Being enrolled in a top university is probably every student’s dream. But no matter how much you study for the application, you may come across a question that you never expected.
被顶尖名校录取或许是每个学生的梦想。但不论你为入学申请准备了多少功课，你或许都会遇上意想不到的问题。
Earlier this month, Oxford University released an admission interview question from All Souls College: “Would you like to be a vampire or a zombie?” It immediately sparked a heated discussion among the public online, as many people tried to answer the question.
本月初，牛津大学公布了万灵学院的一道入学面试题：“你想当吸血鬼还是僵尸？”这道题目很快引发网友热议，不少人都试图回答这一问题。
Vampires and zombies are two popular creatures in Western folklore. In 2009, Lucinda Rumsey, of Mansfield College at Oxford University, also asked English literature applicants about the Twilight books, a series on vampires written by US author Stephenie Meyer. “A good English student engages in literary analysis of every book they read,” Rumsey told The Telegraph.
吸血鬼和僵尸是西方民间传说中的家喻户晓的两种生物。2009年，牛津大学曼斯菲尔德学院的露辛达·拉姆齐曾问过英语文学专业申请者一道关于小说《暮光之城》的问题，该系列小说由美国作家斯蒂芬妮·梅尔所著，讲述的是吸血鬼的故事。“一名优秀的英语专业学生会认真对读过的每本书进行文学分析，”拉姆齐在接受《每日电讯报》采访时表示。

And it seems there’s no magic answer, other than the one that’s inside your head. “No matter what kind of educational background or opportunities you have had, the interview should be an opportunity to present your interest and ability in your chosen subject, since they are not just about reciting what you already know,” Samina Khan, director of admissions at Oxford University, wrote on the university’s official website.
除了你自己头脑中的想法之外，这道题似乎并没有神奇的答案。“不论你拥有何种教育背景或机会，面试都应成为一次展现你对所选学科的兴趣和才能的机会，因为这并非只是背诵所学知识而已，”牛津大学招生主任萨米纳·汗在该校官网上写道。
Indeed, what Oxford University really wants is to encourage its applicants to think outside the box and explore the unknown fields they previously failed to venture into, The Independent noted.
的确，牛津大学这么做的真正目的在于鼓励申请者们能跳出条条框框去思考，并且探索他们以往未曾涉猎的未知领域，《独立报》指出。