原文：Choosing to attend a university thousands of miles away from home is a big decision, and with big decisions come a lot of changes. As an international student who came to the U.S. three years ago, I had expected that there would be some things to adjust to, but there were also some others that I wasn't counting on. Here is what I wish I had known about the U.S. university system before I'd headed for the States.
譯文：選擇一個離家千里之遠的大學上學實在是一個蠻大的決定，而這么一個大的決定也會給你的生活帶來許多變化。三年前我初來美國留學時已經(jīng)做好了適應(yīng)新環(huán)境的準備，但是也有些變化和需要適應(yīng)的事情是我之前沒有想到的。下面就是我總結(jié)的希望在來美國之前我能了解的事。希望可以幫到即將來美國留學的你們。
原文：Attending college is like having a full-time job. One big mistake a lot of prospective freshmen make is thinking that university is similar to high school, and that it will be very easy. Unfortunately, that is not exactly the case. Being a university student is analogous to having a full-time job. Most university students in the U.S. live on campus, in dorms provided by the university. This means that students eat, sleep, socialize, study and hang out all at the same place: campus.
譯文：上大學就跟做一份全職工作一樣。許多大學新生總會犯的一個比較大的錯誤就是認為大學跟高中差不多，應(yīng)該蠻輕松的。但事實上，事情可不是這樣的。上大學就和做一份全職工作一樣，美國大部分的大學生都住學校宿舍，他們吃、住、睡、社交活動、包括學習和休閑時間都在同一個地方：校園。
原文：Most things going on in a student’s life – academics, extracurricular activities, social life – will likely be related to university life. In fact, during certain periods of the semester, such as midterms or final exams, university life might even feel like more than a full-time job. College in the U.S. is more than just taking classes; most of the work university students do will actually be outside of the classroom, such as working on assignments, group study or research. Sometimes, the amount of time a student devotes to university work will be more than 40 hours a week.
譯文：學生的生活—上課、課外活動、社交生活都跟大學生活有關(guān)。事實上，在每個學期的一些特殊時期，比如其中或期末考試時，大學生活比全職工作更甚。在美國，大學并不只是上課，其實大部分學生需要做的事都是在教師外完成的，比如說你的作業(yè)、小組學習或研究工作。有時候你每周得花40個小時以上的時間完成大學里的事情。
原文： Extracurricular activities are important. One of the things I found very surprising about university life in the U.S. is that it’s not all about academics. It’s not a requirement, but many students are very active on campus, and that definitely has a lot of perks. Not only will you learn new skills and gain experience in new things, but being heavily involved in at least one extracurricular activity is also a meaningful way to expand your network and forge lifelong friendships.
It is also important to note, however, that extracurricular activities require time commitment and dedication too. Therefore, it would not be the wisest decision either to be involved in too many activities. Make sure to not overwhelm yourself, and remember that academics should come first.
譯文：課外活動都非常重要。在美國，令我感到非常驚訝的事情并不都是關(guān)于學業(yè)的。在美國的大學里，雖然沒有明確的要求，但是學生在學校里都非常活躍。這并不是僅僅說你需要學習一項新的技能或者有一番什么新的歷練，更重要的是你至少要全身心地投入到至少一項課外活動中，這樣可以幫助你擴展你的人際關(guān)系網(wǎng)，也能祝你交到一生的摯友。
然而，這里必須提醒一下，這些課外活動一定是需要花時間和精力的，因此，不宜參加太多課外活動。你要確保不能讓自己花過多時間和精力在這些活動上，畢竟學業(yè)還是應(yīng)該擺在第一位。
原文：You don’t need to decide your major right away. The education system varies from country to country, and some international students are not very aware of that. I come from a country where everyone has to decide what they want to major in right at the beginning of university – but as a lot of people have realized, it’s very difficult to know what you want to do for the rest of your life when you’re only 18.
I found it quite surprising that here in the U.S., it’s perfectly fine to not know what you want to study yet. In most universities, students are not required to declare a major until the end of sophomore year. Of course, there are always people who already know what they want to study, and that is great – but if you aren't sure, that’s also all right. One of the advantages of education in the U.S. is the emphasis on exploration of different fields, which is not something that is offered around the world.
譯文：你不必立馬決定你的專業(yè)。不同國家的教育系統(tǒng)自然也不同，但許多留學生都沒意識到這個問題。我的國家里每個學生在大學入學時就選好了專業(yè)—但事實上，對于一個僅僅18歲的學生來說，要決定自己以后想干什么絕對不是一件簡單的事。
在美國，這件讓人感到驚訝，即使你不知道自己該學什么，也不用著急。大部分的學校里，你可以到學期末再最后確定自己的專業(yè)。當然，也有許多學生明確知道自己想學什么專業(yè)，那也很好，如果你不確定，那也沒關(guān)系。美國教育系統(tǒng)的一個優(yōu)勢就是強調(diào)探索不同的領(lǐng)域，這是許多其他國家所沒有的。
原文：American social life is very different. A big part of the U.S. college experience is your social life, and I found the social aspect quite a culture shock. In general, Americans are very open and friendly to other people. It’s perfectly normal for people to strike up a conversation at a bus stop or at the grocery store.
Some universities might have a pretty big party scene, and although some Hollywood movies make it seem like everyone loves to party, that’s not quite true. Not everyone parties every Friday night – and that’s perfectly fine as well.
I had also expected students to wear slightly more formal attire for classes, and I was pleasantly surprised to see a lot of people wearing flip-flops and shorts to class in May, when it starts to get hot where I attend college. Of course, this varies a lot from university to university, and it’s always better to overdress.
譯文：美國的社交生活很不一樣。美國大學生活的很大一部分就是社交生活，而我發(fā)現(xiàn)，在這一方面，他們的文化給了我很大的沖擊。美國人對人都非常開放且友好，在公交車上或者雜貨店里跟陌生人攀談再正常不過了。
有些學?？赡軙幸恍┖馨舻呐蓪?，在好萊塢電影里，似乎所有人都喜歡派對，但事實可不是這樣。不是每個人一到周五晚上就開排隊的。
我以為，上課的時候大家都會穿得正式一點，但我卻驚訝地發(fā)現(xiàn)許多學生在五月份的時候穿著人字拖和短褲來上課。當然這個不同學校的情況也不一樣，還是穿得講究一點會更好。
原文：Professors are very, very important. It’s generally a good idea to take at least one small class in your first year. In a smaller course, it’s a lot easier to forge meaningful relationships with professors. Some of the people you meet at university can be very important and influential mentors.
It is especially important to know someone in your field closely, as he or she will be able to provide you guidance in your specific area of focus, and even offer reference letters when you need them.
譯文：教授非常非常重要。在留學第一年的時候，至少選一門小班課程，在小班里更容易與教授建立好關(guān)系。你在學校里見到的人很可能就是非常重要的或者是很有影響力的導師。
多了解你的專業(yè)里的一些教授非常重要，因為他或她可能能夠在你所關(guān)注的領(lǐng)域里給你一些指導，甚至當你需要的時候，他們能夠給你寫推薦性。
原文：There are jobs available on campus. Working on campus, especially at something that really interests you or is related to your academic field, is a great way to get to know other people – and at the same time, get paid for it. A lot of universities have teaching assistantships as well as research opportunities, and they are definitely worth checking out.
譯文：校園里有工作可以做。在校園里找份工作，尤其是找份讓你感興趣的或者與你所學專業(yè)領(lǐng)域相關(guān)的工作，是結(jié)交人非常好的方法，當然你還能賺點錢。許多大學都會給學生提供如教學助理或者研究助理等機會，這些工作還是蠻值得嘗試一下的。
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