A Wise Choice?

　　One day， Moyer sat down with his mother， Janne O'Donnell， to talk about his goal of going to law school. Don't count on it， O'Donnell told him. She couldn't afford the cost and Moyer doubted he could get a loan， given how much he owed already. "He said he felt like a failure，" O'Donnell recalls. "He didn't know how he had gotten into such a mess."

　　A week later， the 22-year-old hanged himself in his bedroom， where his mother found him. O'Donnell is convinced the money pressures caused his suicide. "Sean tried to pay his debts off，" she says. "And he couldn't take it."

　　To be sure， suicides are exceedingly rare. But despair is common， and it sometimes leads students to rethink whether college was worth it. In fact， there are quite a few jobs that don't require a college degree， yet pay fairly well. On average， though， college graduates can expect to earn 80 percent more than those with only a high school diploma. Also， all but two of the 50 highest paying jobs (the exceptions being air traffic controllers and nuclear power reactor operators) require a four-year college degree. So foregoing a college education is often not a wise choice.

　　Merit Mikhail， who graduated last June from the University of California， Riverside， is glad she borrowed to get through school. But she left Riverside owing $20，000 in student loans and another $7，000 in credit card debt. Now in law school， Merit hopes to become a public-interest attorney， yet she may have to postpone that goal， which bothers her. To handle her debt， she'll probably need to start with a more lucrative(有利的)legal job.

　　Like so many other students. Mikhail took out her loans on a kind of blind faith that she could deal with the consequences. "You say to yourself， 'I have to go into debt to make it work， and whatever it takes later， I'll manage.'" Later has now arrived， and Mikhail is finding out the true cost of her college degree.

　　1. Griffith worked for a firm that specialized in economic development in Washington D.C. because she needed money to pay for her debt.

　　2. The only problem the students are facing at graduation is the dismal job market.

　　3. One reason why colleges increase tuition and fees is that the state support is shrinking.

　　4. Nearly all the families can manage to meet the soaring tuition costs through various investment plans.

　　5. According to Nadine's calculation， she can pay off all her debt when she is ________ if she can get a salary of $120，000 a year right out of law school.

　　6. Students get money from not only federal loans but also ________.

　　7. The college department or association can get payments from the issuer if it sanctions credit cards decorated with ________.

　　8. O'Donnell thinks that the cause of her 22-year-old son's suicide is ________.

　　9. The author says that foregoing a college education is often not a wise choice because ________ of the 50 highest paying jobs require a four-year college degree except for air traffic controllers and nuclear power reactor operators.

　　10. Merit will have to start with a more lucrative legal job instead of her favorite position—a public-interest attorney because she has to ________.

　　keys：

　　1. Y 根据题干中的信息词Griffith和Washington D.C. 定位到第一个小标题下的第三段，再结合上一段内容可知，Griffith想去工会工作，但其薪水无法支付她欠下的学生贷款和信用卡债务，因此她转而去一家经济发展公司工作，故该句表述正确。

　　2. N 根据题干中的信息词at graduation和dismal job market定位到第一个小标题下的倒数第二段，可知有越来越多的大学生抵押自己的未来以支付高昂的学费和读大学的其他费用，他们毕业时背负着沉重的学生贷款和信用卡债务，更不用提低靡的就业市场了。由此可知，大学生毕业时至少面临三个问题，故该句表述错误。

　　3. Y 根据题干中的信息词state support和shrinking定位到第二个小标题下的第一段，可知大学强调自己涨学费是为了支付前沿科技、教职管理人员的工资和医疗保健等费用，而现在政府因预算吃紧，对大学的扶持也在缩减。由此可知，该句表述正确。

　　4. N 根据题干中的信息词families和investment定位到第三个小标题下的第一段，可知许多家庭原以为自己的计划很完善，即便学费继续攀高，他们投资的回报也足够支付费用，可没想到的是那些投资和股市一起失败了。由此推断，很少有家庭可以通过投资计划支付高昂的学费，故该句表述错误。

　　5. 35 years old。根据题干中的信息词Nadine和$120， 000 a year定位到第三个小标题下第二段的段尾，可知Nadine计算出，等她还完所有债务，她就已经35岁了，而这还是比较乐观的估计，因为她的计算是预计自己一毕业就能找到年薪至少为12万美元的工作。

　　6. private lenders and credit cards/private lenders/credit cards。根据题干中的信息词federal loans定位到第四个小标题，可知学生的大部分贷款都是联邦贷款，他们也向私人债主借钱，而最糟糕的是他们还透支信用卡，造成信用卡债务，由此可得答案。

　　7. the school’s picture or logo。根据题干中的信息词payments from the issuer和sanctions定位到第四个小标题下的最后一段，可知有些大学鼓励信用卡公司在校园内吸引学生办卡，如果批准发放那种印有学校照片或标识的信用卡，学校相关院系或部门就可以从发卡方得到报酬。

　　8. the money pressures。根据题干中的信息词O’Donnell和22-year-old定位到最后一个小标题下的第二段，可知O’Donnell的儿子年仅22岁就在自己的卧室内自杀，而O’Donnell确信是金钱的压力导致了他的自杀，由此可得答案。

　　9. all but two。根据题干中的信息词foregoing和50 highest paying jobs定位到最后一个小标题下的第三段，可知除了空中交通管制员和核反应堆操控员以外，50个报酬最高的工作只有两个需要四年大学学历，所以说上大学通常不是明智之举。

　　10. handle her debt。根据题干中的信息词Merit和public-interest attorney定位到最后一个小标题下的倒数第二段，可知Merit想当公益律师，但她可能得推迟这一打算，因为为了应付她的债务，她很可能需要一开始做一份报酬更高的法律工作。

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