美國第一夫人分享給女兒們的大學擇校觀

When it comes to picking the right college, Michelle Obama's No. 1 guideline is: you do you.

談到如何選擇正確的大學時，米歇爾·奧巴馬的第一宗旨是：做你自己。

In a new interview in the latest issue of Seventeen magazine, the first lady shares the college advice she's given her daughters, Sasha, 14,and Malia, 17, with young women and men across the country.

在最新的一期《十七歲》雜誌的訪談中，這位美國第一夫人與全美的年輕人分享了她給她兩個女兒，今年14歲的小女兒薩莎，今年17歲的大女兒瑪麗亞的擇校意見。

"The one thing I've been telling my daughters is that I don't want them to choose a name," she says. "I don't want them to think, 'Oh I should go to these top schools.' We live in a country where there are thousands of amazing universities. So, the question is: What's going to work for you?"

“一直以來，我告訴她們的一件事就是：不要根據學校的名氣做決定，”她說。“我不希望她們這麼想，'噢，我應該去那些頂級學府'。我們國家好學校到處都是。所以，唯一的問題就是：你將來要做什麼？”

She would know. Despite doubts from her high school counselors, the first lady attended Princeton University, graduating cum laude in 1985, and went on to earn a degree from Harvard Law School in 1988.

米歇爾本人就很清楚。即便當時高中學校顧問對她的選擇有所懷疑，不過第一夫人最終還是去了普林斯頓大學，並於1985年以一級榮譽畢業，1988年在哈佛大學法學院取得法律博士學位。

"When it was time for me to apply to colleges there were some counselors who said, 'Maybe, with Princeton, you're reaching a little high,' " she recalls. "And I thought, 'You really don't think I can do it?' "

“當我申請學校的時候，有一些顧問就說，'普林斯頓對你來說可能目標過高了。'”她回憶道。“我心裏想着，'你們真的認爲我做不到嗎？'”

"But here's what I did: I decided to ignore the doubters. I plunged ahead and I got in. I went on to Harvard Law School and every step of the way I used those doubting voices as motivation."

“但是我是這樣做的：我決定忽視這些顧問們的懷疑。我勇往直前，成功地進入了普林斯頓大學，後來又去了哈佛大學法學院。一路走來的每一步，這些懷疑之聲都是我前進的動力。”

President Obama has given similar advice to his eldest daughter, Malia, who will begin college in the fall.

美國總統奧巴馬也曾給今年秋季即將進入大學的大女兒瑪麗亞同樣的建議。

"One piece of advice that I've given her is not to stress too much about having to get into one particular college," Obama previously said. "There are a lot of good colleges and universities out there, and it's important, I think, for everybody here to understand you can find a college or university that gives you a great education. Just because it's not some name-brand, famous, fancy school doesn't mean that you're not going to get a great education there. So one is, lower the stress levels in terms of just having to get into one particular school."

“我給她的一條建議就是不要太過於執着名校，”奧巴馬之前說。“美國好大學有很多。我認爲，對於每個人來說，重要的是要選擇一所能給你提供優質教育的學校。不要看重一個學校的牌子。去了名校並不意味着你就能受到良好的教育。因此，我的建議就是：不要過分執着於名校。”