“你眼睛里有泥！”

（这是一句英文祝酒辞，相当于“祝你健康”或“干杯”。它的语言学起源存在着争议，至少有三种不同的版本，一说起源于圣经，一说起源于赛马，也有说是指葡萄酒在杯底的沉淀物。”）

据CNN网站报道，Payscale.com近期的一项调查让有意赴美求学、特别是期望毕业后能找到高薪工作的人大跌眼镜。

最出人意料的是毕业十年后工资最高的大学排名。

你猜排在第一名的会是哪所大学？哈佛？普林斯顿？斯坦福？

非也。正确答案是哈维姆德学院，而且是完胜。

哈维姆德学院是洛杉矶附近的一所小型文理学院，约有800名本科生，主修科学、医学和工程。毕业十年后，哈维姆德校友的平均年薪为143,000美元——远远高于其他美国一流大学毕业生的收入水平。

毕业后第一年，哈维姆德学生的起薪平均为73,300美元，和排名前十五位的其他名校处于同一水平。但十年后，哈维姆德校友的收入就大幅领先。

这令人有点意外，常青藤盟校在培养顶尖高薪人士的排名上并无优势。

据Payscale.com调查，学生毕业十年后平均收入排名前十五位的大学依次为：

1. 哈维姆德学院

2. 美国海军学院（毕业后须服5年兵役）

3. 加州理工学院

4. 斯蒂文斯理工学院

5. 巴布森学院

6. 普林斯顿大学

7. 美国西点军校（须服5年兵役）

8. 斯坦福大学

9. 哈佛大学

10. 布朗大学

11. 麻省理工学院

12. 高露洁大学

13. 耶鲁大学

14. 纽约大学理工学院

15. 纽约州立大学海事学院

其中只有三分之一来自常春藤盟校。

依我拙见，中国父母不应再一味追求将孩子送入美国名校。这会对孩子、父母以及亲子关系造成巨大的、不健康的压力，而且关键是所为何求呢？很多情况下主要是为了满足父辈的自豪感，但代价有多高？

我认识的许多成功商业领袖都毕业于我从没听说过的学校。也有很多人曾进入名校学习，但又中途辍学。

和5到10年前相比，越来越多相对富裕的中国父母希望子女能赴美接受高等教育。

“有中国特色”的留学咨询产业应运而生。他们为潜在的年纪非常小的申请人提供收费服务，内容包括选择目标学校、准备申请材料、提供（或真或假）的实习和社会活动志愿者证书、协助（很多时候是事实上代为）完成申请论文、培训社交仪态礼仪、有时甚至提供口语超强的“枪手”代为参加面试。

美国顶尖名校已注意到这种愈演愈烈的行为，目前已对中国申请人采取了较以往更为严格的审查制度。而另一方面，美国正规大学在中国聘请收费性招生中介的情况也在减少。

在正常、健康的教育体系中，大学入学咨询是由中学，尤其是学生留学意向比例较高的中学提供的一项重要免费服务。好的大学预科中学都会聘请专业知识丰富的资深大学入学顾问来辅导学生。

如果考虑赴美国读大学，要记得美国有3,500多所大学可供挑选。即使只考虑前四分之一，也有875所学校。中国父母可能并不了解这些学校，但这些学校并非就不是好学校。

我的意思是说选择包括美国在内的海外大学或学院非常重要，而且可选择的范围很大。应该尽量广泛收集信息并认真研究，父母和子女也要亲自参与，不要全程假手于人。

鼓励年轻人在留学申请中作弊是个严重的错误。父母应小心这样的言传身教会对孩子的成功观、价值观和做人原则造成的长期影响。

这就如同为取得体育比赛的胜利，鼓励孩子服用可提高成绩的禁药。这种行为在传达什么人生经验？只要能赢，可以不择手段？

我想祝各位有幸申请到美国或其他海外大学留学的学生好运并圆满完成学业。为此，我要举杯祝贺：“你眼睛里有泥！”

记住：重要的是要终身学习，对所做的事充满热情，有明确的是非观，具备良好的沟通能力，与他人合作。而收入能否比邻居高并不是最重要的事。

“Here’s Mud in Your Eye!”

(This English language expression is a drinking toast, roughly equivalent in usage to “To your health”, or “Bottoms up.” Its linguistic origins are disputed, with at least three different explanations, ranging from a Biblical reference, to horse racing, and to the wine dregs which can accumulate in the bottom of a drinking glass.)

A recent survey by Payscale.com, as reported on CNN.com, contains some surprises for those seeking an American college degree, especially regarding salary expectations after graduation.

The big surprise was the college whose grads are the highest earners by the time they reach their mid-careers — ten years after graduation.

Which would be your guess? Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Stanford?

Nope. The answer is, by a wide margin, Harvey Mudd College.

Harvey Mudd is a small, specialized liberal arts college near Los Angeles, with an undergraduate body of about 800 students specializing in science, medical studies and engineering. Ten years after obtaining their undergraduate degree, Harvey Mudd alums earn an average median salary of US$143,000 per year — much higher than any of the other top US colleges and universities.

Mudd alums’ starting salaries in year one after graduation averaged US$73,300, which is in the same general range as the other top 15 colleges and universities in the ranking. Ten years later, however, the Mudd gang leads the pack by a wide margin.

It may come as a surprise that the Ivy League schools do not dominate the rankings when it comes to producing the top money earners.

Payscale.com’s ranking of the top 15 US colleges and universities in terms of average median incomes ten years after graduation is:

1. Harvey Mudd College

2. U.S. Naval Academy (note: requires 5 years’ military service after graduation)

3. California Institute of Technology

4. Stevens Institute of Technology

5. Babson College

6. Princeton University

7. US Military Academy at West Point (note: also requires 5 years’ military service)

8. Stanford University

9. Harvard University

10. Brown University

11. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.)

12. Colgate

13. Yale

14. Polytechnic Institute of New York University

15. State University of New York Maritime College

Only 1/3 out of the top 15 were Ivy League schools.

In my humble opinion, Chinese parents should stop obsessing about getting their children into famous (“ming pai”) colleges in the U.S. It creates enormous and unhealthy pressure, on the young person, their parents, and their relationship — and for what? In more cases than not, a big part of it is about satisfying parental pride; but at what cost?

Some of the most successful business leaders I’ve known graduated from colleges I’d never heard of. Many others attended famous universities but dropped out before graduation.

Many more relatively affluent Chinese parents want their children to pursue college-level studies in the U.S. than was the case 5-10 years ago.

A whole industry of college entrance counselors “with Chinese characteristics” has emerged. These operators offer fee-based services engaging the would-be applicants at a very young age. Their service options include choosing target schools, preparing the application papers, providing (fake or real) internships and social work volunteer assignments, assisting with (often actually writing) the application essay, training on social graces and etiquette, and sometimes even providing a fake stand-in with strong verbal English skills for personal interviews.

Top U.S. schools have caught onto the prevalence of these practices, and now pay more attention than in years past to vetting details of applicants from China. On the other hand, some less scrupulous US colleges have allegedly hired recruiting agents in China who earn commission on students who attend. So, the scams run in both directions.

In a normal, healthy educational system, college counseling is an important, free service offered by those secondary schools whose students tend to attend college or university, especially when a high percentage are aiming for overseas study. Good college-preparatory secondary schools hire qualified, knowledgeable college counselors.

When considering tertiary studies in the US, it is worth remembering that there are about 3,500 accredited colleges and universities to choose from. Consider only the top quality quartile of this group, which consists of 875 schools. Chinese parents would be unaware of the vast majority of these schools. That does not mean they are not fine schools, however.

My point is that the choice of an overseas college or university, including in the US, is important and offers a wide range of options. It’s worth careful study with inputs from as wide a variety of sources as possible. It’s worth parents and their child getting involved in the research rather than outsourcing the whole process to a hired consultant.

I think encouraging young people to engage in academic fraud when applying for overseas study is a grievous mistake. Parents who do this should carefully consider the long-term consequences of the lesson they are teaching their children about how to succeed in life, and the values and principles which matter.

It is similar to encouraging your child to take banned performance-enhancing drugs in order to win in a sports competition. What’s the life lesson implied by this behavior? Anything goes, as long as you win?

I’d like to wish good luck and good results to all those fortunate enough to be applicants to U.S. and other overseas colleges. To that end, I’d offer a toast to their success: “Here’s mud in your eye.”

Remember: what’s important is becoming a life-time learner with a passion for what you do, a clear sense of right and wrong, and the ability to communicate your ideas and work well with other people. Whether or not you earn more than your neighbor is not of major importance.