1 . It’s not easy to find a job. Many jobs have age or experience requirements that you might not meet. On top of that, you need to juggle(应付)schoolwork, extracurriculars, and your social life. Fortunately, there are still some good jobs for you to start gaining working experience.
Tutor
Straight-A student? Then a job as a tutor(家庭教师)might be the best option for you. Helping younger students with their homework is a great way to put what you’ve studied to good use and make some extra money. One of the easiest ways to show that you’re qualified to teach other students is by listing your GPA(Grade Point Average) on your tutor resume.
Dog Walker
Love dogs? Then a position as a dog walker is the perfect fit for you. Dog walking requires no work experience and has flexible hours. However, you may need to do some shadowing or an interview before people trust you with their pets.
Delivery Driver
If you’re 16+ years old and have a driver’s license, you could try working as a delivery driver. Driving is a great way to gain relevant experience and show future employers that you’re responsible and work well under pressure.
Call Center Representative
If you don’t mind talking on the phone, then a job as a call center worker is a good choice for you. Working as a call center representative can even teach you some useful customer service skills that will help your career later on. To land a job at a call center, highlight your customer service and interpersonal skills on your resume.
1. Who are the passage intended for?A.Parents. | B.Teachers. | C.Students. | D.Employers. |
A.Relevant experience. | B.Timely homework completion. |
C.Flexible time schedule. | D.Impressive academic performance. |
A.Tutor. | B.Dog walker. |
C.Delivery driver. | D.Call center representative. |
2 . Career coaches provide a series of services, from helping you figure out what you want to do to exploring chances for career growth.
Know what type of professional you need to hire.
Try sample lessons to find the right one. Most coaches offer free sample lessons, which help you get to know their styles clearly. You may need a coach with career experiences, or you may need one who offers life advice. If you aren’t sure what you want, ask questions.
Consider cost, and make contact. Coaching fees are not the same. Some coaches charge more for polishing resumes, while others include that in the overall price.
A.Make sure you have a well-designed resume. |
B.You need to understand what you’re receiving for the expense. |
C.Career coaches also provide services for your personal training. |
D.Thus, you can assess whether the coach understands your needs. |
E.Engaging with a career coach requires an investment of time and money. |
F.Know which services you need and be open to services you don't know you need. |
G.Career coaches can help you decide how to make full use of your professional potential. |
3 . I was 68 when I first stepped on stage as a standup comedian in 2003. I’d never set foot in a comedy club before. I’ve always been a performer - I’ve worked as a singer, actor and musician - but all that came to an end after 9/11. I live in New York, and we watched the twin towers fall from my apartment building. For a year afterwards, nobody wanted to go out or be entertained.
It was then that I started to think about comedy. I realised people needed to laugh, to enjoy themselves again, and thought that with a little training I could do it. I took a few classes, tried to work out a routine, and finally plucked up the courage to get up on stage. That first time was terrifying. I had no idea what the audience would make of me.
In New York, comedians are typically young men with beards. It’s hard enough to break through as a woman, even harder as someone old enough to be their grandmother. As I stepped on stage that first time, people laughed nervously. They were clearly surprised to see me. I introduced myself, stated my age and tried my first joke. There was silence. But by the time I got to the third line, people were properly laughing, I was addicted.
Now my sets differ. I might be on stage for 10 minutes in front of a dozen people, or my one-woman show is a full hour in front of a crowd of 100. Even today, I’m nervous before I step out. My first line is, “Hello, everybody. I’m 88 and three-quarters years old. I’m telling you that in case I don’t make it all the way through the show.” Then people laugh and I relax.
After a show, people young and old come up to me, saying what an inspiration I am. They say they want to be as active as me when they reach my age. I’m pleased I can show that as an older person you don’t need to take a back seat in life.
I’ve no intention of stopping comedy. I’m taking all these pills, trying to stay alive, and I hope to still be performing when I’m 100. My goal is to still be up there making people laugh. It’s hard work, but it stops me being bored. I’d only be playing golf otherwise
1. What made the writer take up comedy?A.She wanted to overcome her fears | B.She wanted to brighten others’ lives |
C.She was unwilling to quit performing | D.She wanted to work out a routine |
A.To show the challenge she was facing |
B.To explain her attraction to the job |
C.To illustrate her special advantage |
D.To describe her new friends in comedy |
A.She now performs before larger audiences |
B.She no longer feels nervous before performances |
C.She remains on the stage for a longer time |
D.She has learned to make a joke of her age |
A.Age is just a number |
B.Advancing years bring greater wisdom |
C.Old age means a chance to sit back |
D.Being elderly means you have to slow down |
1. What is the man doing?
A.Placing an order. | B.Selling insurance | C.Conducting an interview |
A.Finance | B.Education | C.Public Relations |
A.Greater contributions to the neighborhood |
B.Closer employer-employee relationship |
C.More flexibility in providing services |
A.To visit her parents | B.To call her relatives | C.To finish her work |
5 . You hate me. You don’t even know me and you hate me. Before we’ve even spoken, you hate me. At least that’s how it feels on my end of the call as a female collections officer at a call center.
I dread the moment when I have to log on to our phone system first thing in the morning because I never know who is going to be on the other end of that call.
Sometimes it’s an easy task. The caller is pleasant and has accepted personal responsibility for their debts, and we get through the phone call with ease. Then there are the ones who call in looking for a fight, or looking for someone to blame. Through the luck of the phone system, that person is me.
I’ve had people who shout at me, call me horrible names, accuse me personally of taking their money and threaten me. Why? I think it’s because I am invisible. I think I would be treated with the same level of disrespect if we were face to face. Fortunately for me, I have had years of experience in customer service, so I’m fairly rich in not letting the negative encounters bother me.
The biggest and most effective skill when it comes to the job is empathy (同理心). I can appreciate the situation which the caller is in because I’ve been there. That’s why I’m good at my job — I understand what you’re going through, and I’m here to help.
Some days though, no matter how much I try to leave the stress behind when I hang up the phone, it stays with me. I may do some deep breathing, go for a quick walk or simply stick my head outside for a burst of fresh air. I do this so I don’t carry that negativity on to my next call. That next call may be a person having the worst day of their life, but I don’t want to ever be the one who makes it worse. We are all humans just trying to get by in life, which makes you and me equal. So please, the next time we talk, remember that.
1. What does the underlined word “dread” in paragraph 2 probably mean?A.Enjoy. | B.Fear. | C.Expect. | D.Avoid. |
A.They get angry too easily. | B.They blame her for their debts. |
C.They do not see her as a real person. | D.They accuse her of taking their money. |
A.She can offer callers best advice. | B.She is always respected by callers. |
C.She can put herself in others’ shoes. | D.She isn’t easily influenced by negativity. |
A.To call for understanding of her job. | B.To explain why she is good at her job. |
C.To introduce what she is responsible for. | D.To complain about her being treated badly. |
A.A businesswoman. | B.A university teacher. | C.A university student. |
7 . When I began planning to move to Auckland to study, my mother was worried about a lack of jobs and cultural differences. Ignoring these
One afternoon, I walked into a building to ask
I was a little surprised, but had a
It seems that the world always
A.doubts | B.concerns | C.instructions | D.reasons |
A.for | B.at | C.of | D.with |
A.any | B.much | C.some | D.little |
A.whether | B.wherever | C.why | D.whenever |
A.purpose | B.attitude | C.language | D.manner |
A.answer | B.work | C.leave | D.refuse |
A.returned | B.hesitated | C.passed | D.regretted |
A.silent | B.busy | C.positive | D.comfortable |
A.pick out | B.search for | C.take on | D.give up |
A.dull | B.good | C.guilty | D.general |
A.made use of | B.taken care of | C.run out of | D.become tired of |
A.right | B.more | C.former | D.different |
A.pressure | B.agreement | C.impression | D.advice |
A.satisfied | B.funny | C.disappointed | D.lonely |
A.turns off | B.goes over | C.gives back | D.looks up |
8 . “Thank you for letting me observe your classes. It was an unusual experience,” the email began, which got my heart racing.
I am an industry scientist, and in my spare time I was teaching a course for computer science students at a local university. By that point in the semester, I hadn't asked the students to solve any technical problems or even open their computers. Instead, I taught them teamwork and communication and skills they
I thought of these lessons when I started to develop the university class. The part-time role was appealing because I was eager to share my expertise and get back to working with students. But I didn’t want to use my old teaching style, which focused on lectures and whiteboard exercises. I wanted to develop the same qualities I was looking for in job candidates at my company.
I decided to use games and challenges to encourage teamwork and creativity. In one, students had to work together to decide how to survive a tough desert environment. In another, they built the tallest structure they could out of spaghetti and candies. The teaching expert sat in on one such class.
I worried they might have been taken aback(吓到). But after that unsettling opening, their email was positive: “I understand the important message you
In the end, education is not just about sharing knowledge. It's also about helping students develop soft skills that will help them succeed wherever they plan to go, be it academia or industry.
1. What made the author's heart race?A.Uneasiness. | B.Excitement. | C.Heart failure. | D.Lack of sleep. |
A.To teach communication skills. | B.To take over the author's work. |
C.To learn about the author's teaching. | D.To help solve technical problems. |
A.Survival skills. | B.Soft skills. | C.Game design. | D.Book knowledge. |
A.He has a great impact on the author's career. |
B.He attaches importance to sharing knowledge. |
C.He points out the leading role of the computer. |
D.He shares the same teaching idea with the author. |
9 . I was driving when my phone alerted me to a new email. Filled with eager anticipation, I pulled over, turned on my hazard lights, and opened it. My emotions quickly changed as I learned, for the sixth and final time, that I had been denied a promotion to full professor. My institution didn’t seem to value what I brought to the table. But when I told my family that night, my children offered a surprisingly positive response. They were excited to see what I was going to do next, they said. They apparently knew long before I did that losing my bid for a promotion would turn out to be the best thing that could have happened for me.
This had been the final step in a long process spanning 15 months and involving so much effort. I had started by studying successful promotion bids and asking senior scholars for frank discussions about my readiness. I had carefully prepared my application packet, summarizing everything I had achieved in my career. For more than a year, I had spent hours every day trying to prove my worth to my university.
To my surprise, having a final answer brought a welcome sense of closure. As a first step toward healing, I decided to prioritize my own values and follow my own internal compass. I disconnected from people in my life who violated my values, cultivated my relationships with those who share my priorities and bring out the best in me, and spent more time with my family. I founded a nonprofit that helps first-generation and low-income students and young professionals advance in the workforce while serving their community. The initiative had long been a dream of mine, but I never pursued it because typical academic hiring and promotion don’t reward such efforts. Now, such considerations were no longer my North Star.
Five months after that email from top leadership, I found myself in the car again, experiencing another career-defining moment. I may have lost my bid for a big promotion, but in the end, it brought me to the right place.
1. What did the author feel after he read the email?A.Anxious and annoyed. | B.Embarrassed and ashamed. |
C.Relieved and peaceful. | D.Disappointed and sorrowful. |
A.What contributions the writer had made. | B.What preparations the writer had made. |
C.How successful the career had been. | D.How tiring the process had been. |
A.Success is more than a title or a rank. |
B.One’s internal compass is to be developed. |
C.Serving the community may heal a broken heart. |
D.One’s real value first lies in his family interaction. |
A.Emails: my North Star |
B.Full professor: a double-edged sword |
C.A career setback becomes a great opportunity |
D.An academic career witnesses a failed promotion |
10 . Richard is a very a successful businessman. It is common for him to work hard with a non-stop. He wasn’t aware that he might wear himself out or die an early death until he overslept one morning, which was a sort of alarm. And then what happened? He had a week’s leave during which time he read novels, listened to music and walked with his wife on a beach, which has enabled Richard to return to work again.
In our modern life, we have lost the rhythm between action and rest. Amazingly, within this world there is a universal but silly saying: “I am so busy.”
We say this to one another as if our tireless efforts were a talent by nature and an ability to successfully deal with stress. The busier we are, the more important we seem to ourselves and, we imagine, to others. To be unavailable to our friends and family, and to be unable to find time to relax — this has become the model of a successful life.
Because we do not rest, we lose our way. We miss the guide telling us where to go, the food providing us with strength, the quiet giving us wisdom.
How have we allowed this to happen? I believe it is this: we have forgotten the Sabbath, the day of the week — for followers of some religions — for rest and praying. It is a day when we are not supposed to work, a time when we devote ourselves to enjoying and celebrating what is beautiful. It is a good time to bless our children and loved ones, give thanks, share meals, walk and sleep. It is a time for us to take a rest, to put our work aside, trusting that there are larger forces at work taking care of the world.
Rest is s spiritual and biological need; however, in our strong ambition to be successful and care for our many responsibilities, we may feel terribly guilty when we take time to rest. The Sabbath gives us permission to stop work. In fact, “Remember the Sabbath” is more than simply permission to rest; it is a rule to obey and a principle to follow.
1. What’s the function of the paragraph 1?A.To tell us that Richard lives a healthy life. |
B.To bring up the topic of the passage. |
C.To give us a brief introduction of Richard |
D.To tell Richard is a successful businessman. |
A.a signal of stress | B.a warning of danger |
C.a sign of age | D.a spread of disease |
A.be able to work without stress | B.be more talented than other people |
C.be more important than anyone else | D.be busying working without time to rest |
A.Praying for our family. | B.Taking a good break. |
C.Only working for two hours. | D.Enjoying delicious meal. |
A.We should balance work with rest. |
B.The Sabbath gives us permission to rest. |
C.It is silly for anyone to say “I am busy.” |
D.We should be available to our family and friends. |