编者按：徐同学是我校11年级学生。他不但学习成绩优异，还担任校学生会副主席，创办公益社团，也是校园十大歌手中位列前茅的实力唱将。此外，他也积极参与社会公益实践活动，并通过一些学术项目和竞赛进一步挑战和提升自己。
Editor's note: Sean Xu, an 11th grader in SHBS, not only outstands academically, but also has been serving as the vice president of the SHBS student Union, running a student public welfare club, and is recognized as one of the top ten singers on campus. In addition, he actively participates in social welfare activities outside campus and further challenges and improves himself through academic projects and competitions.
春季学期马上就要开学，11年级的同学们普遍都开始感觉到升学的压力以及时间的紧迫，一些同学也会有些许焦虑。因此，小编邀请了徐同学给大家分享一下他的思考与准备，希望能够给大家一些启发和鼓励。
The spring semester is about to begin, and 11th graders begin to feel the real pressure of college application and the ticking of time, and some may even feel anxious. Therefore, we invited Sean to share his current thinking and preparation, in hope of encouraging and inspiring those related.大家好，我是上海宏润博源学校11年级学生Sean。受学校小编团队邀请，在此与大家分享我过去一年的心境、思考与升学准备，以期给同在忙碌的11年级同学们一些安慰，也给学弟学妹们一些启发。
Hello everyone, I am Sean, an 11th grader at Shanghai Hongrun Boyuan School. Invited by our school's editorial team, I would like to share with you my state of mind and my preparation for college application in the past year. I hope that busy 11th graders can take comfort from what I share and younger schoolmates can draw inspiration from what I share.
SHBS
现阶段，11年级的同学们都在争分夺秒地为大学申请做准备：校内课业GPA，标化成绩（托福/雅思/ACT/SAT/AP），各种学术竞赛，夏校项目申请等。确实，GPA和标化成绩在大学申请中的重要性毋庸质疑。不过，在我们开始为GPA，标化和各种竞赛和项目冲刺之前，我们应该首先注视脚下，回溯过去；去思考，我现在走在怎样的一条道路上？如果要提炼几个词来概括我迄今为止的人生轨迹，这几个词会是什么呢？是的，你没有听错。纵使我们现在学业压力巨大，要争分夺秒，但我认为我们的首要任务并不是埋头苦学，而是要先认识自己，复盘过去之后再放眼未来，规划一条契合自身个性与特质的道路。做到了这点，我们的成长将会突飞猛进，事半功倍。
At present, 11th graders are making full use of every minute to prepare for college application: GPA on campus, grades of standardized tests (TOEFL/IELTS/ACT/SAT/AP), various academic competitions, summer school program applications, etc. Admittedly, the importance of GPA and standardized test scores in college application is unquestionable. However, before we work intensely on our GPA, standardized tests, and various competitions and projects, we should stop to think about the path we are taking through reflecting on the past. If I am supposed to summarize the path of my life so far with a few key words, what will they be? Yes, you heard that right. Even though we are now under great academic pressure, I think our priority is not to immerse ourselves in hard work, but to learn about ourselves first and review the past before we look ahead to the future and figure out a path that fits our personality and characteristics. By doing this, we will be able to grow up by leaps and bounds.
我个人的成长经历就印证了以上观点。刚进入国际学校时，虽然我总是忙碌的，也总是被人称赞“进步飞快”，但是我并没有真正地感受到我所深耕的方方面面给我带来长足的成长。当时，我所学的是“技”，而非“器”。经过在学校的进一步熏陶和锤炼，我看清了大学申请的本质且认为以终为始的学习和准备是必要的。
My personal experiences have justified the above point. When I first joined an international school, busy as I always was and much as I was always praised for my "rapid progress", I found that all the efforts I had put into various aspects did not really pay off. At that time, I was actually learning "skills" instead of getting "tools". Further study on campus empowered me to realize the essence of college application and believed that it is necessary to begin with the end in mind.
于是，在10年级上半学期，我和升学老师花费了许多时间，列出一张专属于我的“事迹表”，并且从这些大事件中提炼出几个最能代表我特质的词汇，同时也列出了我尚欠缺，需要进一步发展的能力，以此作为我未来发展的基调。
Therefore, during the 1st semester of my 10th grade year, my college counselor and I spent a lot of time making a "list of events” exclusively for me and picking out a few typical words from these big events that best depict my traits. We also listed my weaknesses which needed to be made up for as the goals I should set for my future development.
此后，我在选择竞赛、夏校、科研等活动时，都会优先参考先前确立的方向，在说服自己“该活动能带给我_____的价值”后，才会进行选报。以这样的心态做同样的事，收获也会大不相同。
Since then, whenever I chose from competitions, summer schools, scientific research, and other activities, I have given priority to my established goals (those keywords), and only after convincing myself that "this activity can reward me with certain value or improve my certain ability"would I sign up for it. Doing the same thing with this mindset will make a big difference in terms of self growth.
从功利角度来说，在进行美本申请时，申请资料中的我们并非以生动的形象展现在招生官眼前，而是相对扁平的。在此情况下，我们更加需要建立我们履历中事件间的联系，尽可能刻画出符合自身的立体形象，或者突出最有代表性的特质。招生官希望从申请资料中看到的，是能够与其所在高校契合的人格形象和特质，而不仅仅是一系列毫无关联的竞赛奖状。
From a utilitarian point of view, when we apply for US universities, those of us who are depicted in the application materials are not vividly presented in the eyes of the admission officers. Instead, a relatively flat and two-dimensional image is presented. In this case, we need to establish the connection between the events in our resume. To best portray a three-dimensional image that is in line with ourselves, or to highlight our most striking characteristics, can better attract admission officers. What admissions officers are looking for in the application materials is an image of a vivid student, which reveals traits that fit into their college, rather than a series of unrelated awards won just for the sake of competitions.
以我个人为例，在我目前的规划中，“全面多元”，“商业逻辑”和“社会责任感”是契合我个性的三个占据主导地位的关键词。从而，我的行动展开都会尽可能围绕这些主题：比如在校内选课方面，我的选课包含广泛的文科，STEAM课程以及社会科目（如AP 微观、宏观经济，心理，历史，地理，统计，计算机，微积分，物理力学及电磁学），以展现我的多元与学习可塑性。课外活动方面，我则会尽可能倾向于锻炼领导力及商业策划能力的项目制学习或比赛。同时，我也参与、开展了许多公益活动，以培养社会责任感。只有这样，才能让招生官在浏览你的简历时感受到温度，了解到鲜活的你。
Taking myself as an example. According to my current plan, "comprehensive diversity", "business logic" and "social responsibility" are the three dominant keywords that match my personality. Hence, I make sure the steps that I take stick to these key words as closely as possible. For example, when it comes to choosing school courses, my choices include a wide range of liberal arts, STEM and social subjects (such as AP micro and macroeconomics, psychology, history, geography, statistics, computers, calculus, physics C: Mechanics and Electromagnetism) to reflect my academic diversity and adaptability . In terms of extracurricular activities, I prefer to develop my leadership and business planning skills by participating project-based learning or competitions. At the same time, I have also organized and participated in many public benefit activities to raise my awareness of social responsibility. Only by including these things in your application materials can you make the admission officer feel your humanistic quality and see a vivid you when they browse your resume.
这种驻足思考和复盘，其实也是更好地认识我们自己，更好地规划我们前行的路。不但是对于大学申请，对我们整个人生都很有益处。毕竟人生是一场马拉松，大学申请也只是一个小的站点。 对于正在冲刺的11年级同学们来说，我们都越发感受到时间紧迫，也都或多或少感到焦虑。不过，当大家锁定方向和目标，坚定地走好每一步，就不会再焦虑和担忧，饱经汗水浇灌的愿望终会发芽。
This “pause and reflection” approach can actually help better understand ourselves and plan our future. It applies not only to college applications, but also to our entire life. After all, life is a like marathon, and college application is no more than a stop along the way. For 11th graders who are working hard on their college application, we all feel more or less anxious because we are running of time. However, once we set our goal and take each firm step towards it, we won’t feel worried any longer. Our seeds of “ambition”, if watered by the sweat of “efforts”, will sprout eventually.
文 | Sean Xu
翻译 | Dawn Xu
排版 | Jang