認識Amherst College國際生招生主任萬曉峰老師是一個偶然的機會。
2018年1月去美國10所中小學和大學訪問，其中一站是Amherst College.但當時聯繫的並不是萬老師，我們在跟學校交流和參觀結束即將離開學校的時候，碰巧萬老師進辦公室，我們告訴他是新學說同事，他說我經常在講座的時候使用你們研究的數據呢。此時的我，內心還是忍不住小小激動和得意一分鐘。遂交換名片，互加微信，閒時問候，忙時談工作。
今年十一放假期間，萬老師說他翻譯出版了一本全面介紹美國大學升學的書，今年聖誕節前會上市，想請我幫他寫個150-200字左右的推薦語。書的英文版名字叫Admission Matters，中文版叫《升學之道》由北京的世界圖書出版社出版。
我知道留學申請相關的書太多了，我自己七八年前在漢通教育期間雖沒正式出版但也出過一本呢，以全球排名前100名的大學官網申請要求為依據，尤其重點突出了各大學對採用IB、Alevel、AP等課程考試的詳細要求說明，諸多家長和留學服務機構競相購買。
萬老師讓我寫推薦語之前，按照我的做事風格，除了要把中文翻譯稿認真通讀、挑刺之外，還要對英文稿再次查看，最關鍵的是要對作者做深入的背景調查以了解作者寫此書的目的及作者在此領域的權威。作者Sally P. Springer的目的和權威性我都查到了，我在這裡直接把英文原文貼出：
Indescribing my background, I joke that I entered college at age 16 and neverleft. In some ways that is true. After attending Brooklyn College as a commuterstudent, I ventured across the country to Stanford University to pursue myPh.D. in psychology. I then held a postdoctoral fellowship at the StanfordMedical School before heading back east once again to join the psychologyfaculty at Stony Brook University. I later moved back to California, this timeto Davis, where I held faculty and administrative appointments at UC Davis forover 20 years. So in many ways I never did leave college!
The idea for Admission Matters emerged while I was in theChancellor's Office at UC Davis. My son was a high school junior and I thoughtit was time for him to think about where he might want to go to college. That,of course, was what I thought -- he had no interest in that topic at all at thetime. So I channeled my nervous energy into what I knew how to do best -- readand do research. I began by reading all of the books written on collegeadmissions for students, and then began reading all the books for parents. Ibecame intrigued by what I was reading from the perspective of what someone whoknew much less about higher education than I did would learn from all thosebooks.
No book did what I hoped it would do -- provide, in oneplace, a comprehensive overview of college admissions that would demystify theprocess, explain the why as well as the how, and put the whole process intoproper perspective. Sure, there was some useful information in those books, buta reader would have to pick and choose bits and pieces of information and thentry to put it all together. And too much of what I read was incorrect, out ofdate, or just plain cynical. I decided to try to do better and write the kindof book that I would want my son to read and that I would want to read myself.
That is how Admission Matters came to be. I have had the goodfortune to work with terrific co-authors, each of whom has brought distinctiveexpertise to the book. For the thoroughly revised and expanded Fourth Edition,I have been joined again by Jon Reider and Joyce Vining Morgan who share mybackground in higher education and who also have many years of first-handexperience counseling high school students about the college admissionsprocess. Jon also has extensive experience as an admissions officer at StanfordUniversity. Together, we have written a book that is informed by our backgroundas education professionals who have devoted our entire careers to helpingstudents both before and during college.
Admission Matters was written for parents and students and wehave been delighted by the very enthusiastic response from our primary audienceover two previous editions. We were surprised (but also delighted) to learnthat Admission Matters is also regularly used as required reading in courses oncollege admissions for those studying to be counselors themselves. This tellsus that we have succeeded in producing a book that is rich in insights as wellas how-to advice, and that it can be read at many levels. If you have littlebackground, the book will meet you where you are and give you what you need tomove forward confidently and successfully in the admissions process. If youalready have basic background, the book contains a wealth of nuancedinformation to help you gain an even deeper understanding of the admissionsprocess.
We have established a website, www.admissionmatters.com, toprovide additional information, worksheets and questionnaires, a blog, andupdates to keep the book as current as possible. Please visit it regularly andlet us know your thoughts!
作者已經寫的很清楚了，萬老師的翻譯是讓本書造福中國家長，給中國學生和家長提供一個可靠的、可以依賴的信息來源，更有的放矢地進行自主申請。希望能在當今混亂的留學市場上為他們提供一盞明燈。書裡涵蓋了所有美國大學申請的信息，娓娓道來，內容涵蓋面廣，也可以作為駐校升學指導老師的培訓教材，以及研究高等教育學者的參考資料。
《升學之道》是我看過的美國大學申請方面既全面又極具建設性的一本書。從如何研究大學、選擇大學，到大學看重什麼、如何申請、申請時間表為大家一一詳細闡述。這本書除了適合學校升學顧問、學生，也非常適合家長，書中專門提到了在子女選擇大學和申請的過程中父母應該扮演什麼樣的角色、如何協助孩子選擇和申請學校，非常實用。本書另一個貼心之處是專門為讀者設立免費網站保持本書能與時俱進，讓大家隨時獲取最新美國大學升學信息。
----新學說創始人兼CEO吳越
我的推薦也在這裡啦，如果大家感興趣，歡迎購買此書哦！