分享一篇我为翻译系学生设计的留学文书

在准备留学文书时，个人陈述（Personal Statement）无疑是所有文书材料中的重中之重。尽管只是申请人个人的主观表达，但比起千篇一律的标化成绩或是乏味罗列的简历，用生动的文字讲述自己的故事，眼界，抱负，努力，热爱，更能够激起招生官心中的涟漪，拨动他们的心弦。短短几百千字的文章，说不定就能够建立起你和梦校以及心仪专业之间的联系，增加你被录取的机会。

一般来说，研究生文书，跟本科文书尤其是美本文书，区别很大。本科文书可以写的主题很多，成长经历，家庭成员，学习经历，帮助他人，社区活动等等，可以说是五花八门。只要是能展现申请人的某些美好品质和潜力，文章主题，内容都可以很灵活。

而研究生文书，作用是向招生官表达清楚，已经在本科学习了三年多的“我”，为什么想要选择进一步学习；为什么是这个专业，我的动机是什么；为了追求对专业的热爱，我做过哪些努力；如果被录取，我的能力是否能够支撑得起未来的研究学习，我的学识以及品质又是否能给大学带来新鲜的元素。一言以蔽之，研究生文书要展现的是，我的过去-现在-将来，爱我所爱，充实丰富。

今天分享的文书节选，来自几年前我为一位本科学习翻译的学生设计的最终稿，他当时要申请的是国外的口译（Interpretation）专业。申请递出后，几所学校都无一例外地很快给他面试通知（口译专业需要口试）。我想，这篇文书无论从结构，内容，语言来看，都还是有一定的代表性。

我们先来看第一段：

In Chinese, “译“ and ”驿” are homophones that possess structural similarities but with marked difference in terms of meaning. The former is mostly defined as “translate” or “translation”, and the latter, generally means “post related” or “post horse in ancient China”. This has such an interesting coincidence with Pushkin’s well-known analogy, that he described literary translators as the ‘post horse of enlightenment’. In this sense, the image of toilers (no matter translators or post horses) in the service of bringing valuable information and exchanging from the rest of the world is widely recognized, even in different cultures.

很多时候，我会建议申请研究生的同学，在PS的开头直截了当地表明自己对要申请的具体专业的“初心”，即我为什么会喜欢这个方向，是由什么引发的。可以是来自家庭的影响，自己的经历，或者从某本书中得到的启发。篇幅不宜过多，简单几句阐述就行。

这一篇在构思开头的时候，考虑到同学的本科专业是英语翻译，从语言质量和情怀方面，我都希望能够给招生官带去一些耳目一新的感觉。我想到了普希金曾说过，“译者是传播文明的驿马”。(Pushkin called translators “post-horses of enlightenment”) 。继而我联想到“译”和“驿”是同音字（homophones），承载的意义和普希金的比喻几乎不谋而合。译者和驿马都是辛勤劳动者（toilers），他/它们步履不停，互通有无，给各地的人们带去了重要的信息。

于是，有了上面的开头段。

顺势下来，第二段，讲尽管翻译专业的工作人员（toiler）总是面临着挑战，对“我”来说，这项工作迷人而有意义。同学把自己以前看过的英文书列出来，在这里笔者把它们都放了进去。“我”希望把从书中得到的其他文化中的精髓，融入到自己的文化中。“我”因此努力磨砺自己的翻译水平，以实现中英文之间高效的交流共鸣。“我”的目标也变得清晰起来—成为一个翻译领域的专业人员，带来积极的影响。

Despite the fact that interpretation and translation specialists have always faced countless challenges, I still find the study of translation enormously engaging and rewarding. I have been passionate about learning English since I was a kid, and have read the English version of a long lists of books such as Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, Robinson Crusoe, Pride and Prejudice, and 300 Tang Poems (translated by Xu Yuanchong). Having gained such insights into wonderful stories and thoughts from other cultures, I am keen to integrate them into my native culture. My enthusiasm has motivated me to work hard on my translation skills in order to achieve an effective, efficient and empathetic communication between Chinese and English. Therefore, my goal is to become a translation specialist who brings positive impact.

接下来的这一段就比较简单了。介绍“我”作为翻译本科生的学术基础—上过哪些课，以期证明这些课程能够支撑得起“我”研究生阶段要参加的，更加专业的学术训练。

Being as an undergraduate majoring in English translation has further deepened my understanding of language studies and strengthened my aspiration. I was led into the world of professional translation through a number of courses. For example, Linguistic Introduction which encompasses phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics and lexicon gives me a scientific perspective to look at human languages, and understand their similarities and differences; Stylistic Comparison and Translation reminds me that one cannot study the different forms of language without considering its stylistic significance, and it is important not to stretch beyond the author’s originality and creativity; Consecutive Interpreting, as well as Business Interpreting, allows me to accumulate relevant terminologies and techniques in a simulated high stress environment. These learning process has laid a solid linguistic foundation for my expertise. 

言由心生。

只要用心去构思，一篇得体的文书就能成为你申请梦校的敲门砖。