杰米•萨斯坎德(Jamie Susskind)，大律师、《未来政治》(Future Politics)一书的作者
Jamie Susskind, barrister and author of ‘Future Politics’
你最早遇到的人不一定会成为你最好的朋友，不用为此担心。别成天想着参加什么人都会去的那种聚会，相反，你要找到值得你深交的人，这些人可能过了几十年和你还是朋友。
要多听少说，你或许就能找到志同道合的人。许多人进大学时，都想告诉自己的新朋友他们是谁、他们来自哪里，这可以理解，但聆听同样重要，认真倾听来自和你完全不同的背景、千差万别的各色人等的话吧。
The first people you meet are not necessarily going to be your best friends — don’t worry about it. Don’t get caught up in trying to go to the parties everyone’s expected to go to, rather, try to find people with whom you can forge close connections and who will be with you decades afterwards.
You may identify them by doing more listening than speaking. When a lot of people get to university, understandably, they want to tell their new friends who they are and where they are from — but it’s as important to listen, and drink in all these incredibly different people from backgrounds that are completely unlike your own.
Claer Barrett，英国《金融时报》个人理财编辑
Claer Barrett, FT personal finance editor
我花了一段时间才去上大学，我的建议是：你真的知道你为什么要上大学，知道你想做什么吗？我上大学的时候，每年学费不超过9000英镑，并且可以申请助学金。很幸运，我选择了英语文学，这是我由衷喜爱的专业。今天如果你选错了专业，然后想转专业，会付出一些财务上的代价。另一件我真正希望上大学前就知道的事是，在大学期间积攒工作经验是多么宝贵，尤其是在课业压力较轻的头两年。我大二才加入校报，如果我当初在时间更充裕的大一就加入了，就可以做更多报道了。
It took me a while to go to university, and that would be my advice: do you really know why you want to go to university and what you want to do? When I went it didn’t cost more than £9,000 a year in tuition fees, and grants were available. I was very lucky in that I chose to study English literature, which is a subject I really liked. If you make a mistake today and want to switch courses, there are financial consequences. The other thing I really wish I’d known before I went is how valuable it is to get work experience while at university, especially in the first couple of years when the academic pressures were slightly less. I didn’t get involved with the university newspaper until my second year. If I had got involved in my first year when I had more time, I would have been able to do a lot more reporting.
Phil Wang，喜剧演员
Phil Wang, comedian
跟你的女朋友或男朋友分手，别黏在一起。把所有人都甩在后面。你的爱情并不特别，大学是一片广阔天地，你应该去好好发掘。还有，加入一些社团。我当初没加入过，我真希望自己加入了。你在大学可能还会患上“滥竽充数综合症”，觉得你不配上大学。你得知道大家都会有这种感觉。要么样样都尝试，要么专长于某事，但千万不要平庸地做一件事。如果你注定平庸，至少平庸地做一大堆事，这样你就拥有了全面的经验。
Break up with your girlfriend or boyfriend, don’t stay together. Leave everyone behind. Your love is not special, there’s a wider world out there and you should take advantage of it. Also, join some societies. I didn’t do that, and I wish I had. It’s possible to feel imposter syndrome at university, that you don’t deserve to be there. You should be aware that everybody feels that way. Either have a balanced experience or excel at something, but don’t be mediocre at one thing. If you’re going to be mediocre, at least be mediocre at a bunch of things so you have a full experience.

西蒙•库柏(Simon Kuper)，英国《金融时报》专栏作家
Simon Kuper, FT columnist
我最后悔的是把太多时间泡在大学酒吧里，和别人一起发牢骚。大学有这么多有趣的事情和人，而且学业——如果你学进去了——有趣的不得了。在你生命中的这段时期，你可以自由地吸收有趣的东西。我希望我当初不那么傲慢，我希望我当初更认真地听我的同龄人，以及那些学者们的话。上大学前，一定要先学会聆听。
The thing I regret most is spending too much time in the college bar with other people moaning about stuff. There were so many more interesting things and people, and the work — if you get into it — is fantastically interesting. It’s the time in your life when you’re free to just absorb interesting stuff. I wish I had had no arrogance — I wish I had listened better to my peers and to the academics. Learn to listen before you go.
贝内迪克特•艾伦(Benedict Allen)，作家、探险家
Benedict Allen, author and explorer
我的情况很不寻常。从少年时代起，我就想成为一名探险家。我有一个非常明确的榜样，我的父亲，他是一名轰炸机试飞员，所以我想：我要当一名开拓者，我要当这样的人。问题在于我不知道该怎么着手。我认为我选择了正确的专业，环境科学，但某种程度上来说我是在等待时机，而且我必须努力让自己的梦想成真。这就是问题所在，究竟怎么才能成为一名探险家，并以此为生？我方向非常明确，我上大学时非常明确地知道自己最后要干什么，对我来说怎样达成这一目标才是问题。我压根没有一丝疑虑。也许这本身也是个问题，因为有疑虑是件好事。我那几年只能坚持，直到我小有名气。
I was very unusual. From boyhood I wanted to be an explorer. I had a very clear role model, my dad, who was a bomber test pilot and so I thought I want to be a pioneer, I want to be someone like that. The trouble is I didn’t know how to do it. I suppose I made the right choice of degree, which was environmental science, but I was in a way biding my time and I had to try to make my dream a reality. That was the problem — how on earth do you become an explorer and make that a living? I was very directed, in that I went to university absolutely clear on where I was going to end up, it was a question of working out how I was going to end up there. I didn’t have any doubts at all. Maybe that is a problem in itself because it’s quite good to have doubts. I just had to hang in there for years until I was better known

以下是一位大学职业专家对新生的忠告：
乔纳森•布莱克(Jonathan Black)，牛津大学职业服务主任、英国《金融时报》专栏作家
And this is what a university careers expert tells new students
Jonathan Black, director of the University of Oxford’s careers service and FT columnist
我希望我在大一就知道我不必每晚都出去。当我坐在房间里，写文章或看课堂笔记时，我能听到“大家”都玩得很开心。我感到有压力要出去，到学生社团、酒吧去和别人聊天。到了大二我才认识到有时候呆在屋子里也没问题，甚至是很好的，可以听听音乐，读一本书，甚至在截止期限前完成论文。我现在知道这样做可以为我建立社交能量储备，并重新把我自己的注意力放在我是谁上面。如果你今年秋天就要上大学，你可能会同时感到兴奋、迷茫和有压力。对新生们我有四个小建议：
I wish I had known in my first year that I did not have to go out every night. Sitting in my room, writing an essay or reading lecture notes, I could hear “everyone else” having a great time. I felt that pressure to be out too, at student societies, in the bar, chatting to others. By my second year, I realised it was OK, in fact good, to stay in sometimes, listen to music, read a book, even do the essay before the deadline. I now know that doing that built up my reserves of social energy, and re-centred myself on who I was. If you are going to university this autumn, it can feel exciting, bewildering, and pressured all at the same time. I have four tips for new students:
*跟上功课。这会让你少一点焦虑、多一点自信。问问上一届学长学姐有关功课的情况，尤其是功课很难的时候，不要觉得某门功课你学得比其他人更难。你所在的大学也会提供学习技巧方面的帮助，并帮助你保持身心健康。
*Keep up with the work. You will be less anxious and more confident. Ask the year above about the work, especially if it is hard, and do not assume you are finding it harder than everyone else. Your university will also offer help on study skills, and maintaining your physical and mental health.
*参与学生活动。做一些你以前做过的事，也尝试些新鲜事物，但不要在新生周什么都尝试。
*Get involved in student activities. Try something you have done before and something new, but not all in Freshers’ Week.
*做你真正的自己，恪守你的价值观。如果你觉得不太好，就不要随大流。
*Stay true to yourself and your values. Do not follow the crowd if you are not comfortable.
……尽量少用社交媒体。虽然你会需要它来安排活动，但它会轻易让你分心，妨碍你跟上功课和去认识人。
...and minimise social media. While you will need it for organising activities, it can easily distract you from keeping up with work and meeting people.