改革開放新時代 留學找中介靠譜嗎

An angry voice awoke Wang Ziji. The 21-year-old electronic and information science and technology major at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics heard a voice shouting, “Why are you constantly changing my consultant?”

一聲怒吼吵醒了王梓吉（音譯）——“爲什麼我的留學顧問一直在換人？”。21歲的他現就讀於南京航空航天大學電子信息科學與技術專業。

“It must be my roommate arguing again with his study abroad agent,” Wang thought. It had already happened several times, which made Wang wonder if having an agent was a wise choice.

王梓吉心想：“一定是室友又在和留學中介吵架。”這種情況已經發生過好幾次了，王梓吉開始懷疑，留學找中介究竟靠不靠譜。

In fact, many students who plan to study abroad have the same concern. Below, their upperclassmen talk about their experiences and professionals offer advice.

事實上，很多準備出國留學的學生都有着同樣的顧慮。下面就讓我們來向前輩學長們取取經，聽聽專業人士給出的建議。

Poor writing

寫作水平差

Zhang Na, 24, is an archaeology major of Northwest University. She decided to leave the application work to a study abroad agent as it was already quite late.

24歲的張娜（音譯）是西北大學考古系學生。由於時間相當緊迫，她決定請一家留學中介代辦申請。

At first, the process was smooth, but when Zhang read her recommendation letter she noticed a problem. “I wasn’t satisfied with it,” says Zhang. “I could tell the writer hadn’t put any thought into it because it said I’m a ‘promising young man’ in the letter.” She had to rewrite the personal statement and recommendation letters herself in the end. “I didn’t trust them anymore,” she says.

一開始，整個進程很順利，但當張娜閱讀自己的推薦信時卻發現了一個問題。張娜說：“這份信讓我很不滿意。信中把我稱作是‘一位很有前途的男生’，我敢斷定寫信的人根本就沒有花心思在這上面。”最後，她不得不選擇自行重寫一份個人陳述和推薦信。“我再也不相信他們了。”

Shu Hui, head of the Korean department at the Shanghai Overseas Affairs Service Center Co Ltd, admits that Zhang’s experience is not unusual. “Good personal statements and recommendation letters require a lot of detailed information. If the consultants can’t work closely with the applicant, they are not likely to deliver a satisfactory result,” she says.

上海市出入境服務中心有限公司韓國部負責人舒慧（音譯）承認，像張娜這樣的情況不在少數。她說：“好的個人陳述和推薦信需要具備許多詳盡的信息。如果留學顧問不能與申請人緊密配合，最終的結果肯定不理想。”

Change of consultant

留學顧問換人

Another problem Zhang experienced with the agent was changing consultants. “My first two consultants left the company midway through the application process, so I had to get used to a new one twice,” she says.

張娜在留學中介碰到的另一個問題就是留學顧問換不停。“我之前的兩位顧問都在申請中途離職了，因此我不得不重新去適應我的新顧問。”

Wang Ziji’s roommate was even more frustrated about the constant changing of consultants as none of his consultants handled the handover well. “He had to explain his application status to the new one every time, which is the opposite of what he expected from the agency,” says Wang.

王梓吉室友的情況則更糟糕，顧問頻繁更換，而交接工作卻做不到位。王梓吉說：“他每次都得跟新任顧問說明申請進度情況，與他之前對於該中介的期待可謂是大相徑庭。”

DIY or study abroad agent?

靠自己還是找中介？

Meng Fang, 22, studies computer science at Carnegie Mellon University. She decided to apply for the master’s degree program by herself after comparing the process of applying by herself to applying through an agent. “I evaluated different elements of the application process and came to the conclusion that I should do it by myself,” she says.

22歲的孟芳（音譯）現就讀於卡內基梅隆大學計算機科學專業。在對個人申請和中介申請進行一番比較之後，她還是決定自行申請碩士項目。她說：“我對申請流程中的各要素都權衡了一番，最後得出一個結論：還是自己動手靠譜。”

Cao Xianshui, a senior study abroad expert and the author of Further Your Study in the US, believes that whether students should hire a study abroad agent or not depends on their individual case.

資深留學專家、《你也能去美國留學》一書的作者曹賢水（音譯）認爲學生是否聘請留學中介還是要看個人情況。

“For well-heeled students who want to apply for a less competitive university, finding a study abroad agent is a good way to save some trouble,” he says. “But for students who have enough self-discipline and good learning and analysis skills, applying by themselves may give them a better chance of getting into a top university.”

“如果家境優越，又不想申請熱門學校，那留學中介就是個不錯的選擇，可以爲你省去許多麻煩，”他說，“而對那些足夠自律，且學習與分析能力強的學生來說，自行申請則更有把握敲開一流學府的大門。”