the topic.
该怎么做才能解决这个问题呢经理们相信，解决的办法就是在学位课程里增加社交能力的训练。有的大学已经开始这样做了，例如南安普敦大学历史系学生必须做一个为期十二周、六人一组协同工作的项目——通常与当地的生活有关。项目内容包括：做一次演示、写一篇集体论文、做一项公众服务——可以是给中、小学生讲课，或做一期有关中、小学教学的广播节目。
5 There can be no doubt that this sort of cooperative approach can help many students develop personal skills which will help improve their prospects in their search for a job. One of the most well-known personality tests used by employers when interviewing candidates, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), puts the extrovert / introvert dichotomy at the top of the list of personality traits it tries to analyze. There are no "right answers" in such tests, but extroverts, it is assumed, are going to be more suited to jobs in which they have to work in teams or deal with other people.
毫无疑问，这种合作学习法能帮助许多学生培养有助于改善就业前景的个人技能。公司在面试应聘者时使用的最有名的人格测试之一是“迈尔斯－布里格斯性格分类法”（简称MBTI），这种分类法把外向/内向性格两分法置于它所分析的人格特征列表之首。测试中没有“正确答案”，但是一般认为：性格外向者更适合做团队工作或与他人打交道的工作。
6 Equally interesting in the Southampton project is the conviction that students should be aware of the wider community, and find ways to make contributions to it. In today's shrinking world, students are increasingly aware that a university is not an ivory tower of learning, cut off from the real problems of the world, but on the contrary, can itself be an agent for change for a better world. There are numerous ways in which students can be volunteers – before, during, or after their degree courses. With courses making heavy demands on students' time, as we have seen, a popular option is to take a gap year before or after university.
南安普敦大学项目中同样有趣的一个理念是：学生应该关注比校园更广阔的社区，并设法为之作出自己的贡献。在当今越来越小的世界里，学生们越来越清楚地意识到大学并不是与社会现实问题完全脱钩的学术象牙塔。正相反，大学本身可以促使世界变得更加美好。在学学位课程之前、期间、之后，学生们都可以通过多种渠道成为志愿者。正如我们所知的那样，大学课程需要学生花费大量的时间，一般人会选择腾出上大学前或大学毕业后的一年时间作为实践年。
7 Typically, volunteering might mean helping the sick or elderly, entertaining underprivileged children on holiday camps, teaching in a Third World country or perhaps working on agricultural or environmental projects.
通常，志愿工作指帮助病人或老年人、在假日营里招待贫困儿童、在第三世界国家教书，或者做农业或环境研究项目。
8 For students who choose to offer their talents in this way, one side effect is to gain a wealth of experience to be added to the CV, which will not go unnoticed by future employers. But a word of warning is in order: You should remember what your priorities are. As Shane Irwin, who worked for two years in Papua New Guinea, puts it: "Volunteering teaches you valuable career skills, but I don't think you should be looking to bolster your CV through volunteering – the main reason you should get involved is because you want to help."
对那些选择在这些方面施展才能的学生而言，还有个意外的收获：可以把他们获取的丰富经验写进个人履历里，而未来的雇主是不会不注意到这些经历的。不过提醒一句：你应该记住自己的首要目的是什么。曾经在巴布亚新几内亚工作了两年的谢恩·欧文指出：“志愿者的工作能教给你宝贵的职业技能，但我认为你不应该只想着通过志愿者工作来给自己的履历表增添光彩——你做志愿工作的主要原因是你想帮助别人。”